Weird songs at Mass

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paramedicgirl said:
:bigyikes: This was that kind of funeral, I guess, where anything goes. Only one person went up to receive Communion. There were four practicing Catholics there, and the Church was overflowing.
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Oh well, at least we can thank God that no-one apparently ate and drank condemnation upon himself.
 
smessner said:
Several of the songs from “Godspell” have been used at Masses I’ve attended. Most noticeably, “Prepare Ye” during Advent, of course, “Day by Day”.
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We used to do “Day by Day” and “All Good Gifts” in my Catholic high school choir for Mass occasionally. We did them pretty well, too. When you get to the, “I really want to thank you Lord…” part and let loose but have the musical articulation as tight as we did, it resonated marvelously.

But nothing beat the spiritualistic, “Lead Me, Guide Me” when our black choir director from the South Side who could inbue the true spirit of that song dropped out of playing along on piano and just let the entire congregation go at it a cappella. That’s rocked! Clapping along in the right places and everything. Now hearing white people try to sing this song on occasion, um no. But it sure will sound funny if you have heard it done right by a gospel choir beforehand.

Of course, in after school rehearals (but not actually for Mass) we’d sing REM and all kinds of crazy stuff in the chapel for fun.

Then, at my parish, there was once an organist who liked to play “Tea for Two” after Mass when most had left.

Now, on Holy Thursday, we have to tolerate this childlike ditty about how, “Jesus took his cloak off and he washed my feet, yes he washed my feet, oh he washed my feet.”

Gee, thinking about this stuff makes me want to do hand movements with “Abba Father” or something from the old Glory and Praise hymnal singalong tapes. Won’t you join me? Come on, now! "You are the po-ah-tter, and we are the clay, the work of your hands…:
What about other Broadway Musical tunes?
Jesus Christ Superstar comes to mind. Fiddler on the Roof’s “Sunrise, Sunset” and “Sabbath Prayer” (mostly at weddings though most of those barely count as liturgies).
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Weddings are notorious for this stuff as preludes at some parishes.
And as an example of a good song used in a weird way…
Bob Dufford, SJ, related the story of a cantor announcing the Entrance Hymn in this way:
"Please stand and greet our priest by singing “Hail, Holy Queen”.
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Well, if the (high heeled) shoe fits…
 
mattkubes said:
I remember in elementary school we sang a song that didn’t bother me at the time, but it seems awfully contrary to Church teachings:

Peter built His church on the rock of our faith,
His banner over me is love
(repeat ad nauseum)
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Did you do the thing with the hammering for building and hold your hands over your head for the banner? Let’s see, then it’s point to yourself for “me” and hold your hands to your heart for “love”.

Oh man, good memories. I could use some Davy and Goliath right about now!
 
I seem to remember girls from the grade school I attended getting up to sing “Wind Beneath My Wings” for a graduation or confirmation at one point.
 
So I actually obtained a recording of the “Polka Mass” setting at a thrift shop awhile back. When it came around to the alleluia verse I thought it sounded familiar. Then I realized it was being sung to the tune of “oblahdee oblahdah”. The Gospel according to Corky!
 
I declined an opportunity to attend a Mass a few weeks back in town which was advertized as featuring music of U2.
 
Long time ago when I was in college in the late 60s and early 70s, we sang The Age of Aquarius. Once. Even we young skulls full of mush realized that was just Not Right.

I remember some of the weird and off the wall songs that the other posters have mentioned. I’ve grown up though, and appreciate the good hymns now, and I’ve even made a list of hymns I want at my funeral. I believe that the great jazz musician Woody Herman specified only pre-Vatican II music at his funeral.
 
chicago said:
I declined an opportunity to attend a Mass a few weeks back in town which was advertized as featuring music of U2.
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I once heard U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” at a less than orthodox parish under the guidance of a less than orthodox priest. Some parishioners grumbled that he should just leave if he still hadn’t found what he was looking for. Soon after he did leave…he left the priesthood altogether and moved in with his boyfriend. No wonder he didn’t find what he was looking for in the Church.
 
Petergee said:
I thought it was an accidental mistake, but the next Xmas they did the same thing. Between that and the families who apparently came to see the “show” bringing enough food and drink to keep consuming it continuously throughout the Mass, I have avoided going to the “Families Mass” since.
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Last year on Christmas Eve, the teachers and children from our parish school put on a family Mass. We made the never-to-be-repeated mistake of attending. :rolleyes: It was truly awful…no need to offend everyone with all the hideous details. Suffice to say that they played a recording of Bony M’s Christmas song as the Communion hymn. I just couldn’t bring myself to join the line of people bopping their way up the aisle to a horrified Father. I waited till the song finished before joining the end of the line.

I must say in their defence that none of the teachers are actually Catholic and only a handful of the kids have set foot in the church since their First Holy Communion…so we really can’t blame them! :rolleyes: No wonder Father titles his First Holy Communion homilies “Why Your First Holy Communion Should Not Be Your Last!” God bless him!

Now we just have to decide whether or not to send our kids to this ahem catholic school…hmmmm…tough decision. 😉
 
aboverubies said:
Last year on Christmas Eve, the teachers and children from our parish school put on a family Mass. We made the never-to-be-repeated mistake of attending. :rolleyes: It was truly awful…no need to offend everyone with all the hideous details. Suffice to say that they played a recording of Bony M’s Christmas song as the Communion hymn. I just couldn’t bring myself to join the line of people bopping their way up the aisle to a horrified Father. I waited till the song finished before joining the end of the line.

I must say in their defense that none of the teachers are actually Catholic IMHO this is why many of our children have no idea about the culture and many of the Traditions of the Catholic Church 😦 and only a handful of the kids have set foot in the church since their First Holy Communion…so we really can’t blame them! Who hired your teachers? A Catholic school should be Catholic. :rolleyes: No wonder Father titles his First Holy Communion homilies “Why Your First Holy Communion Should Not Be Your Last!” God bless him!

Now we just have to decide whether or not to send our kids to this ahem catholic school…hmmmm…tough decision. 😉 We had the same question. We homeschool using Classical Catholic Curriculum.
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The Christmas before we started to homeschool the non-Catholic teaches at our (now closed) parish school presented a
dance on the altar) all we could do was sit in horror while the 8th graders danced happily in skin tight dance costumes. Thank God our grandchildren were in preschool at the time.
 
aboverubies said:
Last year on Christmas Eve, the teachers and children from our parish school put on a family Mass. We made the never-to-be-repeated mistake of attending. :rolleyes: It was truly awful…no need to offend everyone with all the hideous details. Suffice to say that they played a recording of Bony M’s Christmas song as the Communion hymn. I just couldn’t bring myself to join the line of people bopping their way up the aisle to a horrified Father. I waited till the song finished before joining the end of the line.
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Oof. I really like that song (“Mary’s Boy Child”, I think), but I like hearing it on the radio when I’m out Christmas shopping. Definitely NOT at Mass.
 
SeekerJen said:
Oof. I really like that song (“Mary’s Boy Child”, I think), but I like hearing it on the radio when I’m out Christmas shopping. Definitely NOT at Mass.
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OK, we know that the Church strongly discourages songs at Mass which:
  1. Were written primarily for secular entertainment, and/or are of musical styles which are far removed from the chant and polyphony appropriate to liturgical music, and
  2. Are re-played recorded music rather than sung by the congregation, choir or cantor.
    However neither of these are absolute prohibitions and althouigh we may not like such songs we can tolerate them.
    But what we should NOT tolerate is any song (even if it’s set to traditional liturgical style music) which has lyrics which are frankly blasphemous, heretical, obscene/offensive/lewd, or have little or no connexion to our faith.
 
Petergee said:
OK, we know that the Church strongly discourages songs at Mass which:
  1. Were written primarily for secular entertainment, and/or are of musical styles which are far removed from the chant and polyphony appropriate to liturgical music, and
  2. Are re-played recorded music rather than sung by the congregation, choir or cantor.
    However neither of these are absolute prohibitions and althouigh we may not like such songs we can tolerate them.
    But what we should NOT tolerate is any song (even if it’s set to traditional liturgical style music) which has lyrics which are frankly blasphemous, heretical, obscene/offensive/lewd, or have little or no connexion to our faith.
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Unfortunately, the wishes of the Church don’t make much of an impact on those in charge of the music ministries.
 
smessner said:
You know the difference between a liturgist and a terrorist? You can negotiate with a terrorist.🙂
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Well you know the drill. If you can’t convince the lay liturgist by charitable correction to change the (heretical etc) song, take it up with the parish priest, and if still no action, with the bishop.
 
KathleenElsie said:
The Christmas before we started to homeschool the non-Catholic teaches at our (now closed) parish school presented a
dance on the altar) all we could do was sit in horror while the 8th graders danced happily in skin tight dance costumes. Thank God our grandchildren were in preschool at the time.
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The teachers were hired by the previous school principal, a nun. sigh She has now retired and has been replaced by a non-catholic. It is quite common in Australian catholic schools to hire non-catholic teachers or even more commonly, non-practicing catholics.

If we had reservations about homeschooling before, we certainly don’t now! It is the only way we can ensure that our children get a Catholic education. It is not a common choice here, so we will be going against the grain and will be considered odd. So what else is new?! 😛
 
After reading this thread, all I can say is that if this is the real state of music in the Church today, I’ll bet Palestrina, Bach, Handel, Mozart, and Pope Gregory the Great are all spinning in their graves like electrical dynamos…
 
smessner said:
You know the difference between a liturgist and a terrorist? You can negotiate with a terrorist.🙂
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Hah! Our former pastor told us this once, I just posted it here in another thread. I guess great minds think alike.
 
chicago said:
Now, on Holy Thursday, we have to tolerate this childlike ditty about how, “Jesus took his cloak off and he washed my feet, yes he washed my feet, oh he washed my feet.”
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In Worship III the title of this gem is “Jesus Took a Towel.” Which makes it sound as though this is going to be a song about a hotel guest helping himself to bathroom linens, soaps and a couple of those little shampoo bottles, not a “hymn” about Our Lord.
 
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