Why not Gospel music?

[NetNuncio]

Praise and worship music is garbage. It’s just a poor imitation of pop music. I’d much rather listen to Beyonce or Fergie than a cantor doing a pitiful imitation of them with “Christian” lyrics. A copy is never as cool or as well done as the original.

As for Gospel music… there is nothing funnier than a bunch of middle class white suburbanites trying to sing Amazing Grace or Were Your There. Unless you grew up with Gospel music as part of your culture you just seem patronizing and ridiculous when you try to sing it.

Indeed…take all the words from a secular pop song and change the word “baby” to “Jesus”. Send it to GIA and rake in the profits. Sad.

 

[agapewolf]

Praise and worship music may not be the most objectively good music. Maybe there is an argument that it isn’t appropriate for mass.

however,

praise and worship music is largely written from someone’s prayer.

DO NOT say it is garbage. That is calling someone’s prayer garbage.I take offense to that.

I’ve had this argument many times here. There are a few p/w songs that I invite intellectual discussion about and comparing to an older hymn structure…because they are amazingly similar.

But no one seems to be able to talk intelligently about it. Chord structure, lyrics, long tones, cadences… pretty similar both ways.Actually p/w is easier sung, less wordy, simpler all the way around.

 

[lewisld7729]

… I personally do not like Praise and Worship music for academic reasons, personal taste and a literally physical aversion to it, although I understand if other people do.

Although I’m a little late coming to the conversation, I’m here by way of a search for what others had to say about “Praise and Worship” style of music at Mass in parishes with a predominantly African American attendance.

Your wording, “personal taste and a literally physical aversion to it” fit me like a glove! For my tastes, there is far to much of this style of music here in Tennessee. For the record, I am an African American, mid-60’s, convert. My Dad was a pastor, and I played organ in the church I which I grew up.

When I go to Mass, I do not want anything that sounds Protestant, be it P&W or C&W (Country and Western – the most predominant style of music at Mass here in Tennessee). I want the sound to be Catholic (i.e., Gregorian, high church sound).

Unfortunately, my black peers expect me to like black gospel music, regardless of how poorly it is presented. If I mention my preference for traditional Catholic music (instead of traditional black music), I receive condescending looks.

I do occasionally play this type of music (at home or driving in my car), but not very often because I consider playing the rosary a much better use of my time).

Thanks for being here.

 

[bobballen_18]

A couple comments - since I’m late to the conversation, it would be crazy for me to try to address everything that has been mentioned, so I’ll just touch on a couple.

Sure, the Church does not prohibit modern composers from composing for the Liturgy. I believe it can be effectively (and correctly, in my opinion) argued, however, that the Church does not just permit any modern composition to be composed for the Liturgy, and definitely not just any style. It still has to conform to the standards of Sacred Music which the Church has more or less upheld over the centuries.

I think the only other thing I’ll mention is this: I believe one of the best arguments for using only Gregorian Chant, polyphony/other similar works, and a small repertoire of solid, Catholic hymns, is simply this - it is specifically and obviously Catholic. Not so with modern-style music (i.e., praise and worship, Christian pop, whatever else we unfortunately commonly hear today in the Liturgy). I’m all for modern composers to compose for the Liturgy and even to incorporate modern musical thought into it - so long as it is composed in the style of the traditional sacred music of the Church.

And the reason I believe it’s best to only have authentic, undoubtedly Catholic music at Mass is to distinguish between the Catholic Church and Protestant Church/everything else. I understand the desire to be ecumenical, and one might argue that, well, we have the Eucharist and they don’t. OK, sure, that’s certainly true - but would one readily be able to recognize we have something they don’t when they walk into a Church and there’s a nice band up front complete with drums and whatnot? OK, that’s an extreme example, but in general, I would argue that more often than not, no, they would not be able to readily see, by the prevalence of this sort of music in the Liturgy as well as by how many people act inside churches today, that we as Catholics have something they don’t. I know God can work through any means, so certainly it is possible for a non-Catholic to feel the presence of God in a Catholic Church in any circumstance - but I believe the Church would be much better off if she would unashamedly sing the Liturgy in the form as close as possible to what she has tried to do over the centuries based on documents.