Gloria In Excelsis Deo!

Why is Gregorian chant making a comeback?
Arlene Oost-Zinner and Jeffrey Tucker

The pontificate of Pope Benedict XVI has been marked by new efforts to promote excellence in sacred music. His apostolic exhortation of last March, Sacramentum Caritatis, encourages teaching Latin chant in seminaries and singing it in liturgies, with particular emphasis on international gatherings.

The Pope has been quite direct in other settings as well. "An authentic updating of sacred music," he said in June 2006, "can take place only in the lineage of the great tradition of the past, of Gregorian chant and sacred polyphony." (Polyphony is music performed by multiple voices singing different, harmonized parts.)

Last but not least, Pope Benedict's recent apostolic letter Summorum Pontificum (July 7), which allows for a wider celebration of the traditional Latin Mass, now sets the stage for a wider use of Gregorian chant as well, given its important role in that form of the rite.

This is a Vatican-wide initiative, with an emphasis on the English-speaking world, where the neglect of the treasury of sacred music is widespread and well-known. Cardinal Frances Arinze, head of the Vatican congregation that oversees the sacred liturgy, spoke in St. Louis last year and urged a remedy. He said that in the average parish, Gregorian chant should be constantly present.

These statements echo authoritative documents of the Church: Gregorian chant, says the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM), holds "pride of place because it is proper to the Roman liturgy."

This in turn restates the message of the Second Vatican Council, whose Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium (1963), teaches that chant represents the ideal liturgical music, the standard against which all else should be measured (see Nos. 116-117).

Clearly, then, the council fathers never intended for chant to vanish after Vatican II. Quite the opposite. Pope Paul VI, in 1974, issued a book of chants along with the pastoral letter Voluntatis Obsequens. "Those who are trying to improve the quality of congregational singing," said the letter, "cannot refuse to Gregorian chant the place which is due to it."

Again, we find the same emphasis from Pope John Paul II, whose "Chirograph on the Centenary of Pius X's Moto Proprio on Sacred Music" (2003) insists, "Among the musical expressions that correspond best with the qualities demanded by the notion of sacred music, espe-cially liturgical music, Gregorian chant has a special place." He adds that the chant is an element of unity in the Roman liturgy.

What Is Gregorian Chant?

The Gregorian tradition took shape in the eighth century as the primary song of the Latin rite. It fused Gallican, Frankish, Jewish and Roman styles, growing up alongside the Mass.

Popes have consistently emphasized that it should be studied, perfected and used, not just in religious communities and cathedrals but in all parishes. That is in part because chant embodies the pace, rhythm and transcendent longings we find in Scripture, particularly the Psalms.

The tradition of Gregorian chant in the Latin rite provides music that meets the needs of all ages, classes and ethnic groups, not just in our times but in all times. The chant is intimately linked with Catholic faith and its prayer life. It takes us out of our everyday environment to remind us that we are in a sacred space. It helps us pray.

For all these reasons, chant has begun to move beyond the world of CDs and movie soundtracks, entering once again into our parish lives. The National Registry of Gregorian Scholas (choirs), for example, lists more than 100 groups singing in parishes around the country.

But more needs to be done. Because the music is so different from popular styles, it can be a challenge to sing. The sheer quantity of Gregorian chant is overwhelming; even in several lifetimes, it would be impossible to learn it all. But there is a core that can be broken down into three parts.

• 1. The Kyriale is the name given to the body of chants that belong to the people during Mass. These include all the responses to the celebrant and what is called the Ordinary of the Mass: the Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus and Agnus Dei.

Many people today are familiar with the most basic of these, but the Church has actually given us 18 different settings of the Ordinary. There are congregations in this country that know all 18!

• 2. The Graduale contains the body of chants that belongs to the Schola, or the singers set apart to study and perfect the Propers. The Propers are the sung parts of the Mass that include the Introit, Alleluia, Offertory and Communion, as well as the seasonal Sequences and Tracts. These are the most difficult part of Gregorian music, but also the part most closely tied to the changing prayer of the Mass.

• 3. Finally, there are the vast numbers of popular chant hymns that can be sung at liturgy. These include the Marian antiphons such as Ave Maria and Salve Regina, as well as poetry set to music such as Attende Domine, Veni Creator Spiritus and O Salutaris. This last type provides an excellent place to start.

Chant Means Change

Many pastors who lack experience with the chant worry about pushing something new on their congregations or music directors. And yet this is not just any change: It's a movement toward fulfilling the wishes of the Church. Just as we expect certain types of music at the baseball game or a restaurant, there's a type of music particularly suited for Mass.

Everyone knows about the feuds over liturgical music. Chant offers a peaceful "third way." It can have an appeal to all parishioners, provided it is presented properly.

Chant links all generations now living and binds us to Catholics in all times and places. It exists not as a time-bound statement about musical fashion, but rather as a timeless melodic means of community prayer.

Chant encourages reverence, prayer and an awareness of the transcendent purpose of liturgical action. Chant catechizes and serves an evangelistic purpose.

Yes, introducing chant means change. Progress in learning it must be counted in years, not weeks or months. But once the ground is prepared, the quiet solemnity of chant can take root and grow, persuading people of its merit by the hearing and doing. Singing it is more convincing than arguing about it.

A Call for Humility

The renewed emphasis on chant in liturgy is a call for humility above all else. Musicians are being asked to serve rather than perform. The motivation must be love of liturgy and its source, love of sung prayer and its purpose, and a genuine desire to hear the people of God united in one voice in praise and thanksgiving.

Rome has been thoroughly consistent on the matter of liturgical music and the importance of using Gregorian chant in worship. But genuine change in response to these directives must begin in the parish community. It must come from the people and their pastors so that it can truly take root once again in the life of everyday Catholics. TCA

Arlene Oost-Zinner and Jeffrey Tucker are directors of the St.Cecilia Schola Cantorum in Auburn, Ala. You may e-mail them at contact@ceciliaschola.org.

From: Our Sunday Visitor

URL source: http://www.osv.com/TCANav/TheCatholicAnswerNovDec2007/GloriainExcelsisDeo/tabid/4642/Default.aspx

Letter from Bishop Fellay

Society of Saint Pius X
Priorat Mariae Verkundigung
Schloss Schwandegg
Menzingen, ZG, CH-6313
SWITZERLAND

SUPERIOR GENERAL'S
LETTER TO FRIENDS AND BENEFACTORS #71

Dear Friends and Benefactors,

    The traditional Mass was never abrogated. What joy, dear faithful, filled our hearts at the announcement of Pope Benedict XVI's motu proprio July 7th.  We see in it an answer from Heaven to our Rosary Crusade, not only by the simple fact of its promulgation, but especially because of the scope of the overture towards the traditional liturgy we find there.  Indeed, it is not only the missal that is declared to be Church law, but also other liturgical books.  In fact, if the Mass was never abrogated, it kept all its rights.

    In reality, the motu proprio grants nothing new to the Mass of All Time; it simple affirms that the Mass of St. Pius V, called "of John XXIII" for the occasion, is still in force despite its absence and an interdiction against its celebration lasting nearly forty years.  The Tridentine Mass is still the Catholic Mass.  The subtle and maladroit distinction made between ordinary form and extraordinary form of the same rite in speaking of the new and the old Mass will not deceive anyone.  In this domain, the facts speak for themselves.  What must be retained is the assertion of the Mass's perpetual status as a universal law of the Catholic Church. The very word "law of the Church" excludes indults, permissions, or conditions.  The bishops are trying to neutralize the salutary effect of the motu proprio by imposing onerous and odious restrictions on its implementation.  They are certainly not following the Sovereign Pontiff's will.  It will be very interesting to watch the progress of this more or less open rebellion, which is largely hidden from public view.  The history of the Church for the next several decades will be determined by this confrontation.  Let us pray that the pope may have the strength to uphold and to impose what he has just restored to the Church.

    It goes much further than the simple celebration of the Mass.  The motu proprio opens the door to the former liturgical spirit in the sense that he is allowing it to develop.  The liturgy comprises several elements, of which, obviously, the most important is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, but this treasure is set amongst an ensemble of liturgical books.  Most of them, or at least the most well-known, are going to acquire a new life: the ritual, which contains the rites used by the priest to confer the sacraments and blessings; the pontifical in part, which contains the sacrament of confirmation; and the breviary.  These liturgical books form a whole that will undoubtedly allow the traditional liturgical spirit to assume a place in the life of the Church.

    The initial effects of the motu proprio are interesting, even if they are almost insignificant when one considers the Church as a whole.  Still, some bishops are actively supporting the movement; and despite the difficulties imposed by other Ordinaries, priests especially are learning and beginning to celebrate the Holy Mass.  More than 5,000 priests worldwide have requested the training videos on the ceremonies of the Mass produced by the Society.  That shows that priests still take a certain interest in the Mass of All Time!

    What is admirable is the unanimous opinion we hear from priests who are discovering the Tridentine Mass.  The following testimonies are not exceptional: "It's two different worlds!" "Celebrating facing the altar or the people is completely different!" "By celebrating this Mass, I've discovered what a priest is!"

    These testimonials go a long way, and are worth more than all the argumentations.

    There is no point in asking them what they think about the holiness of the new rite...  It is obvious that if the genuine freedom to celebrate were guaranteed not only in writing but in practice, the number of Tridentine Masses would immediately increase tenfold.

    Whoever is aware of the titanic struggle that has been raging in our Catholic Church for at least two centuries, understands that a large part of the crisis in the Church is playing out around the Mass.  Two Masses, two theologies, two spirits: A new spirit was inoculated into the veins of the Mystical Body by means of the New Mass, "the spirit of Vatican II."  The traditional Mass, on the contrary, radiates the Catholic Spirit.  The rite of St. Pius V entails an incomparable coherence of faith and morals.  Whoever seriously attends the traditional Mass quickly realizes that the life of faith requires this Mass, which fully nourishes faith.  Soon the logic of the faith becomes clear to the faithful soul: the just man lives by faith. One's beliefs. The whole of Christian morality, with all its demands of self-denial, sacrifice, and detachment from the world, flows from it.  God is holy, and whoever desires to approach Him must live a life of purity, for His holiness requires that the faithful soul put on the spotless garment of grace.  The Mass not only opens the eyes of the faithful to this reality, the sublimity of the Christian vocation, but above all it gives them the means to live it.  What an abundance of grace is poured out upon the faithful of "good will" at Mass, and even more upon the priest who celebrates it.

    The radiant grace of the Mass calls forth another sanctification: that of the Christian family, and ultimately all of society.  If society was Christian for centuries, for more than a millennium in fact, this must be attributed above all to the Mass, this holy rite that was essentially complete by the end of antiquity.  We are able to celebrate the so-called "Tridentine Mass", or the "Mass of St. Pius V", without difficulty using manuscripts of the tenth or eleventh centuries.

    One cannot be struck by the fact that the decadence, indeed the disappearance, of Christian society noticeably accelerated once the new rite was introduced.  Who would only like to see in that mere chance or coincidence?

    We are still engaged in the titanic struggle for the salvation of souls which runs throughout the history of the human race.  Let us hope that the advances made by the motu proprio do not cause us to lose sight of this much deeper view of things.  The new situation is cause for hope, but also for redoubled courage to carry on the combat along the route traced by Archbishop Lefebvre.

    The success gained by our Rosary Crusade, the zeal that we saw deployed, inspires us to renew our confidence in our heavenly Mother, not by a crusade a month or two long, but by a perpetual Rosary Crusade.  Yes, may this prayer of the rosary never cease to ascend heavenward for the good of the Church and the salvation of souls.  We are convinced that Our Lady will not remain unmoved by such an onslaught of the Ave Marias, and will hasten the Church's recovery.

    Once, a Swiss General, General Guisan, on seeing a soldier praying his rosary, said: "How I should like to see Switzerland encircled by this chain."  In keeping with this fine sentiment, we should like to encircle the entire Church with a chain of rosaries, to encircle her with an immense and continual string of Ave Marias for her defense and protection.  Thus, we are now launching a perpetual Rosary Crusade to obtain from Heaven not only that the decree of excommunication be withdrawn, but especially that Catholic Tradition be fully re-established in its due place -- a crusade that will continue until the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

    May all the saints come unto our aid, and may Our Lady bless you.

The Feast of All Saints
November 1, 2007
+ Bernard Fellay