Grassroots Liturgist

Last year, the SSG’s Annual Crichton Lecture was given by Cardinal Roche.   One point that he made stuck with me; bad practice is resolved through good theory. And a recent personal epiphany moment has illustrated this point very well indeed. I have had a growing awareness that there are members of our community who do not appreciate the significance of the Offertory Prayers – the fact that it's linked with, for example, Temple practices; we bring our gifts, bread and wine, and they are offered up to God by the priest for sacrifice.   That is what priests do.   This lack of appreciation of the importance of the offertory is perhaps not helped by the fact that most priests, in my experience, seem to pray them inaudibly.   I have been racking my brain what to do about this.   Then it dawned on me. I had forgotten that the offertory song is essentially a processional song – it’s purpose is to accompany the procession only, until the gifts are placed on the ...

Our music group plays at the Vigil Mass every fortnight.  On the alternate weeks I lead the singing unaccompanied.  Strangely, our small congregation often - though not always - sings more heartily when there is no accompaniment. I know that we are not alone in this.  Talking with other music leaders, and reading liturgy forums, I know that this happens elsewhere.  I'm not entirely certain why this is the case, and I'm sure that there are a number of reasons, but it does mean that we don't need to afraid of leading unaccompanied singing. Hymn singing is a recent phenomenon in the Catholic Mass.  More traditional is the singing of Processional Songs or Chants.  Put simply, these are similar to the Responsorial Psalm in that there is an antiphon (response) sung by everyone and verses from a psalm sung by a cantor(s).  We use John Ainslie's " English Proper Chants ".  If we had an organist we would doubtless make use of that; instead we sing the ...