Guest column by Amy Flamminio
Director of Liturgical Music at the Cathedral of the Risen Christ in Lincoln
Have you ever wondered why we sing at Mass? There are many facets to the answer, but perhaps the most beautiful to consider is that Jesus sang at the very first Mass, the Last Supper. In fact, throughout human history, singing is inseparable from prayer, celebration, and community. It uplifts us and brings us together, in every society and in every age. In our faith tradition, the Psalms were first sung by King David, by the Jewish people, and by Christ. Whether we participate as priest, congregation, cantor, or choir, each of us is a part of the music in the liturgy just as we are each part of the Mystical Body of Christ.
With the Second Vatican Council and instructions since, the Church upholds the importance of singing. The key to music at Mass is not just singing at Mass, but singing the Mass. Of first importance are the prayers and responses between the priest and people, the music in which we all can participate! Secondary is the singing of the Mass parts (e.g. “Glory to God,” “Lamb of God,” etc.), and lastly Psalms and Antiphons or hymns. We are instructed that the singing the congregation participates in is to express “union in spirit by means of the unity of their voices” (GIRM 86).
In this Jubilee Year of Hope, we have celebrated as a Universal Church the election of Pope Leo XIV, and his Masses have been full of music, chant, and beauty. In fact, the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music launched a wonderful video series called “Let’s Sing with the Pope.” These short videos teach the basics of singing the responses and prayers of the Mass in Latin, with clips of our Chicago-born pontiff chanting. What could be more hopeful at a time like today than singing and praying with the pope in a way that transcends geopolitical boundaries, language, and time?
If you attend Mass with Bishop James Conley at the Cathedral of the Risen Christ, or in his visits to other parishes, you’ll sing these same chants as the Holy Father. We may experience different languages and instruments from parish to parish, but when you sing the parts of the Mass or the Psalms, whether you are praying in Latin, English, Spanish, Vietnamese or any other language, it is an opportunity to unite yourself to everyone around the world praying these same prayers.
This can be an opening of grace in our hearts so that, as Pope Leo said in his Pentecost homily, the “confusion of Babylon” can be resolved by “the harmony brought about by the Spirit.” The harmony of our music should always lead us to a true harmony with all in Christ.
At the annual Chrism Mass and ordination Masses, you’ll see in action the decree of Vatican II that chant and sacred choral music, our “musical heritage,” be upheld as “a treasure of inestimable value” especially for sacred celebrations (Musicam Sacram 20). Of course, sacred music is not just what comes to us from the past. Perhaps we can picture our music as a living thing: imagine a deeply rooted, beautiful tree. The music in the liturgy can be like this tree, the deep roots are of vital importance, the treasures and traditions of our musical heritage. The roots are connected and supporting the newer, vibrant growth of the branches and leaves. There will be new growth, new expression in our music at Mass, but from roots to leaves, each part relies on the others to remain strong and healthy. With both traditions and the continued growth of sacred music and musical expression in our liturgies, the Church gives us opportunities to sing chant and new music in the vernacular, and when we do so, we are invited to a unity in voice that will be reflected in our lives and communities.
The inspiration and call to compose and create new music was evident at the ordination Masses this year. The choir sang “Totus Tuus” and “Bread of Angels,” the newly composed works of two local composers, Father Evan Winter, pastor of St. John the Baptist Parish in Minden, and Dr. John Kosch, composition professor and native of St. Peter Parish in Lincoln.
Father Winter’s piece used words of a prayer written by St. John Paul II, while Dr. Kosch used a chant melody and words that come to us from St. Thomas Aquinas. As we came together physically to celebrate ordinations, our hearts and voices were joined by song and prayer with each other and with saints and faithful throughout the history of the Church.
On Dec. 12, there will be another opportunity to pray with newly composed Sacred Music and languages old and new. Bishop Conley will celebrate Mass at the Cathedral of the Risen Christ on the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and a choir comprised of members from around the Catholic Diocese of Lincoln will sing Frank La Rocca’s “Mass of the Americas.” Leading up to the 500th anniversary of Our Lady of Guadalupe’s apparition in Mexico, this Mass will be celebrated in various cathedrals around the country, as well as in the Basilica in Mexico City. This music is sacred and inspiring, but also surprising.
Our Lady’s words to Juan Diego are still directed to us in this day and age: “I am truly your merciful Mother, yours and all the people who live united in this land and of all the other people of different ancestries.” La Rocca took the message of Our Lady to heart. You’ll hear some things you might expect at a Cathedral Mass, such as the organ and Latin, but tasked with the directive to adapt aspects of local culture within sacred tradition, La Rocca also uses Spanish, and most remarkable of all, Nahuatl, the language that Our Lady spoke to Juan Diego, his native language.
The Mass of the Americas also includes marimba and violin, and those familiar with the tune will recognize “La Guadalupana” woven throughout the Mass. Directing the choir for this Mass at Cathedral will be Dr. Richard Carrillo, whose doctoral project focused on the Mass of the Americas which he loves because it expresses his joy in the Eucharist and his own identity as a descendant of Aztec and Spanish heritage.
Music has brought people together with shared experiences and shared prayers throughout human history and the history of the Church. Whether we are singing ancient music or new, it continues to be part of our worship, prayer, and unity in our life as members of the Body of Christ. Through this beauty, our lives must be transformed.
Join us at 7 p.m. Dec. 12, at the Cathedral of the Risen Christ, to hear Nahuatl, Spanish, Greek, Latin, organ, marimba, and violin, and pray that with Our Lady of Guadalupe we will join the harmony found in the Holy Spirit.
