A nice thing happened at church yesterday

Yesterday was the fourth Sunday of Advent and for the fourth week in a row we sang a communion antiphon (or song, if you prefer) that was set to the same music every week. Only the words would change and the melody remained the same.

When it comes to getting a congregation to sing, simple, memorable melodies that can be used repeatedly are ideal because it means the vast majority of people sitting in the pews will catch on and sing along. It's the same rule of thumb applied to commercial jingles and TV show themes, and church singing is where they got the idea.

Anyway, for four weeks we've been singing the same melody at communion time with the words changing each week to reflect what was being read in the gospel and the readings for that particular week. The director of music at the Abbey wrote the music and set the text accordingly. The result was a large congregation of several hundred people singing along with us, and in the acoustically sublime space that is the Abbey, the sound was joyously uplifting.

The really nice thing that happened was when the head of the Norbertines (who reside at this Abbey) stood in front of the congregation and explained how the words they had sung at communion each week tied back to the readings and to the gospel. He then publicly thanked the music director who is one of the few in the area able to compose pieces and set text according to the rules of the liturgy. There have been new guidelines circulating and this emphasis on singing text specifically reflective of the gospel is one of the new guidelines. The Abbey, due to our director's considerable talents, is one of the first churches in the area to accomplish this.

It was a good moment for two reasons:

1) it is a rare - sadly rare - thing for the priest to give the congregation a solid explanation for why we do or sing what we do or sing at Mass. Things happen for a reason and nothing in liturgy happens by accident. Every word, every action, every song has meaning, and unfortunately, many people are not aware of those meanings. It felt good to have someone explain at least part of it because I think the more you know WHY something happens, the more you can appreciate it.

2) it is also rare - sadly rare - to hear the person directing the liturgical music recognized publicly beyond a "thanks for all your hard work". In this instance, the priest took the time to explain that the liturgical music director does more than pick songs and rehearse with the choir once a week. I directed a liturgical music group, and it's a job that takes hours and hours every week if it's going to be done well at all. The music director has to read the readings and the gospel beforehand, reflect on them, understand them, know the Vatican guidelines for liturgy, select music that is not only appropriate, but is also within the choir's ability and within reach of the congregation. I had one group that was responsible for one Mass each week. The director at the Abbey has the choir and the folk ensemble and assorted musicians to coordinate. Then there's Sunday Mass, daily prayer services, and assorted special services througout the year. In other churches, there may be as many as 5 Masses per Sunday plus one on Saturday night with different groups and cantors providing the music for each one.

It's a tremendous amount of work and it was a pleasure to hear the church acknowledge not only the effort, but the expertise required to do it well.