Many years ago at a National Association of Pastoral Musicians convention, a history of the evolution of liturgical music was presented. I am unable to recall the presenter, but I clearly recall the experience. It was a national convention, with at least 2,000 members present, and the large convention hall was full. Slides were displayed depicting various historical periods of the church, and representative music of each era was played. Members sang along from memory with much of this, as is typical at these gatherings. (If you have never experienced a gathering of pastoral musicians, “How Can I Keep from Singing?” is a song of life. You can’t keep them from singing — in elevators, in restaurants, on street corners. They usually take over the hotel lounge and eject the keyboard player.) At some point in the presentation, the presenter noted that some of our ancient hymns continue to be pivotal in our liturgy today. To illustrate the point, the first verse of the “Pange Lingua” began, and again the room filled with the sound of thousands of confident voices. Becoming a little annoyed, I believe, with the direction this was taking, the presenter commented that most of us could sing the first verse, of course, but how many could sing the rest from memory after the shift in liturgical music that came with the Glory & Praise years? It only took a second before a strong tenor voice sang out, “Nobis datus, nobis natus …” and again the room filled with that haunting chant. And so it went on, losing only a few voices verse by verse, until with an audible breath, the entire room took up, “Tantum ergo Sacramentum ….” The silence that followed was charged. The presenter, a little shaken, I think, said, “You’re dating yourselves … in a good way,” and went on.

The point here isn’t that this group of people remember their Latin, compel text to memory, or sing with conviction. That’s their job, after all. The point is that, when challenged, these servants of God, ministers of God’s people, responded with their best tool and transformed a common moment into a graced moment. In that moment, that place resounded with a confident joy.

In this issue of ML we celebrate and support music ministry. Fred Moleck gazes over the horizon and considers the impact of current documents on liturgical music and the worship experience. Michelle Rego outlines a method for maintaining a spiritual balance amidst the demands of music ministry. Bob Batastini discusses the challenges of music ministry in its primary role of enabling the assembly. Reflecting back a little, I have included an excerpt on music ministry from my own work, Liturgical Ministry: A Practical Guide to Spirituality. Published in 1996, it speaks of the same challenges of identity many of us face today.

Music is critical to our life as a Christian people. Music in Catholic Worship expresses this well: “In addition to expressing texts, music can also unveil a dimension of meaning and feeling, a communication of ideas and intuitions which words alone cannot yield. This dimension is integral to the human personality and to growth in faith. It cannot be ignored if the signs of worship are to speak to the whole person” (24). Speaking to the whole person is clearly what we are called to do at a time when faith is assaulted from every direction. Music ministers are called to serve the whole person, too, by being not only competent musicians but skilled catechists, liturgists, and grief ministers as well. The pastoral dimension of their ministry is every bit as important as the musical. Their role is demanding, frequently emotionally and physically exhausting, and often under-appreciated. Still, they labor on because their call to ministry drives them to continue crafting worship experiences that transform lives.

As we continue this year to reflect on the great hymn of the Exsultet, may we stand with, pray with, and sing with those who offer themselves in music ministry. When we pray for vocations, may we remember to include this ministry by name. With them, may we all seek to make ordinary places resound with joy as they echo the eternal song of God’s people.

Let this place resound with joy,
echoing the mighty song of all God’s people! ML

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