I second that.
“Critics have said the use of modern music helps the Catholic faith remain relevant and vibrant for young people and that it is better to have guitars and tambourines during mass than empty churches.”
This really comes back to the traditional/modernist problem. The modernists in the Church, who feel that the Church must change in order to “keep up with the times,” disagree with the traditionalists, who feel that eternal truths are literally that, and need not change, by virtue of being eternal. The modernists think that by doing that which they perceive as updating, they can attract a larger parish population.
What they miss, whether by design or choice or what-have-you is that, if you teach people about the Mass, and what it means, understanding begets relevance, vibrancy, and reverence, and love. That goes for the music, too.
We’ve had forty-two years of Kumba-ya. Bring on the good stuff, provide good catechesis, and there won’t be empty churches.
If people understand that we are going up to Calvary at Mass, maybe the guitars will fade away into oblivion.
Agreed. My pet peeve is that most of the modern music at Mass is very hard for the average person to sing. It prevents us from really singing along loudly and participating. The old songs are designed for group participation in a medium range.
The new songs are all over the place. Perhaps they are designed that way so the cantor can “solo” all the time and receive attention. No one near the altar should be calling attention to himself. I am sad that the choir is now in the front where they can perform and distract us all. They should be in the back in the choir loft so we can focus on the Sacrifice on the altar.
Notice what happens when we sing an old song at Mass. Everyone joins in and sings much louder. Most don’t even need a songbook. The classics are best!