Sacredness

I often reference this, and assume that my regular readers totally agree with me, but I forget that not everyone keeps up to date on everything I or the New Liturgical Movement posts!
I just posted a similar comment, but as most people don't go back and read the comments of articles from a while ago, I figured it was good enough to make a whole entry.


Of course it's alright once in a while to mention "we are the body of Christ," but when the social and cultural implications behind that--as in, the entire past 40 years since Vatican II--has been focused on WE ARE THE BODY OF CHRIST, rather than Christ Himself is the Body of Christ, TRULY present in the Eucharist, to the point of today where 90% of "Catholics" DENY the Real Presence...and well, why shouldn't they, when they have been spoon-fed "theology" and songs that focus mostly on US rather than God for the past 30 years!

I addition to the theology of these songs (the majority of songs written since VII, to make a generalization,) is their attempt along with other aspects of churches and the Mass to make everything that is sacred, banal.
We carpet our churches so they feel like our living rooms, rather than feeling like we ought to reverently tip-toe around because our heels click on the stone or wood floor! We have gotten rid of beautiful stained glass and replaced it with florescent lighting so we feel like we're at work. We have replaced a mysterious, sacred language with the language that we use in our banal, everyday conversation. Most churches rarely use incense, which to me is one of the strongest reminders of being in a sacred place which is different than the rest of our lives. We have cushioned the pews and brought in video screens so we can feel like we are cozy at home. And most importantly for this conversation, we have made the music into that like which we listen to on the radio and go to rock concerts to hear, and attempted to shovel 1500+ years of tradition down the drain.
All of this in attempt to eliminate anything the smells, feels, or sounds like reverence and sacredness, anything which is and SHOULD be different from our everyday lives.
I am quite convinced that the songs from composers since then have contributed to the downhill slide of cultural Catholicism. (see particularly my mention above about WHY most Catholics don't believe in the Real Presence.) But those of my generation have realized that they were denied something growing up. We have realized that we don't WANT Mass to be just like everything else in our lives. We have realized that things which are supposed to be sacred OUGHT to be different from everyday, banal things.

And Catholics (especially the young ones!) are starting to ask for music which is truly sacred to be brought back. And they will get it.

And if you either deny that, or think it's just a passing fad, just look at the seminarians in most dioceses. They are awesome, and pretty generally agree with me. Therefore, I will never be working for a schmuck! (for lack of a better word. :-) ) yay!