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The rationale for a Trinitarian musical ministry

1.

In its official stance, the Second Vatican Council has placed a high priority on the use of music in the

divine liturgy; in Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, 'Sacrosanctum Concilium', there is an entire

chapter devoted to the use of music in the liturgy,1 and the later Instruction on Music in the Liturgy,

‘Musicum Sacrum’, presents an expanded version of the basic ideas.2 In line with the Council’s

general aim to create a more inclusive liturgy3, the documents attempt to prescribe how the use of

music in the liturgy should be best implemented. However, rather than establishing a universally

accepted code of practice, they seem to have led to some contention on how this should be best

accomplished. Accordingly, a number of regional and unofficial bodies have attempted to create

their own consensus, and, while all the documents released by these bodies have offered useful

insights into the problem, a truly effective approach to this issue has yet to be established.

Considering the sacred nature of the liturgy, it seems surprising that a specifically theological

approach to this question has not been developed. This apparent oversight may even be regarded as

part of the problem itself, for there seems to be a conceptual separation of music from the other

“divine” elements of liturgical practice, as if music were itself a secular art form, merely tolerated in

liturgy, rather than a source of sacred energy and meaning that is integral to the nature of worship.

Given the sustained focus this issue has received in various church documents, why should we not

be prepared to take a rigorously theological approach to its resolution?

1 Vatican Council II, The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy 'Sacrosanctum Concilium', (1963) [112 - 121].

2 Sacred Congregation of Rites, Instruction on Music in the Liturgy 'Musicam Sacram', (1967).

3 Vatican Council II, 'Sacrosanctum Concilium', [1].

2

2.

Just such an approach is actually suggested by the documents themselves. In the Musicum Sacrum,

which should be regarded as the chief constitutional document on the issue, we find the following

statement:

[5]. The practical preparation for each liturgical celebration should be done in a spirit of cooperation by all parties concerned, under the guidance of the rector of the church, whether it be in ritual, pastoral or musical matters.4 [emphasis mine]

We need look no further than this paragraph for the suggestion of an appropriate theological model

to help attain this “spirit of cooperation”. Namely, the appropriate balance of the three elements

listed above can be regulated and supported by a developed understanding of the Holy Trinity.

A number of other Church documents appear to recognise the importance of the three elements of

the musical liturgy and the need for their balance, but do not seem able to connect this to the

Trinity. Music in Catholic Worship, for example, paraphrases the Musicum Sacrum, but goes further

to promote the status of the triune elements as ideals:

[25]. To determine the value of a given musical element in a liturgical celebration a threefold judgement must be made: musical, liturgical, [i.e. ritual] pastoral.5 (emphasis mine)

This development of the idea, particularly the use of “threefold”, is highly suggestive of the Trinity.

The later Snowbird Statement, when addressing the use of choirs, uses terms that make clear the

need for the various issues of liturgical music to be reconciled into a harmonious balance:

[20]. The voice of the choir [i.e. Musical] and that of the congregation [i.e. Pastoral] properly exist in dynamic relationship; there is no intrinsic conflict between the two.6 [emphasis mine]

It is clear that in the liturgical documents there is a latent recognition of both the triune nature of

the musical liturgy, and also the need for specific formulae to regulate their relationship. Trinitarian

4 Sacred Congregation of Rites, 'Musicam Sacram', (1967).

5 Bishops' Committee on the Liturgy, Music in Catholic Worship, rev ed, (Washington: United States Catholic

Conference, 1983). 6 The Snowbird Statement on Catholic Liturgical Music, (Salt Lake City: Madeleine Institute, 1995).

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theology provides the model for the resolution of these three in to a harmonious and cohesive

whole.

Although it is not my intention to give an in-depth presentation of Trinitarian theory, it will be

necessary to assimilate some Trinitarian concepts in order to understand how this model may bear

upon the issue of music in the liturgy. The key concept to understanding the relational aspects of the

Holy Trinity, as established by the Niceno-Constantinopolitan creed of A.D.3817, is perichoresis. This

term is peculiar to Trinitarian theology and its function is to describe the interrelation of the three

“persons” of the Trinity, historically the “Father”, “Son”, and “Holy Spirit”. Perichoresis describes the

qualities of “interpenetration” and “indwelling” that occur in the true conception of the triune god.8

In basic terms, the three “persons” cannot be fully separated in their identity and function. Likewise,

they are simultaneously regarded as separate entities and that they should not be considered to be

merely aspects of a single entity.9 This concept is, of course, paradoxical and empirically inexplicable,

but it does, at the very least, provide a theoretical ideal by which a musical ministry can be guided. It

should be explained, however, that the “historical” Trinity is recognised in Church dogma as being

“analogical”; that is to say that, since the nature of God is unknowable, the terms we apply to each

“person” should not be regarded as a literal description of each10. It is in fact the relationship of the

three, rather than their historical identities, that is their primary theological function. Therefore we

should recognise that the Trinitarian model for the use of music in the liturgy will not merely

resemble the deity, but that it in fact becomes the worldly form of the deity, as the agent of the

process by which the human element is brought into contact with the divine. Therefore, if we posit a

Trinitarian musical ministry, it will be the very interaction between the functions of the musical, the

pastoral and the ritual, that will bring the liturgy into closer contact with the deity.

7 D Casey, G Hall & Anne Hunt, eds. Foundations of Christian Faith, (Southbank: Social Science Press, 2004), 75.

8 Anne Hunt, Trinity: Nexus of the Mysteries of Christian Faith, (Maryknoll NY: Orbis books, 2005), 16n.

9 D Casey, et al. Foundations of Christian Faith, 76.

10 D Casey, et al. Foundations of Christian Faith, 77.

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As we establish the link between the use of liturgical music and the Trinity, we can organise the

elements presented in the Musicum Sacrum in the following way:

The ritual element refers to the process and purpose of the liturgy as the central locus of Christian

worship. To put it in more prosaic terms, this element is personified by the ministers and clergy that

administer the service from the altar. This function corresponds to the “Father” of the “historical”

Trinity, as it is from this “person”, also acknowledged as the “Creator”, that the other “persons”

proceed. This interpretation of the role is supported by the Musicum Sacrum, which states that the

“co-operation” must proceed “under the guidance of the rector”.11 However, the role should be

understood to be an active engagement rather than a passive one, and that the music of the liturgy

is a matter of central importance to the minister.

The pastoral element should be defined as representing the congregation, not just in the sense as a

body of humans gathered in the church, but as a real and active community that is united in its faith.

11 Sacred Congregation of Rites, 'Musicam Sacram', [5].

Father

Son Holy

Spirit

Ritual

Musical Pastor

al

The “Historical” Trinity The Trinitarian musical ministry

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The correspondence to the “Son” of the “historical” Trinity is rather more complicated, but it may be

understood by stating that it is the very purpose of the incarnation of Jesus Christ to create such a

congregation on earth, where the human enters into an equal relationship with the divine. It is the

liturgy that is supposed to represent the highest worldly fulfilment of this relationship. It is

therefore, the goal of the Trinitarian musical ministry to empower the congregation to the “internal”

and “external” forms of worship defined by the 'Sacrosanctum concilium' 12.

The musical element is the one in most need of clarification, particularly since it is in this specific

area that the reform of the liturgy seems to have not succeeded. In terms of the Trinity, music, that

is, the pure element of music as distinct from the human agency that communicates it, corresponds

to the Holy Spirit, in that it is a specifically communicative entity. In the historical Trinity, the Holy

Spirit came upon the apostles at Pentecost and gave them the power to communicate the Christian

Gospel by making conversions and composing the Scriptures.13 The music should function in

precisely this way in the liturgy: it should be a vehicle for the Word of God, not simply to the extent

that it functions as a vehicle for sacred verbal texts, but as the ideal form for communicating the

parts of the divine mystery that cannot be expressed in words.

3.

If we interpret these roles into a practical context, we may see how this Trinitarian approach will

resolve a number of the conflicts that have arisen as a result of flawed attempts to implement the

reform ideals of the Sacred Constitution. For example, in the Vatican documents there seems to be

no clear directive for the use of choirs in the liturgy, and, as a result, this great tradition of the

Church has declined terribly. Moreover, there is an emphasis in Music in Catholic Worship14 and the

12 Vatican Council II, 'Sacrosanctum Concilium', [19].

13 Catechism of the Catholic Church, (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1993), [1076].

14 Bishops' Committee on the Liturgy, Music in Catholic Worship, [60 - 62].

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later unofficial document, The Milwaukee Symposia for Church Composers,15 on the ability of music

to foster congregational unity to such an extent that it would appear ideal for the musical element

to be subsumed completely into the pastoral. This practice would amount to refiguring the triune

deity as a diune deity, and it is precisely this form of apostasy that the Creed of A.D. 381 was

intended to eliminate from the church altogether16.

If we approach the directives of the Sacred Constitution with the Trinity in mind, a clearer approach

will suggest itself. Namely, if we understand the need to observe “internal” and “external”

participation in worship, how then can we reconcile this with a congregation that is required to carry

the entire musical ministry? If, however, there is an expert choir within the assembly, the

congregation may achieve their “external” participation by singing some parts of the liturgy, and

observe “internal” participation by listening attentively to a more complex and mysterious musical

setting for other parts. However, this is not to suggest that just because the musical duties may be

divided between the congregation and the choir, and that the liturgy should be a musical free-for-all,

for we must also consider that the members of the choir itself are also a part of the congregation, so

provision must be made for their own “internal” worship, which may be observed in moments of

common silence. Likewise, there should be times when the worship of the congregation is better

achieved by speaking rather than singing. If we look at the entire liturgy, we see that there are many

opportunities to provide the “dynamic relationship”17 between congregational singing, choral

singing, the spoken word and silence. It is only through understanding the true relationship between

the pastoral and the musical as “interpenetrating” and “indwelling” that these possibilities become

clear.

15 Archdiocese of Milwaukee, The Milwaukee Symposia for Church Composers, A Ten Year Report, (Chicago:

Pastoral Press, Washington, & Liturgy Training Publications, 1992), [16]. 16

D Casey, et al. Foundations of Christian Faith, 76. 17

The Snowbird Statement on Catholic Liturgical Music, [20].

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As another example of practical use, we may look at how the Trinity regulates the role of the musical

director, or we should say musical minister. We may begin by saying that the musical minister does

not represent the Holy Spirit in the liturgy, but rather is the pastoral agent through which the Spirit is

brought into the liturgy through the medium of music. To this end, the musical minister should see

an important part of their role as facilitating the musical education of the congregation, for, in an

active ministry, the musical competence of the congregation should always be increasing to allow

greater influx of the musical spirit. If, for example, we imagine a congregation with a very poorly

developed music tradition, a musical minister may enable its spiritual growth by introducing hymnals

with proper musical notation. This will allow the congregation to develop their musical literacy,

even without formal training, for they will come to instinctively understand how to follow the visual

matrix of the notation. This would result in a musical expression that is at once more confident and,

one would hope, more enjoyable for all concerned. If this “education” is supported and continued, it

may eventually allow for the formation of a choir from members of the congregation who wish to

explore more challenging forms of musical worship. We can see in this instance how congregation is

brought closer to the deity by an interactive engagement between the musical and the pastoral.

Since it is from the ritual element that the other two elements proceed, it should be considered

essential that the liturgical ministers regard the interrelation of the musical and pastoral as the

central responsibility and function of their role. It is perhaps the case that many parish priests and

other liturgical ministers consider the music of the liturgy, unless it proves particularly inappropriate,

as something that is beneath their notice. Others may consider it outside their area of knowledge

and expertise and therefore do not feel confident involving themselves in the musical element at all.

Others still may view the musical element as being completely subject to the ritual, and therefore

subject to their own judgement, and adopt a dictatorial approach to the use of music in their

services with no regard to purely musical value at all. These are all stances that to varying extents

reflect a general failure of the ritual element of the liturgy to take on the guiding role that is dictated

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by the Musicum Sacrum.18 Although there is no one “right way” to do so, there are a number of

obvious ways in which a liturgical minister may fulfil this role. A priest with musical training, or even

a naturally gifted one, may choose to restore the all-but-extinct tradition of singing the rites. This

would provide a very clear unity of the three elements, as the priest is at once the conductor of the

ritual and a member of the pastoral community. If music is incorporated into this role, then the

triune nature of the deity is observed at the very centre of the liturgy, and this will provide the

congregation with a clear aspirational model.

In the cases of the less gifted clergy, the role may simply consist of advising the musical minister on

the choices of hymns and choral music to illuminate and expand on the texts of the ritual. It should

be expected that, just as the musical minister has superior musical knowledge, the liturgical minister

has superior theological knowledge, and may be able to offer insights on connections between the

texts, or perhaps the traditional functions of parts of the liturgical services, or any number of

approaches that may furnish the musical minister with new areas of exploration without being seen

as encroaching on their “territory”. Through this “spirit of cooperation” the congregation will benefit

in way that would be impossible if the two roles were considered essentially separate or in conflict.

This is perhaps one of the most important instances in which perichoresis

may bring harmony to the liturgy.

4.

The preceding examples are not by any means intended to be exhaustive, and there are many other

areas of this debate which can be illuminated by the further application of the Trinitarian principles.

However, if the basic model of the Trinity and perichoresis is clearly understood, then it should no

longer be necessary to present exact guidelines in practice to prevent the decay and decline of the

liturgy. We should consider that the role of the liturgical documents is to provide only the

18 Sacred Congregation of Rites, 'Musicam Sacram', [5].

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framework of liturgical practices; the authority that determines practice at the “grass roots” level

should be the faith of the pastoral community itself. If the triune deity becomes the guiding force

behind the use of music in the liturgy, then the solutions to any number of problems not addressed

specifically by the documents will suggest themselves, provided that the process involves reflecting

on the inclusive nature of the godhead. If we are seeking solutions to what are in essence spiritual

questions, and the use of music in liturgy is most certainly a spiritual matter, then how can we be

sure of the answers we receive if they too are not spiritual in origin?

*****

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REFERENCE

Archdiocese of Milwaukee. The Milwaukee Symposia for Church Composers, A Ten Year Report. Chicago: Pastoral Press, Washington, & Liturgy Training Publications, 1992. Viewed 31 March 2010, <http://www.archmil.org/Resources/TheMilwaukeeSymposiaforChurchComposers.htm>

Bishops' Committee on the Liturgy Music in Catholic Worship, rev. edn. Washington: United States Catholic Conference, 1983 (1972). Viewed 31 March 2010, <http://www.liturgy.net/DocsRef/Intr_2nd_Lectionary/MICW/micw.htm>

D. Casey, G. Hall & Anne Hunt, eds. Foundations of Christian Faith. Southbank: Social Science Press, 2004. Catechism of the Catholic Church. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1993. Viewed 31 March 2010, <http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/_INDEX.HTM#fonte>

Hunt, Anne. Trinity: Nexus of the Mysteries of Christian Faith. Maryknoll NY: Orbis books, 2005.

McGrath, Alister. Christian Theology: An Introduction, 3rd ed. Blackwell, 2001. 230 MCG Vatican Council II. The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy 'Sacrosanctum concilium'. 1963. Viewed 31 March 2010,

<http://www.catholicliturgy.com/index.cfm/FuseAction/DocumentContents/Index/2/SubIndex/16/DocumentIndex/492>

Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship. General Instruction of the Roman Missal. 2001 (1969, 1975). Viewed 31 March 2010, <http://www.catholicliturgy.com/index.cfm/FuseAction/DocumentContents/Index/2/SubIndex/11/DocumentIndex/1>

Sacred Congregation of Rites. Instruction on Music in the Liturgy 'Musicam Sacram'. 1967 Viewed 31 March 2010,

<http://www.catholicliturgy.com/index.cfm/FuseAction/DocumentContents/Index/2/SubIndex/17/DocumentIndex/433>

The Snowbird Statement on Catholic Liturgical Music. Salt Lake City: Madeleine Institute, 1995. Viewed 31 March 2010, <http://www.canticanova.com/articles/liturgy/art9o1.htm>