{"id":83407,"date":"2013-11-22T09:29:35","date_gmt":"2013-11-22T17:29:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/?p=83407"},"modified":"2013-12-06T09:10:25","modified_gmt":"2013-12-06T17:10:25","slug":"saint-cecilia-and-the-future-of-music-in-the-roman-rite","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/saint-cecilia-and-the-future-of-music-in-the-roman-rite\/","title":{"rendered":"Saint Cecilia and the Future of Music in the Roman Rite"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cecilia is one of the most famous and most venerated of Roman martyrs, even though the facts of her martrydom are a little vague. Legend has it that she, her husband Valerian, and her brother-in-law Tiburtius were martyred during the reign of Emperor Alexander Severus, about the year 230.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

The Martyrdom of Saint Cecilia
(Stefano Maderno)<\/p><\/div>Her name appears in the First Eucharistic Prayer (the Roman Canon) among Rome’s other beloved martyrs, and when Christianity became legal in the Roman Empire in the fourth century, a church was built where her house had stood. This little church survives to this day as Santa Cecilia in Trastevere<\/a>.<\/p>\n

H<\/span>er body was discovered in AD 822 and transferred to this church. In 1599 her grave was opened and her body found in a coffin of cypress wood. It lay incorrupt, as if she had just fallen asleep. The sculptor Stefano Maderno<\/a> was allowed to see the body, and he sculpted her as she appeared, cut throat, tied hands, and all.<\/p>\n

Saint Cecilia is the patron saint of music, and often times you will find a small statue or stained glass of her in the choir loft of older churches.<\/p>\n

With the publication of the Third Edition of the Missale Romanum<\/i>, the Church is once again placing an emphasis on music, specifically that most liturgical of musics, chant. Looking at the English versions of the Missal<\/i>, you will see that the musical notation of the Ordinary of the Mass is included with the text, instead of in an appendix at the back as in former editions.<\/p>\n

The Mass is meant to be sung. That we don’t sing it – or rarely sing it – is a tragedy, and completely at odds with the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy Sacrosanctum Concilium<\/i><\/a> promulgated by the Second Vatican Council and celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.<\/p>\n

\"ICEL<\/a><\/p>\n

I should also like to draw your attention to a talk given by Monsignor Andrew Wadsworth back in 2010, entitled Towards the Future \u2013 Singing the Mass<\/a>. Msgr. Wadsworth was the head of ICEL, the International Commission on English in the Liturgy. These are the guys responsible for the translation of the glorious new English Roman Missal<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Read the whole thing, but here’s a taste:<\/p>\n

\n

Maybe the greatest challenge that lies before us is the invitation once again to sing the Mass rather than merely to sing at Mass. … This means not only the congregational acclamations of the Order of Mass, but also the orations, the chants in response to the readings, the Eucharistic prayer and the antiphons which accompany the Entrance, the Offertory and the Communion processions. These proper texts are usually replaced by hymns or songs that have little relationship to the texts proposed by the Missal or the Graduale Romanum<\/em> and as such a whole element of the liturgy of the day is lost or consigned to oblivion. … <\/p>\n

We are much the poorer for this, as these texts (which are often either Scriptural or a gloss on the Biblical text) represent the Church\u2019s own reading and meditation on the Scriptures.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Our parish of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary<\/a> will be singing the ICEL Chant Mass setting through Advent and Christmas, a fact that fills me with undisguised glee. We do say <\/em>the various antiphons (a step up from any other parish I’ve attended), but we have yet to begin singing them. Step by step.<\/p>\n

So on this her feast day, let us invoke the prayers of Saint Cecilia for the future restoration of the singing of the Roman Rite it all its beauty and glory.<\/p>\n

\n

O God, who gladden us each year
\nwith the feast day of your handmaid
\nSaint Cecilia,
\ngrant, we pray,
\nthat what has been devoutly handed down concerning her
\nmay offer us examples to imitate
\nand proclaim the wonders worked in his servants by Christ your Son.
\nWho lives and reigns with you
\nin the unity of the Holy Spirit,
\none God, for ever and ever.<\/p>\n

Amen.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cecilia is one of the most famous and most venerated of Roman martyrs, even though the facts of her martrydom are a little vague. Legend has it that she, her husband Valerian, and her brother-in-law Tiburtius were martyred during the reign of Emperor Alexander Severus, about the year 230. Her name appears in the First Eucharistic Prayer (the Roman Canon) […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[11,32,12,19,39,16,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-83407","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-chant","category-inside-baseball","category-polyphony","category-pray","category-rev-jacob-maurer","category-saint","category-sacred-liturgy"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1aGBK-lHh","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":89086,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/saint-cecilia-and-the-future-of-chant\/","url_meta":{"origin":83407,"position":0},"title":"Saint Cecilia and the Future of Chant","author":"Thom","date":"22 November 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Saint Cecilia is one of the most famous and most venerated of Roman martyrs. Legend has it that she, her husband Valerian, and her brother-in-law Tiburtius were martyred during the reign of Emperor Alexander Severus, about the year 230. Her name appears in the First Eucharistic Prayer (the Roman Canon)\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Annual"","block_context":{"text":"Annual","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/annual\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1748,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/cecilia\/","url_meta":{"origin":83407,"position":1},"title":"Cecilia","author":"Thom","date":"22 November 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Today the Church celebrates the memorial of Saint Cecilia, virgin and martyr. Cecilia is one of the most famous and most venerated of Roman martyrs, even though the facts of her martrydom are a little vague. Legend has it that she, her husband Valerian, and her brother-in-law Tiburtius were martyred\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Chant"","block_context":{"text":"Chant","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/chant\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom-300x171.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":84499,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/cecilia-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":83407,"position":2},"title":"Cecilia","author":"Thom","date":"22 November 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Cecilia is one of the most famous and most venerated of Roman martyrs, even though the facts of her martrydom are a little vague. Legend has it that she, her husband Valerian, and her brother-in-law Tiburtius were martyred during the reign of Emperor Alexander Severus, about the year 230. Her\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Annual"","block_context":{"text":"Annual","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/annual\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom-300x171.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":100393,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/saint-cecilia-2019\/","url_meta":{"origin":83407,"position":3},"title":"Saint Cecilia","author":"Thom","date":"22 November 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Saint Cecilia, whose feast day it is today, I'd like to invite you to Saint Patrick Church in Tacoma this evening for an hour of Eucharistic Adoration. Music will be provided by Mrs. Victoria Solenberger and Ms. Amy Gallwas. For several of the songs, they will be accompanied by a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Annual"","block_context":{"text":"Annual","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/annual\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":109157,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/saint-cecilia-2024\/","url_meta":{"origin":83407,"position":4},"title":"Saint Cecilia and Singing the Mass","author":"Thom","date":"22 November 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Cecilia is one of the most famous and most venerated of Roman martyrs. Legend has it that she was martyred during the reign of Emperor Alexander Severus, about AD 230. Her name appears in the First Eucharistic Prayer (the Roman Canon) among Rome's other beloved martyrs, and when Christianity became\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Annual"","block_context":{"text":"Annual","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/annual\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":107299,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/saint-cecilia-and-singing-the-mass\/","url_meta":{"origin":83407,"position":5},"title":"Saint Cecilia and Singing the Mass","author":"Thom","date":"22 November 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Cecilia is one of the most famous and most venerated of Roman martyrs. Legend has it that she, her husband Valerian, and her brother-in-law Tiburtius were martyred during the reign of Emperor Alexander Severus, about AD 230. The Martyrdom of Saint Cecilia (Stefano Maderno) Her name appears in the First\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Annual"","block_context":{"text":"Annual","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/annual\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/St_Cecilias_Martyrdom.jpg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83407","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=83407"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83407\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":83414,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83407\/revisions\/83414"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83407"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=83407"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=83407"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}