Of all the heavy debates on Catholic Liturgy that seem to cause a threatening snarl and an intimidating stripe of raised hair down the backs of even the most gentle child of God, that on appropriate music is the only one which actually causes yours truly to bite. I am no theologian, nor expert on Church documents. I am, however, a musician and a Catholic. As such, I care enough about this debate to investigate suggestions I find contrary to what I have been taught or have come to believe on my own.
This article from an Australian Catholic newspaper made a few such suggestions that rubbed me the wrong way. Fortunately, the author’s arguments are made based on segments of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM), which is easily accessible from the USCCB website. Upon reading the document, I found (as I hope you, the astute reader will, too) much of the article’s conclusions to be taken out of context.