Friday, March 9, 2007

We sang the Yoo-hoo song.

I had flash-backs of Catholic school in the 70's this morning. The sounds of "On Eagle's Wings"(boy those high notes are scary early in the morning!) and it wouldn't be complete without the smell of the granules they sprinkle on the floor when a little ones up-chuck(yes, someone got sick in the back). Now, by "yoo-hoo", I am speaking of "Yoo hoo dwell in the shelter of the Lord....", that is "yoo-hoo". It was truly a bizarre deja-vu. Believe it or not, we found a song called "God is a Surprise" and the always classic, "If I Were a Butterfly" and "Like a Sunflower". While I think these songs are wonderful for study in the classroom, they don't belong in Holy Mass. It is just my opinion and yes, I admit I have a jaded view of liturgical music.
I knew every Glory & Praise song as well as all the Haugen and Haas and the famous "Hi God" songbooks....I knew them all. In high school, myself and a friend sang these songs with guitar accompaniment at all the Masses and devotionals. After reading how the missals were introduced and carried with them the songs of the 70's I just get upset. I completely lost my faith in the late 80's and half the 90's. Those songs were all I knew of my faith, the only thing I could remember. I never learned the rosary, I had never been to adoration(no clue what it was), never went to confession, saw no point in going to Mass other than Sunday and even that was optional. So when I was given a second chance at my faith, I wanted the truth and the beauty of the Catholic Church.
It is also of great importance that my children receive this and NOT the shallow and meaningless faith I was taught as a child. I thank God every day for my gift of being a second chance Catholic. I have discovered the treasury of our liturgical music that has years and years of beauty and sacredness. I don't want to go back. Now I just have to find a way to deal. I have so much hope that dear Benedict XVI will return the holiness of our Mass and liturgy, including the music.

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