Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Second Vatican Council’s constitution on the sacred liturgy, states that “the Latin language is to be preserved in the Latin rites,” but acknowledges that “the use of the vernacular… frequently may be of great advantage to the people,” and therefore “the limits of its employment may be extended.” However, this second statement has unfortunately contributed to the decline of one of the most beautiful and uniquely Roman Catholic forms of prayer within the various liturgies of the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, namely Gregorian chant.
Despite Sacrosanctum Concilium’s declaration that “[t]he Church acknowledges Gregorian chant as specially suited to the Roman liturgy” and “therefore, other things being equal, it should be given pride of place in liturgical services,” it is rarely heard outside of Traditional Latin High Masses. This does not have to be the case, as there is even an official Vatican-published book of chants proper to each Mass in the current liturgical calendar, the Graduale Romanum (Roman Gradual) of 1974.
For it being an official liturgical book, it is unnecessarily hard to find. In searching for a hard copy to use for Una Voce, BC’s Latin Mass society, as it transitions to celebrating the Ordinary Form of the Mass in Latin from the Traditional Latin Mass, I had to order it directly from the Solesmes Abbey in France. If the Church in the United States was truly working to preserve the Latin language and the chant specially suited to the liturgy of the majority of its followers (i.e. those of the Roman Rite), one would think an official book of chant would be more readily available.
This is not to say that other forms of sacred music do not exist or do not have a place in the Mass or other liturgies in the Roman Rite. Sacrosanctum Concilium acknowledges as much: “But other kinds of sacred music, especially polyphony, are by no means excluded from liturgical celebrations, so long as they accord with the spirit of the liturgical action.” But it is disheartening to see Gregorian chant, crafted especially for worship within the Church, often cast aside and forgotten.
It may be too much to expect all parishes, especially smaller ones, to have the resources to find a choir or cantor capable of reading Gregorian chant notation, pronouncing Latin, preparing chants, and performing them in the Mass on a consistent basis and with adequate quality. In such cases, it may be more prudent for them to use easier-to-learn music that still conforms with the spirit of the Mass, the liturgical season, and potentially the feast of the day (though I will say there are a few very easy-to-learn chant melodies within the Graduale and the Roman Missal for the Ordinary of the Mass, such as for the Kyrie, Sanctus, and Pater Noster). But for well-resourced Catholic institutions like BC, one would expect a greater interest and ability to preserve such an esteemed and uniquely Catholic liturgical tradition as Gregorian chant.
“Great importance is to be attached to the teaching and practice of music in seminaries, in the novitiates and houses of study of religious of both sexes, and also in other Catholic institutions and schools,” says Sacrosanctum Concilium. The fact that it is rare to find dedicated instruction in the music with “pride of place” in Roman Catholic liturgy within many Catholic institutions of higher education speaks to a sad reality of the Church in the United States, that Gregorian chant is dying.
It seems that the death of Gregorian chant is not a problem of resources, but of apathy. I pray that the Church and its members obtain a renewed appreciation for this art and prayer that is such a beautiful part of our Catholic identity.
Featured Image Courtesy of Hans Splinter via Flickr
Adam is a senior from Columbus, Ohio. He previously served as Campus News and Culture Editor, and boasts the title of least cultured to ever serve as the latter. Holding a minor in Biology, he recently converted from STEM and now majors in Philosophy and Classical Studies. He currently leads Una Voce, the Latin Mass society at BC, and sings with the University Chorale of Boston College and the Chorale Chamber Singers. He enjoys Gregorian Chant, relearning the clarinet, and is an unabashed Ohio apologist.
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Is this really this hard? I just checked on Amazon, and it is for sale there in hardcover.