Guest column
By Sister Mary Cecilia, C.K. Chair, Liturgical Commission for the Diocese of Lincoln
What was in the mind of the Fathers of Vatican II when they were discussing Sacrosanctum Concilium 43: “Zeal for the promotion and restoration of the sacred liturgy is rightly held to be a sign of the providential dispositions of God in our time, and as a movement of the Holy Spirit”? What was in the mind of those who formulated the Diocesan Pastoral Plan when they wrote in the section on Healthy Parishes: “Healthy, thriving, engaging, and relational are ways to describe the kind of parish we would all like to belong to”?
I would like to propose that among the many answers to these questions there lies one that unites both questions: to make God known and loved by the faithful as we also assist the faithful to know that they are seen and loved by God and each other. These sentiments echoed in a recent conversation that I had with Becca Deaver, the music coordinator at All Saints Parish in Holdrege. Becca has been in All Saints Parish for 15 years, 10 of which she has been the music coordinator. I wanted to know more about what Becca brought to the liturgy and the music for Mass in her parish, knowing that she is in a rural setting in the diocese, with about 230 families in her parish.
“The liturgy is one of my biggest passions,” she said. “It is the most important thing that we do in our parish. It is really important that we make the Sunday experience one that makes people feel seen and loved by God and that they can really experience truth, beauty and goodness.” Becca’s passion for liturgy, for engaging the parish in experiencing God in the liturgy, is deeply rooted in her faith. She continued to describe what she’s been able to bring about: “Music is one of the most important parts that we can participate in, that we actually facilitate ourselves with our God-given talents.” Music is one of the areas that the Church gives over to our care, while giving us guidance through the texts of the Mass.
Living in a rural part of the diocese, Becca deals with the lack of personnel, but not a lack of desire. “Our congregation is open to singing, open to new things, and they sing pretty well,” she said. Becca credited Father Thomas Lux, a former pastor, with helping form the congregation to be good singers.
“He sang all the Mass responses for years, so our parish was used to singing the Mass. Our parishioners know singing is an important part of the Mass because Father Lux modeled that for us.”
Becca has put together a choir that normally sings at one Mass a month. The number of choir members changes often, but “we can make beautiful music with a small amount of people.” She tries to make sure that she chooses music that is accessible for the choir, since their practice time is the hour before Mass. She tries to find pieces that are beautiful and not too challenging, although she’s not afraid to try different pieces. Mentioning a six-part round Becca noted, “it was so beautiful, so amazing, ringing throughout the church that I knew we needed to sing it again.” She would rather have the choir be successful singing in unison before trying to do eight-part songs.
“In a rural parish you work with the resources you have and not fight against it. You need to be attentive to the talents of the congregation.” This includes being creative on how to introduce new hymns and Mass settings, as well as recognizing where the parish needs to begin looking at the next challenges.
Becca had a desire to begin to implement the singing of the entrance and Communion antiphons at Mass many years ago. Starting with a simple two-note tone, Becca cantored the antiphon after the entrance hymn at Sunday Mass. Singing it in a simple manner for many months, using the same two-note tone, Becca added the singing of the Communion antiphon also. After about six months, she talked with the parish before Mass on Sunday about what was happening and why. Becca noted that she did this to “be hospitable so they know what to expect. It’s really pastoral, about why we were doing what we were doing.”
Soon she introduced the next step to the congregation, echoing the antiphon after she introduced it. The parish then made a move to a new missalette which had a little more difficult antiphons. Becca saw that there was a learning curve and thought at the time, “This is hard. It’s hard for me to learn all of these. It will be challenging for the congregation.”
Now after having heard them for a few years, after beginning with just listening at first, they were able to begin singing them with the accompaniment a bit more freely. “They can pick them up more quickly now as they know how they work.”
Becca has added a psalm verse or the Glory Be after the congregation echoes the antiphon, just to give them another opportunity to sing them, helping to get them in their mind. Becca also uses a similar method when introducing a new hymn or a new Mass setting.
“I play it before Mass, then we sing it every couple of Sundays so that they can be successful in singing it. With a new Mass setting, we’ll practice before Mass.”
Having a school is also a help, as she can work with the students to sing hymns for adoration, noting “they are pretty good leaders on Sundays. They are always open to new things.”
The liturgy is something that uses repetition to build the avenues of grace within us. The understanding that we are uniting ourselves with each other in the worship of God, week after week, day after day, is formative. It slowly strips away all that isn’t leading us to God, leaving us with the things that unite us with Him. The repetition also empowers the people in the parish. They know what to expect, and can enter into it with hearts more open and ready to receive the Word of God, the graces the Lord bestows upon us, and encourages a receptivity of each other, which builds our community, helping us to “make people feel seen and loved.”
All Saints brought other members of the parish together to put ribbons in their hymnals, to help facilitate the singing. They brought in a larger number board to display both the hymn numbers and the page numbers for the antiphons. Before each Mass they announce what Mass setting will be used, where it can be found, and what page the entrance antiphon is on. There is a desire to make “singing at Mass super accessible. There is no excuse not to know” where the music for Mass is located.
When asked for suggestions for other parishes that want to begin moving forward with little steps in their Sunday liturgies, Becca suggested, “move together with the pastor. Go slow. Be at peace where your congregation is at right now. Don’t compare with other parishes; it will look different, and that’s OK. Unison singing done well brings beauty to the liturgy.”
Her parish still has challenges. Becca is currently working on trying to build up the number of people who can accompany at Mass. Since not every weekend Mass has accompaniment, the pastors have been understanding when there isn’t a musician. They are also willing to sing a capella, but having more people willing to accompany music is their next step forward.
All Saints Parish in Holdrege is moving forward with Becca’s desire to bring her passion for the liturgy to the service of the parish, to help it be a thriving and engaging parish. Working towards full and active participation in the liturgy is what I believe was in the minds and hearts of the Fathers of Vatican II as well as those who worked on the Diocesan Pastoral Plan. Becca continues to share her gifts with her parish, as well as the Diocesan Liturgical Commission. She is also open to talking with music coordinators in other parishes, especially those in rural southern Nebraska to help bring about an encounter in their parishes with Him Who is True, Beautiful and Good.
