I don’t know of anyone who is part of any religious community who sometimes doesn’t suffer from the phenomenon of Holy Envy. This can sometimes come from a practice or belief you wish your particular faith community embraced or it can come from something as simple as admiration for a great leader within another faith tradition. The Holy Envy I want to discuss for the purposes of this post is fairly common amongst musically inclined Mormons—that is the Holy Envy of the music of other faith traditions.
Don’t get me wrong, there are some beautiful and powerful Mormon hymns that I seriously love, but by and large we are left eating some major dust as compared to others. Specifically I want to talk about my Holy Envy of Catholic hymns.
I don’t want anyone to get offended, but some Sundays I honestly feel like I am at a funeral. The slow, droning on as people limp through the most basic of hymns can be maddening. It isn’t even a lack of singing ability that appears to be the problem; it is a lack of understanding that hymns of praise are a prayer unto the Lord! Sometimes there is such a distinct lack of fire in the bellies of the membership of The Church that it makes my fiery soul weep for something more substantial.
At this time of year especially my soul hungers for that musical connection to the divine. By Common Consent has a series relative to music of Advent. Not only do Mormons not recognize or discuss Advent, we certainly don’t add anything to it musically.
Music touches our soul in deep places, and offers us an opportunity for communion with the Divine. We should take that opportunity to pour everything we have into those moments. We should do as we are admonished in Psalms, and sing a new song unto the Lord, for the word of the Lord is right, and all His works are done in truth.
Music is HOLY. It is not only right, but it is imperative that we raise our voices in song to our Creator. Music is meant to delight the soul of man, but that delight is meant as far as it serves to remind us of the pre-mortal life that we spent in the presence of our God.
The only reason I can think of that members aren’t more excited about the songs we sing is because to be honest a lot of them aren’t really that great. Where are our songs fit for chanting? That fit for chamber choirs? Let’s step up our game a bit and sing the way we know we can—the way God deserves, the way we deserve.
EOR
EOR is a convert and a divorcee. She is the 2013 Wheaties award winning author in the category: "Funniest Thread", and has a B.S. in Business Management and Economics. In addition to being a permablogger at Rational Faiths, she also is a permablogger at Expert Textperts. She lives in NY, has 2 cats, and enjoys brevity, deli sandwiches, and laughing.
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Sometimes I really wish we would all get to our feet and clap along and shout for joy when it is hymn time. We are totally funeral-esque.
Bravo! Couldn’t have said it better myself. Also, most funerals I have been to have better hymns than an average sacrament meeting.
Haha no doubt… we do have some really really slow jams!
Amen! In the same way the church leaves women’s leadership talents on the table, we miss out on so much spiritual depth and nutrition that comes with good music and use of the liturgical year.
Random Thoughts-
I go to the Faith Temple church a few times a year. Each time I go I wish that I had done more cross fit training because singing with them is the equivalent of an MMA match. I drink 9 Redbulls beforehand just to prep myself for the enthusiastic swaying, stomping, head bobbing and handclapping. To be honest, I don’t want Church singing to be a workout.
That being said, I also don’t want to sit in what appears to be a large corporate shareholder meeting where we somberly moan to 16th century Euro-American folk music. Moreover, I don’t like that Mormons impose this weird organ singing onto other cultures. I know we need some uniformity but good heavens let them have their drums.
Anyway, what I’m saying is that I’d like the smooth rhythmic sounds of a Nyabinghi Rastaman Chant.
If only we had more 16th century music. We are mostly stuck with late 19th and early 20th c social gospel hymns.
Having lead the singing in Sacrament Meeting for MANY years I agree. Often the words of a hymn would be so meaningful – yet I would look out at the dead expressions of the congregation
and see no connection to the music and words.
Last month during the primary program, my granddaughter and her friend burst out laughing when the congregation joined in one hymn and sang it like a dirge.
Sad! Because music touches the heart and soul.
Amen.
and:
“it is a lack of understanding that hymns of praise are a prayer unto the Lord! Sometimes there is such a distinct lack of fire in the bellies of the membership of The Church that it makes my fiery soul weep for something more substantial.”
Amen! Singing is a form of worship.
What’s hardest for me is when we sing a joyful, upbeat, wonderful hymn of praise as a funeral hymn’s pace because the organist or chorister (or both) choose to ignore the tempo markings in the book. We have some great, fast, rollicking hymns in there, but you’re never know it. I admit some accompanists may lack the skill to play faster than a certain speed (I can completely relate), but often, I think it’s done out of tradition or misplaced “reverence” where none is needed.
I’m not sure if anyone has noticed but Euro-American folk music played on the organ is super disorienting and boring to almost everyone who didn’t grow up in Utah.
*I said ALMOST everyone. There are some weirdos in CA and ID.
What exactly do you mean by Euro-American folk music? I’m having trouble thinking of anything we sing that fits that description (especially 16th century as you mentioned above).
I have been known on occasion to ask somebody sitting nearby during a particularly dirge-like hymn, “Where’s the body?”
I once attended an lds church in Italy, and everyone in the congregation really sang out. I was impressed with how good it sounded. When they drag the hymns here, I can hardly make myself sing along because it is so frustrating.
woodboy,
I was making a point by exaggerating the date. Just being a little silly. 🙂
But hold on and I’ll look up some Mormon hymns and provide you with the folk music they were based on.
Viliami,
The English hymnal has a lot of folk tunes that Vaughan Williams collected from the English countryside. I think our hymnal would be much improved if we had more of these. There are some hymns that are based on folk music, but most of them are just hymns.