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The Musicians of Our Parish: ELEVATING THE LITURGY AND FOSTERING ACTIVE PARTICIPATION
For Catholics, as we lift up our hearts in song and glory to God, music is a powerful expression of prayer and praise. As St. Jerome once said, “Music to me is a voice, my voice, it’s my way of expressing what colors can I bring in, what emotions, what feel. What ideas can I bring out from these instruments that would make this song come alive?”
At St. Peter Church, our liturgies are enhanced with an abundance of beautiful music, and we are blessed with many musically gifted parishioners who can not only sing but play a wide variety of instruments — cello, flute, piano, percussion, wind instruments, and stringed instruments. Playing an instrument at Mass is a great commitment of one’s time and talent because a musician must be skilled enough to learn the Mass parts as well as the hymns which change every week. While our choirs have weekly rehearsals, the instrumentalists practice and rehearse on their own time, usually only attending rehearsals before major Holy Days, feast days or special liturgies. Sharing their musical talents truly is a form of stewardship to the parish and to God. By sharing their gifts of time and talent, they are playing their music for the glory of God.
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“It really is about leading the congregation in sung prayer,” says Monica Scholz, who has served as Music Director at St. Peter for over 30 years. “The single most telling aspect of our work as parish musicians is if the congregation sings well and participates in the liturgy. And we have great participation at St. Peter’s.”
The Second Vatican Council called for full and active participation in the liturgy to receive the graces from the Mass, and well-executed liturgical music draws the congregation more fully into that active participation of the Mass.
“We have wonderful volunteers who give hours of their time to elevate the liturgy and support the prayer of the people,” Monica says. “If the Eucharist is the source and summit of our lives as Catholics, it is important that we work hard to make sure that our liturgies are beautiful, meaningful and prayerful as well.”
Several of the parish’s instrumentalists include college students who play for special Masses.
“We invite the college and grad students to come back and play during the Christmas and Easter seasons and over the summer,” Monica says. “The parish has watched these kids grow up and it is just so special to see them come back and continue sharing their talents with us. It is such a joy to have them.”
