The Long-Suffering Benedict XVI

Sorry to be late on this but I’ve only now familiarized myself with the sad, sad spectacle of the Papal Mass in Berlin where the Pope was savaged with outbursts of 80s rock music that included screaming guitars and sexy soprano sax ballads. Sample here. I guess these people didn’t get the memo, or they did and tore it up. The advance crew can only do so much, as we learned from the American experience a few years ago. It wasn’t all terrible. The Mass setting was overblown and forgettable but not offensive (you can here samples here). But the best part, as Fr. Z shows, were the traditional dialogues and “Holy God We Praise Thy Name” sung by everyone. As every prelate knows, in the enforcement of norms, there is a balance to be achieved between charity and justice. You do what you can when you can.

Here is one example of utterly pointless expenditure, overblown and pompous with absolutely no added value of having a single cantor alone sing this Alleluia. Even better: learn an Alleluia in the Graduale.