Singing the mass

 

We Irish are famously shy about singing at Mass. Perhaps because many Catholics once saw congregational singing as “a Protestant thing,” the habit has been faithfully passed down: keep your head down, keep your mouth shut, and let someone else do the singing. Even when hymn books or sheets appear — on those rare Sundays when they do — most of us still remain resolutely silent. The choir or folk group, if there is one, is expected to carry the load. Heaven forbid anyone in the pews might actually join in.

It is an odd tradition, especially when we remember the old saying, often attributed to St Augustine: He who sings prays twice.

Whether Augustine said it or not, the truth behind it stands. Singing engages the whole person — body, mind, and heart. Music slows us down, opens us up, and touches the emotions in a way ordinary speech cannot. It is not a performance but a shared act of worship, a whole community lifting its voice to God. And that, surely, is what we gather to do at the Eucharist.

St Paul urged the Christians at Ephesus (5:19–20) to be

be filled with the Spirit,  as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

That is as concise and accurate a description of the Eucharist as you could hope for.