NOTE: The term "crappy church music" is apparently sweeping the Catholic blogosphere. I'm at least the third person to use it. Sorry for my lack of originality, it's just so darn true, people!
I was talking on the phone with my sister in Minneapolis today. She moved there recently and has been dabbling in different Catholic churches in the area. She likes St Olaf's. She tried another parish but found said she didn't like it because the liturgy was "too contemporary."
So just now I come across this story from the UK Telegraph which reported on Tuesday that Pope Benedict XVI has "demanded an end to electric guitars and modern music in church and a return to traditional choirs."
It is possible to modernise holy music. But it should not happen outside the traditional path of Gregorian chants or sacred polyphonic choral music.
That's right, B16! Throw down!
Whenever I have heard someone using the term "crappy church music," it's been to describe traditional choirs that sound like garbage. Contemporary Christian Music (CCM), when done well, has all the potential to complement a Catholic liturgy that traditional music does. Today's Catholic youth are turning to CCM to enhance their spiritual experience, and the Church would do well to recognize it. Perhaps more attention should be given to ensuring that church music, no matter what genre, is done WELL, instead of regulating what style that music is. When people sing in-tune, and with a little heart, it elevates souls.