23/5/10 – Join the Music Ministry

The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few…

This weekend, we are appealing to you as we look to improve our parish’s music ministry.  The first part of this is working to ensure that all our Sunday Masses have live music.  This requires the participation of more singers and instrumentalists in our ministry.

You may ask why we members of the Liturgy Committee consider the provision of music to be so important?   Music has been an integral part of our Church’s prayer since its earliest days.  In St Paul’s letters to both the Ephesians (5:19) and the Colossians (3:16), he implores them to sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs to God.

Furthermore, the bishops of Second Vatican Council remind us that “liturgical worship is given a more noble form when celebrated in song.”  They remind us that music allows our prayer to be expressed in a more beautiful way, and that our sense of worshipping together as one body in Christ is strengthened through the action of us all joined together in sung prayer (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, 113).

Our music ministers are a relatively small group who show a great deal of commitment.  They appreciate the positive feedback they receive from parishioners on special occasions when our music is of a very high standard.  They will be the first to tell you, however, that they need more people to help them provide quality music Sunday after Sunday.

Perhaps you enjoy singing, and maybe people have even suggested to you that you should?  Perhaps you can play a musical instrument?  If you fall into either of these categories, we ask you this weekend to consider joining one of our existing music groups, or forming one of your own.  The music ministers here in Wenty provide a great deal of support to each other, and are always willing to help new ministers in whatever way they can.

In his first letter to the Corinthians, St Paul urges Christians to use their spiritual gifts for the building up of the Church and the kingdom of God.  This Pentecost Sunday, please take some time to consider how you may use your gifts for the good of all.