As you read some of the following reflections regarding how music is utilized in prayer services, liturgies, events, etc., keep in mind that many moons ago, and I mean many, I sang Daddy's Home as a meditation after communion. In my defense, and it is a poor one at that, it was in honor of the Vietnam prisoners of war that were returning…and my mom and dad told me it would be good to sing that song. I was young. Very young. Give the kid a break.

I have seen music utilized well in some places, not so well in others; I have also seen amazingly encouraging moments where music is utilized with great care and creativity. There are people and places where music is used to express gratitude, appreciation, love, and devotion. Music is a way to proclaim what we believe and the call to live what we proclaim. Music in and of itself is a service. We have to be vulnerable to sing and make music. It is a great way to model how we have got to live our faith, in action, in service to others. Being faithful and faith-filled has little to do with being comfortable and everything to do with serving others…especially the ones outside "holy places and holy people."

Music Is About Ministry

There is a youth minister named Marion, in Galveston, Houston. Every Monday night twenty or more young people gather for "praise and worship." There is no musician present. No guitarist, no pianist, no harmonica player. But there is a youth minister with great love for her youth. She has a boom box. She has CDs. She has the young people form a circle. The music begins, the circle of youth begin to step and sway. Singing begins, and in the middle of the circle, the youth minister facilitates the prayer and praise. The youth are engaged in the music, are actively and consciously participating in this extraordinary act of worship. The youth minister calls the group to focus and to intentional participation. All sing, sway, dance, and pray. It is very unorthodox but extremely effective. Some proclamation of the word. Some silence. Intercessions and a sending forth. Hello. There is no musical expertise here. Just a heart for young people and the courage to use what she has been given. Marion has no musical education, no certification in music ministry. But she understands what many of us, who do have degrees, certification, and experience, have yet to understand and appreciate. Music is about ministry—service to God and to God's people everywhere and in every circumstance. Every Monday night these young people show up. Hmmm.

Music with Young People

Hey now. It is not complicated but it is also not easy. We do not have to use new music, rock music, rap music, country western music (please do not, just kidding), heavy metal, or hardcore. Give young folks a bit more credit. Young folks sing and participate because they are included—not by words, but by deeds. They are invited in by adults. They are affirmed, challenged, and empowered by adults. When it comes to music, like any other culture, young folks would like to hear homilies in a language they understand and to which they relate. The same is true with music. Their music is as unique and diverse as their elders in the church. What young people have told me they appreciate is music that speaks to them, moves and motivates them, and gives them a sense of belonging.

The majority of young folks I have listened to have never said they want a rock or rap concert. They have simply wanted to feel like the parish life of music and prayer—includes them.

I have seen great things happen at the "Lifeteen Music and Liturgy Conference" in Mesa, Arizona. I have seen great things at the Emmaus Center's "Music Ministry Alive!" conference in St. Paul, Minnesota. I have served on a team of presenters for the "Keys to Vibrant Worship" by Oregon Catholic Press. There are experiences all over the country that provide excellent experiences for learning about the power of music in ministry. These experiences are a great resource for how to utilize music well in the context of liturgy. I encourage you to google these events. I encourage you to see refreshing and renewing models of music in ministry.

Music in Non-Liturgical Contexts

If you have been to Youth Day at LA Congress, NCYC, or to any of the World Youth Days in Denver, the Philippines, Rome, Paris, Toronto, and this summer in Germany; holy cow. You will see the power of music utilized in non-liturgical contexts. The power of music as folks are gathered, enlivened, exited, empowered, and unified. There are some that think the only music in church is liturgical music and that anything outside of that is somehow less holy and sacred. What error and what arrogance. Liturgical music is a great and holy gift. Music outside of the liturgy is also a great and holy gift. And you don't have to go to a Christian rock concert and listen to Christian rap. Just go to the nursing home and sing You Are My Sunshine. I have gone to a VA Hospital where veterans with dementia, slumped heavy in their wheelchairs, all of a sudden come to life at the sound of that song. It was amazing—they could not remember a thing—all of a sudden they know all the verses of the song, and in harmony! Yikes.

And let us not get started on Stella By Starlight or I've Been Working on the Railroad. I have witnessed the holy and the grace of God in Places and situations like that. At St. Dominic Villa Nursing Facility, in the presence of Dominican Sisters in retirement, This Land Is Your Land was just as uplifting as On Eagle's Wings. Grace has many forms, thank God!

Which is why, I will say it again, "music in ministry is not about the music." It is not about the song. Yes, there are appropriate songs for specific types of prayer and celebrations. That is an important part of the story. But I believe the Big Story is that about the Spirit.

Music is a gift. How we use that gift, is a great thing to ponder. Stretch your mind and use your imagination. Try "new things." Revisit and renew "older" things.

Why We Sing

In closing, music in ministry in music is like the seventh inning of a baseball game. Everyone stands. Everyone stretches. Then everyone sings. Everyone who sings on key, off key, and without a key. They all sing. It is not because the song Take Me Out to the Ballgame is a great song. Everyone sings because that song gives them a way to say, "We love the game! We are grateful! We are fans! Life is difficult but we have got the game!"

When it comes to ministry in music, it is not about the song. It is for whom the song is sung. Jesus. The One whose song always comforted the afflicted, and whose justice afflicted the comfortable.