Christ Washing The Feet Of The Apostles, 1438-1445, Fra Angelico

When the Entrance Chant is concluded, the Priest stands at the chair and, together with the whole gathering, signs himself with the Sign of the Cross. Then by means of the Greeting he signifies the presence of the Lord to the assembled community. [i]

With the Sign of the Cross, the Priest recites or chants the words, “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” This gesture and these words, prayed by all the Catholic faithful on so many occasions, are packed with meaning that can easily be overlooked in the midst of their frequent repetition throughout our lives. With this Sign of the Cross we confess our belief in the centrality of the Cross, and in the Trinity, praying to be united with and faithful to this God who has revealed himself in Jesus Christ. But it is not only a personal prayer: this Sign is also given to us by the Church as a sacramental, through which we can be more fully disposed to the reception of God's grace, and strengthened in the midst of temptations and difficulties. [ii]

Now the way in which the Priest says or sings these words, as with all the other words he says or sings throughout the Liturgy, can also make a difference in the extent to which he and everyone else present are disposed to receive the grace of God. Pope St. Pius X points us in this direction when he speaks of the Mass and its music:

It must be holy… not only in itself, but in the manner in which it is presented by those who execute it. [iii]

If with reliance on the Holy Spirit the priest says or sings the Liturgy with deep humility, reverence, faith, and love, his words can inspire the same dispositions in all those who hear them. If on the other hand the priest lacks any of these qualities – if for example he draws undue attention to himself, if he takes a casual attitude toward the Mass and its rubrics, or if he adheres to proper form without fervent faith and love – these qualities, manifested by word and body language, will tend to thwart the cultivation of the essential dispositions for the reception of grace. [iv]

It is in assuming such fitting dispositions that the priest is encouraged, though not required [v], to chant his parts of the Mass. For singing can in fact communicate and strengthen either set of the positive or negative qualities listed above. It can allow the priest to more fully give of himself to God and others, or it can amplify obstacles to grace such as self-consciousness, vanity, irreverence, or a cold heart. Singing in a holy way is not a complex matter of style or aesthetic sophistication; it is the eminently simple way of being “clothed in Christ”[vi] and dependent on the Holy Spirit. But because our seminarians and priests have typically been strongly influenced by the music of our secular culture, and cut off from any authentic living tradition of priestly chant, they are often in need of discernment and/or re-education in this important aspect of their formation.

And now back to the issue of repertoire, which is the focus of this section: what are the specific melodies which are fitting for the Priest to use as he chants the Mass? Whether in the vernacular or in Latin, there are two easily accessible sources which he may draw from: 1.) the melodies found in the authorized Missal, or 2.) other melodies which have been approved by the appropriate ecclesial authority. In both cases, these melodies tend to be very simple and discreet. And if the Priest makes minor errors or changes within the given modes, there is generally no problem: he is singing by himself and thus does not need to coordinate his voice with the voice of anyone else. [vii] The obvious exception is when he concludes a phrase to which the congregation will sing a response; at such moments, his concluding notes will need to lead clearly and naturally to the sung notes of the people.

Let's look now at those parts of the Mass which may be chanted by the Priest. While it has become customary for him to recite rather than sing many of these parts, there is no rule to this effect. The directive that has been given is that certain parts of the Mass, especially those which involve a dialogue between Priest and congregation, should be prioritized for singing when the Mass is not fully sung. [viii] Here are all the priest's parts for a fully sung Mass; those in parentheses may be assigned to a Deacon or cantor, according to liturgical rule:

Sign of the Cross
Greeting
Invitation to Penitential Act
(Intonation of Penitential Act)
Absolution
(Intonation of Kyrie eleison)
(Intonation of Gloria)
Collect
(Gospel Reading with its introduction and conclusion)
(Intonation of the Creed)
Introduction and Conclusion of Universal Prayer
Orate fratres - “Pray, brethren...”
Prayer over the Offerings
Preface Dialogue
The Eucharistic Prayer
Intonation and embolism of the Lord's Prayer
“The Peace of the Lord”
Behold the Lamb of God
Prayer after Communion
Concluding Rites (part of which belong to the assisting Deacon)

While at first sight the quantity of these potential chants might seem to be daunting, in practice most of them can be learned over time with ease, as the same words and melodies are repeated at every sung Mass over the course of years and decades.

Here now are a number of resources for Priests, which provide the melodies for most of these parts:

For the chants from the English translation of the current Roman Missal: Click here.
For the chants from the Latin Missale Romanum (Ordinary Form – Mass of Paul VI): Click here.
For one fine example, among many, of how most of the latter chants are used in the Traditional Latin Mass (Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite), here is a recent recording from the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., which also featured the beautiful music of Frank La Rocca, his Mass of the Americas: Click here.
For a full set of Priest's chants, which have been slightly modified (with the approval of the USCCB) for use with my Mass of St. Philip Neri: Click here. While this link is for the entire sung Mass, the Priest's parts can be easily located by clicking on their headings in the description box. The musical score for these parts can be obtained by Priests and seminarians, free of charge, by contacting us at magnificatinstitute.org, or by purchasing the entire score of the Mass of St. Philip Neri here.
Another complete recording of the above chants can be purchased as a CD (here) or digital download (here.)

Let's listen now to the Priest's opening prayers, with congregational responses, from our Votive Mass of the Holy Spirit. In my next blog and podcast we will be considering the role of the congregation, in singing their various responses to the Priest's chants throughout the Mass.

In the meantime, let's remember that none of this singing is meant to be an end in itself – it serves its purpose only to the extent to which it brings glory to God, and sanctification and edification to the faithful! We do well to reflect often on these words of the solemn responsibility given to us by the Church [ix], so as to understand and live them ever more fully.

[i] GIRM (General Instruction of the Roman Missal), no.50

[ii] cf. CCC (Catechism of the Catholic Church), no. 2157

[iii] Tra le sollecitudini, no. 2

[iv] While I am not aware of any official Church teaching that deals with this issue in depth, my reflections here are based on the observation of countless Masses, both OF and EF, in which this relationship has seemed to be fully evident.

[v] I am speaking here in terms of universal norms, which can be superseded by the rule of a religious order or the directives of other proper ecclesial authority.

[vi] cf. Romans 13:14, Galatians 3:27, Colossians 3:12.

[vii] The obvious exception to this would be at certain moments in the Mass, when there are two or more concelebrants.

[viii] See Musicam sacram, nos. 29-31

[ix] See Tra le sollecitudini, no. 1; Sacrosanctum concilium, no. 112

Repertoire 3: Sign of the Cross / All the Priest’s Parts