My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Two years ago on the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, June 22, 2014, I published my first Pastoral Letter, Ars celebrandi et adorandi, On the Art of Celebrating the Eucharistic Liturgy Properly and Adoring the Lord in the Eucharist Devoutly. I started my first Pastoral Letter by saying, “The art of celebrating the liturgy properly and adoring the Lord in the Eucharist devoutly (ars celebrandi et adorandi) is the key to fostering the active participation of the People of God in divine worship.”

Last year, on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, Sept. 14, 2015, I published my second Pastoral Letter, Ars crescendi in Dei Gratia, On Building a Culture of Growth in the Church. I started my second Pastoral Letter by saying, “The art of growing in God’s grace (ars crescendi in Dei gratia) is the key to growth in the Church. Building a culture of growth in the Church starts with inviting people to experience the love of Jesus Christ.”

These two Pastoral Letters and their themes are not unrelated. If we want our church to grow, we must help people to grow in God’s grace. We grow in God’s grace by experiencing the love of Jesus Christ. We experience the love of Jesus Christ by active participation in divine worship and the sacramental life of the church, where we receive God’s graces. We foster active participation in divine worship and the sacramental life of the church by celebrating the liturgy properly and adoring the Lord in the Eucharist devoutly.

One of the ways that growth comes about in the church is by beauty in the liturgy. As I wrote in Ars celebrandi et adorandi, “The beauty of our church edifices, magnificent works of religious art and the graceful celebration of the liturgy, accompanied by harmonious music, inspiring homilies and the active participation of the faithful, are the foundational elements that attract people to the liturgy” (no. 10).

Beauty in the liturgy is not just the responsibility of priests, liturgists, architects and musicians. The faithful who come to Mass also have an important role to play in contributing to the beauty of the liturgy. Musicians, cantors and choirs can produce beautiful music, but the people in the pews can enhance the whole liturgical experience by robustly singing the hymns along with the cantors and choir members. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is not a musical concert for an audience’s listening pleasure or a performance for spectators to sit back and watch. The hymns we sing at Mass should be prayers by which we give glory and praise to God. St. Augustine said, “He who sings, prays twice,” meaning that singing adds to our expression of praise and worship of God. While there are occasional choral meditation pieces intended to inspire the congregation to prayerful reflection, most hymns and acclamations are meant for the whole congregation to sing. The beauty of the liturgy is heightened and is made more meaningful for those in attendance when everyone is robustly joining in singing the hymns.

Perhaps an example may help to make this point: imagine a birthday party of family and friends. When it came time to sing Happy Birthday, what if a soloist or chorus sang happy birthday while everyone just sat quietly and watched? I imagine that would not be very satisfying either for the person whose birthday was being serenaded or for those attending the party. For many years, on my mother’s birthday, I would join my six brothers, two sisters and our Dad in singing happy birthday to Mom as loud as we could. Mom’s birthday is in August, so the weather would be warm and we would make sure all the windows of our home were open so the whole neighborhood could hear the Paprocki family singing happy birthday to Mom at the top of our lungs! By the time we finished singing, we would all be laughing hard because we were having so much fun. Similarly, liturgy is much more satisfying when everyone is participating.

As I travel around the diocese, I can tell you that in some parishes many of the parishioners just sit there and never join in the singing. The lack of participation has a dampening effect on the whole experience. In contrast, some parishes have many parishioners who sing enthusiastically. I find it very uplifting when the whole congregation is singing, as I would imagine everyone else does. The difference in these situations is not always due to the quality of the musicians or the choirs. Again, one does not need a musical virtuoso to entice people to sing happy birthday. Similarly, the decision whether or not to sing and actively participate in the liturgy rests with each individual member of the congregation.

As summer approaches and warmer weather comes upon us, it is also helpful to be mindful of the way we dress in church. The clergy rightly wear special vestments at Mass as an expression of respect for God and for the people whom we are leading in prayer. Parishioners would be justifiably appalled if the priest were to celebrate Mass wearing shorts, a t-shirt and gym shoes. So too I would say that priests are justifiably appalled when people come to church dressed as if they were going to the beach or to a bar. The clothes we wear to church should reflect the honor that is due to our Lord and Savior whom we come to receive in the Eucharist.

As we celebrate the solemnity of the Body and the Blood of Christ, many of our parishes will have Corpus Christi processions carrying the Blessed Sacrament through our public streets. May our participation in these Corpus Christi processions serve as a witness to our faith in the Real Presence of Our Lord in the Eucharist and as an expression of our belief that God is in our midst even in our everyday lives.

May God give us this grace. Amen.