A model for the resuscitation of church music programs in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester, New Hampshire

This paper examines and provides the best model, degrees of preparation, and various steps the Diocese of Manchester can provide and encourage in order to resuscitate parish sacred music programs. In Chapter One, I provide the contextual framework needed in which to fully understand sacred music by first defining liturgy. I also examine the ancient/modern axiom of Lex orandi-Lex credendi-Lex vivendi by discussing the ways which worship shapes our beliefs and, in turn, how we live our lives. Since worship involves codified words, I discuss how the church safeguards her ritual texts and how the process of translations occurs from Latin into various vernacular languages, taking a moment to examine a few texts and compare translations. Because liturgy requires assembly participation, I conclude the chapter by detailing what active participation means and what it does not. Dedicated to sacred music, Chapter Two begins by defining sacred music and its associative qualities. I then move to discuss the attributes and polarity of Apollonian and Dionysian music. Next, I pivot to examine how sacred music serves as an important tool for evangelization. The chapter is concluded by rethinking the musician’s role as vocation versus employment and dissecting the role and function of the position Director of Music. Acknowledging the Church has a particular culture associated with it, Chapter Three traces the affect popular culture has on society and the widespread cultural deficit of attention to beauty. I trace the concept and components of the “culture of mediocrity” gripping the church and how best to reverse the trend. I then speak of the importance of richness found within liturgical texts and how human beings respond to beauty itself. Finally, I propose that parishes must establish a clear cultus Dei within their community in order to undertake authentic evangelization by providing an alternative to secular culture. Highlighting the reality that the path to resuscitate parish music programs, such as attaining both musically and liturgically competent musicians, is a complex situation involving multiple layers, Chapter Four begins with outlining various Diocesan responsibilities beginning with the Bishop, the Cathedral, Diocesan Office for Worship and Liturgical Commission, Diocesan Director of Music and the necessity for the Diocesan Office for Worship to collaborate with the Catholic Schools Office to cultivate a new generation of church musicians. The chapter ends with discussing the importance of continuing education and surveying both national and local structures, programs and initiatives for ministerial formation. Although our present time is complex and full of various seemingly insurmountable challenges, Chapter Five speaks of the unending hope for continued restoration within the liturgical and sacred music apostolate. Recapping some of the major themes found in the paper, I remind the reader that the journey towards total parish renewal is possibly for everyone and not just for a select few. The paper culminates in Chapter Six where I offer a strategic plan that supplies a model for the resuscitation of church music programs in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester, New Hampshire. The paper concludes with several appendixes. Appendix A details various chant resources, Appendix B lists various choral resources applicable for smaller and medium-sized choirs, a comparison/contrast of the 1970 and 2010 English translations of the Latin text of the Exsultet are in Appendix C, and Appendix D offers a model course focused on the history of sacred music and of liturgical theology.2026-09-3