VML wrote:The reaction of whoever suspended you says much more about his hang ups than about you.
Agreed: the phrase "attitude problem" springs to mind if you read ...
asb wrote:As my previous Anglican PP said to me, somewhat platitudinously(?), when I told him I had really done my best and it had gone wrong: "then your best obviously isn't good enough" followed by "you should anticipate EVERY eventuality and be prepared for it".
I agree with the "platitudinously" and also find the remarks unfeeling and unrealistic. (Incidentally, another platitude that asb would do well to forget in this context is that "A bad workman blames his tools". Sometimes we're given tools that even the best workman couldn't use with any success!)
asb's self-suspension here on the grounds of the earlier suspension (see end of page 1) ...
asb wrote:On the basis of my "suspension" in a previous parish (see somewhere above) I consider last week's debacle to be far more worthy of such a punishment than that was, therefore I feel the best I can do is suspend myself for a while if the PP doesn't!
... begs the question as to whether the earlier suspension was a fair and reasonable response (IMHO on the evidence presented so far it wasn't).
asb wrote:I suppose also that in a parish situation I am being unreasonable to expect similar achievements, but having for many years been in the happy position of having been able to attend cathedral choral evensong on a regular basis, I have NEVER witnessed any sort of foul up ANYWHERE. I can look up to and admire the directors of music.
Yes, this is being unreasonable because it is not comparing like with like. Anglican cathedrals have choirs, often attached to choir schools, whose members have over the years attained a high degree of musical literacy and expertise. Built into their schedules is a lot of time to put in a lot of practice to put on a good show. In a sense their choral evensong is a "show" in that the congregation come to listen to them rather than take an active part themselves and they would regard it as a major foul-up if one chorister hung onto a note for a gnat's crotchet longer than the rest.
Sunday Mass in an average parish is a very different matter. According to Vatican II the congregation are there to participate "fully, actively and consciously" in a service with the Eucharistic actions at its heart, which means that music is not the most important part but they are nevertheless encouraged to take part in as much of it as possible (even if in practice many may still go more from a sense of duty than a wish to sing and may therefore, as asb suspects, not care abut the finer points of the liturgy). This in turn means that the music will generally be less ambitious and the performance is more likely to be rough at the edges. In such circumstances the music director simply has to work with what is available and would be very lucky indeed to have one or two people with anything like the musical literacy or expertise of a trained chorister. The choir in my church, whose role is to sing the Psalms and Alleluia verses in unison to Gelineau tones, cannot all read music and would never make it to choir of the year. Not all of them are able to come each week and it has proved impossible to arrange regular practices to which they can all come, so we generally run through the Psalm or at least check what they are doing before Mass. It would be unreasonable to expect perfection from them but I am content if their words are clear and the overall sound is prayerful.
What is especially sad in this case is that that asb is taking the honourable line by accepting responsibility having been specifically directed to do so by the cantor who made the mistake in the first place and should therefore be taking much if not all of the blame. This would appear to be a cowardly, and in view of asb's heartfelt response, unfair act on the part of the cantor. By all means, asb, accept the responsibility but do so in a positive way by asking: (a) What went wrong? (b) Why did it go wrong? (c) What can I do to stop the same happening again? On the face of it, it would seem that the answer to (c) is either to remind the cantor every time before Mass starts what part to sing or to hand out music that only has one Sunday's acclamation on it, so there's no risk of confusion.
Foul-ups have been happening as long as we've had the Mass. The night we remember when we celebrate Mass two of the Apostles realised that they had fouled up in a really big way. One of them responded by ending it all; the other wept, was forgiven and welcomed back into the fold and went on to do great things. You seem in danger, asb, of emulating the former as far as your career is concerned. Haven't you wept enough to give the latter option a try instead?
