African American Sacred Music in Catholic Worship
By Kevin P. Johnson D.M.A.
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Where do we go from here?
 The survival of the Black Catholic Church of the twenty-first century is highly dependent on the development of its music ministries. The Church must engage itself in seeking ways to enhance and, in many cases, create music ministries that will allow for the soulful worship of its people. If the church does not do this, young Catholic men and women will be drawn to other worshiping communities in America where their songs are being sung and stories are being told. The church experience must remain relevant and inspiring to a new generation of believers. The church must begin to address the multigenerational musical needs of its membership. A church that will attract young people, motivated the 'old school" generation, and satisfy its elders will continue to minister the music that speaks to the entire worshipping community. This is no easy task for the church today. In this new century, many black churches both Protestant and Catholic face the grim reality that there are not enough talented musicians seeking church employment.
Protestant Musicians
Many Black Catholic churches are forced to recruit musicians from Protestant churches because no Catholic musicians can be found. These Protestant musicians are in such high demand that they often serve both Protestant and Catholic churches each Sunday morning having to leave the Catholic church before the end of Communion in order to make it in time for their “home” church service. These musicians often bring with them the styles of their particular Protestant church traditions and attempt to fit those same musical ideals in the Catholic liturgy. Because of their narrow training, they are often unaware of, and unable to draw upon, the variety of musical possibilities of the African American Catholic experience.
Music ministers who have grown up in Protestant churches must be careful not to superimpose the traditions of those churches on Catholic worship for they have markedly different traditions and requirements. For example, black Catholics are not as familiar with well-known hymns of the black Protestant church. The music minister would have more success playing a well-known European Catholic hymn with attention given to African American performance practice. Another example is that some songs created in the Protestant Church are not conducive to the universal expectation of the Catholic worship experience and have religious connotations that do not translate to the Catholic experience. Songs such as “Get Right Church and Let"s Go Home” which is often used in many Protestant Church services, cannot work in the context of Catholic worship because the textual meaning is contrary to Catholic theology.
If Catholic pastors are going to hire non-Catholic musicians, they should find a way to train these musicians for ministry in the black Catholic Church. Being black and skilled in black music is not enough for the African American Catholic Church musician. In order to have a profound effect on liturgy, the musician must approach Catholic worship differently than Protestant worship. Musicians who select music for the liturgy must understand how the Mass is designed. While the flow of the liturgy is highly dependent upon the celebrant, it is equally dependent upon the music minister"s ability to select appropriate music. Musicians both Catholic and non-Catholic must be taught about the elements of the liturgy and then required to participate in liturgy meetings and other opportunities to get feedback from the community they serve. In their frantic searches for musicians, some churches do not or cannot consider the available musician"s experience or understanding of Catholic worship. Churches often hire musicians who demonstrate the ability to perform a particular style of music. The misconception search committees often have when searching for music ministers in the Black Catholic church is that any person experienced in the gospel music idiom will be able to successfully lead a worshipping community in contemporary African American Catholic worship. This is far from the truth. Gospel music or for that fact, any music, used in liturgy must be carefully thought out with a sensitivity to the flow of Catholic worship. One who understands the importance of music in an African American Catholic community will take the necessary steps to ensure that the music ministry presents the worshipping community that which is authentically Black and authentically Catholic.
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