This is an extraordinary move from Bishop Shawn McKnight, following the uproar surrounding the banning music in his diocese:
“I simply want to invite the whole Church to rediscover, to safeguard, and to live the truth and power of the Christian celebration. I want the beauty of the Christian celebration and its necessary consequences for the life of the Church not to be spoiled by a superficial and foreshortened understanding of its value or, worse yet, by its being exploited in service of some ideological vision, no matter what the hue. The priestly prayer of Jesus at the Last Supper that all may be one (Jn 17:21) judges every one of our divisions around the Bread broken, around the sacrament of mercy, the sign of unity, the bond of charity” (Pope Francis, Desiderio Desideravi, no. 16).
With the recent issuance of Suggested Mass Settings and Prohibited Hymns, which had as its aim to foster the active participation of the laity in the liturgy by providing common Mass settings for singing by the whole assembly in diocesan liturgies, it is now clear that an authentically synodal process of greater consultation did not occur prior its promulgation.
The Eucharistic Liturgy is “the primary and indispensable source from which the faithful are to derive the true Christian spirit” (Sacrosanctum Concilium, no. 14); moreover, it is my duty, with care and vigilance, to regulate the liturgical celebrations within the Diocese of Jefferson City (cf. Traditionis Custodes, Art. 2); and in order to provide for a more comprehensive consultation with the relevant parties within the diocese;
I therefore Decree that the previously promulgated Suggested Mass Settings and Prohibited Hymns is hereby abrogated and replaced by the corresponding diocesan policy Promoting Active Participation in the Liturgy through Sacred Music. It shall be promulgated by being published on the Diocesan website, and it will take effect immediately. It is approved ad experimentum for a period of one year, all things to the contrary notwithstanding.
I would like to reinforce that these rules and regulations are particular law for the Diocese of Jefferson City and are therefore obligatory for all who reside within its boundaries. Pastors, administrators, chaplains, and liturgical ministers are obliged to see that the norms of this policy are implemented in their parishes and institutions.
Given at the Chancery in Jefferson City, Missouri, on the 5th day of November in the Year of Our Lord 2024.
