I didn’t know it, but Ohio blogging priest Fr. Martin Fox is in attendance at the Musica Sacra Colloquium in Washington and is blogging on it!

One might wonder, why do we do this? I confess, this is even harder than I thought it would be, and it is tempting to do as many priests do, and say, "I’ve got so many other things to do, I just won’t be any good at this, so why bother?"

But I believe the liturgy deserves our very best. I believe we are constantly tempted to forget, or lose touch with, the transcendent, throughout our lives, including in our worship. My lay brothers and sisters, correct me if I am wrong, but lay folks coming to Mass on Sundays and holy days, are even more hard-pressed to touch heaven. If we do not do all that we reasonably may to foster a truly other-worldly experience of Mass, we who are charged with this duty–meaning clergy, and all those who take special roles in liturgy–are failing the people we claim to serve.

Also, we do this because we have a great treasure, an inaestimabilum donum in the music and prayers and liturgy of the Church, and we must share it! Recall the parable of the man who built great storehouses for his grain, and the Lord said, "thou fool, this very night your life will be required of you!" It is rather presumptuous to say, "oh, they won’t want it"; really, how do you know; and further, is it really for you to say?

There is a sobriety to the Roman liturgy, but in recent decades, that has become aridity. People flock to music stores to buy cds of chant–what does that say?

God bless him!