As Christmas approaches many of us will be reflecting on the value of music and choral singing in the life of the church. According to Vatican News, Pope Leo XIV also reflected on this, as he celebrated the Jubilee of Choirs at the Solemnity of Christ the King, reminding thousands of choristers that sacred music is rooted in the mystery of divine love.
“Singing belongs to those who love,” he recalled, citing Saint Augustine. Those who sing, he added, “give expression to love, but also to the pain, tenderness and desire that dwell in their hearts”.
He described music as a gift of humanity that conveys what words cannot express. In the life of the Church, he said, song becomes “the ‘new song’ that the Risen Christ raises to the Father,” in which the baptised participate as “singers of grace” who manifest “the joy of new life in Christ.”
Addressing the choristers directly, the Pope encouraged them to see their work as a model for church unity. Quoting again from Saint Augustine, he invited choristers to “sing while we walk,” like travellers sustained by hope. “Being part of a choir means advancing together… consoling our brothers and sisters in their suffering… and encouraging them when difficulties seem to prevail.”
Read the full article in Vatican News here.