Dear Editor: I take exception to the tone of RoseAnne Cleary’s letter (April 7) concerning the Catholic funeral Mass.
First, by referring to the Church organ as “antiquated,” she demeans the instrument deemed “of the Highest Esteem” in Sacram Musicam, or the Instructions of the Music in the Liturgy, written after the Second Vatican Council, published March 5, 1967.
I have no idea of the “quality” of the pipe organ played at these Masses, but I can say that I’m sure no one heard it the same way.
The funeral Mass is not a therapy session, where the sole purpose is to “lift heavy hearts” and deal with the grief of the mourners. It has, in my opinion, the more important purpose of prayers for the deceased soul.
“The Church through its funeral rites . . . pleads for the forgiveness of the deceased sins.” See the General Introduction to the Order of Christian Funerals, paragraph 6.
James C. Gange
Brooklyn