What will it take for Catholics to find their voice?

I find so much about being a Catholic that connects me to the eternal. The ritual, the spirituality, and Apostolic Succession all give me a feeling of touching the eternal, of reaching back to the time of Jesus (and before) and reaching forward into future generations.

What I really wish, however, is that someone would choose some better hymns.

I sat through Mass on Sunday listening to the cantor warble through unsingable hymn after unsingable hymn. I tried to sing, but none of the hymns were singable. The words were vacant and tune tuneless. Save the last one, which was Amazing Grace.

I have complained about this before. Cannot someone in the Church write some hymns that (i) are singable and (ii) are beautiful?

If that is impossible, cannot we at least borrow from the Anglican hymnal or go back to singing some Latin hymns?

Little Christian's Liturgical Dance

I admit that I have not been as diligent as I should be in getting my children to Mass. Usually, I bring my older son with me, but bribe him by saying IF he is a good boy, he gets a cookie after Mass.

This morning, Alex was not interested in Mass, so instead I brought Christian. He just turned two, so he has not been to Mass as much as he should. We spent most of Mass in the side chapel and in back, as Christian ran back and forth, pointing at the old statues of saints.

The only thing that stopped him was the music. Every time the organ began, he would turn to me and say "sing again!" and sometimes join in. At the end of Mass, he decided that the recessional deserved a liturgical dance, which consisted of him putting his arms in the air and circling me quickly. He was so pleased with his dance, that he applauded himself loudly when it was over.

In college, I can remember more "progressive" pastors trying to introduce truly dreadful liturgical dances into the Mass. Thankfully, they seem to have gone away. I wonder what Pope Benedict would think of Christian's attempt to reintroduce it?