The Return of Latin and Why It Matters
The Return of Latin and Why It Matters – Catholic Stand
At Mt. St. John’s Academy in 1965, my Kindergarten classmates and I sang, “Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus.” Our teacher, Sr. Luigia, had taught us the Latin chant that expresses the meaning, “Holy, holy, holy.” Even the more rambunctious children in our class became settled and reverent when we sang the mysterious words the good nun had taught us.
An Evolution in Liturgical Music
Shortly after my First Holy Communion, the “Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus” that we had learned was replaced by a ditty with the lyrics, “Sons of God, hear his holy word. Gather round the table of the Lord” (James Thiem). In middle school, a nice nun taught me how to play the guitar, and I soon strummed folk and soft rock music written for Catholic liturgy. Eventually, hymns with contemporary piano accompaniments appeared in the hymnals.
Latin seemed to be needed only by those who were going into medicine or the seminary. Teachers called it a “dead” language, useful for deciphering anatomical terms or Summa Theologica …