On August 19, the Pope commented in his audience on the sixth chapter dedicated to sacred music. The Pope states that music is part of the liturgical action and is not mere decoration of the celebration. In the liturgy, singing means praying, tuning the heart with that of others and with God, in active participation in the mystery being celebrated. The chants are prayer and dialogue with God and must favor communion among all, they do not serve to distract or entertain.
The Pope requires that the chants correspond to the celebratory moment, and should not be chosen for being pleasing to the ear, but rather for being appropriate for listening to the Word of that day or for the feast being celebrated. Moreover, the melodic form must be noble and at the same time simple, of high musical quality and easily executable, especially when it is intended to be sung by the entire assembly.
Choral groups must take care to serve the assembly, for the mass is not a concert and the assembly is not an audience. One of the most beautiful moments of the celebrations is seeing the entire assembly vividly singing a chant, and there is no sense in choosing overly elaborate and difficult chants that drive people away from singing.
The Pope also recommends that the texts be appropriate, profound, and easily understood, inspired primarily by Sacred Scripture, the liturgical books, and the spiritual Tradition of the Church. According to the article, there are many lyrics and adaptations of light music in liturgy that should not be sung, as they little or nothing speak of God, of Christ, and of the Church.
