[Image of the Oxford University Coat of Arms from Wikimedia Commons.]
Some great quotes from this Catholic Herald article about Gregorian Chant at the University of Oxford:
For those who have heard of Gregorian Chant at all, it immediately identifies us with the Catholic liturgy, and at the same time with something whose cultural and artistic value exercises a powerful attraction. We are the people who take chant seriously, and we sing it – naturally – in the Catholic liturgy. If you want to hear it being sung, or sing it with us, that’s where we’ll be. [...]
The effect of the schola on its members is not, of course, its main purpose. It exists for the glory of God and the salvation of souls, by supporting the celebration of Mass. [...]
It was good, therefore, to read this account concerning a young woman from Miami, who attended a Mass supported by this same Schola in Oxford when she was passing through:Yes, there is. And that is why we sing chant and polyphony.During her post-collegiate travels she became resolute in converting to Catholicism after attending a Missa Cantata, or sung Mass, in the parish of her favorite author, J.R.R. Tolkien, a devout Catholic who penned the “Lord of the Rings” series.
When she heard Latin hymns coming from the choir loft, Tavakoli said, it felt like “hearing angels on high.”
She was mesmerized. “It truly is extraordinary,” she said. “There is something beautiful and sacred about this form of the Mass.”
