No, Kathy, not at all. Remember that my above remarks are specific to the responsorial.
I've always viewed Heritage as I do Creation, a so-called "Fall back/default" Mass. I would now say the ICEL occupies that space in my mind.
But, as I've often lamented, the apples to passion fruit comparison you mention has a number of engendering reasons: the clear mandate by the USCCB (somewhat clarified by the degrees stated in Musicam sacram that portions of the Ordinary are the provenance, or more to be "owned" by the congregation, specifically the Credo and the Sanctus.
The situation you encountered was an irreconcilable miscalculation, flatus in a sauna if you will. And it's probably not a stretch to think the director must suffer from what I dub is the Eugene Walsh syndrome that the "amen" MUST be a GREAT AMEN. Do you remember that the estimable Richard Proulx composed an octavo of about four "extended" amen endings to settings like the Dresden amen, the Vermulst amen, the Peoples' amen, etc., in a quasi-polyphonic manner? Yikes.
OTOH, having done the Mueller, the Sherwin, the Clark Angelis among others, I'm still ill at ease that there seems to be no middle ground between the utility imagined above and the aesthetics demanded by the 1903 MP. and by the craft of composition itself.
That argues very much for the use of actual Gregorian Ordinaries, of course. But, that is a very long row to hoe for many DMs and directors, yes?

At one diocese's big Masses (ordinations and the like) I always brace myself at the Sanctus and Amen, because they are bound to be big Proulx numbers, complete with tympani and maybe horns. Egads.

Rubric from the Roman Missal:
"At the end of the Eucharistic Prayer the trumpets, timpani, and organ shall blast forth with a Star Wars-ish melody, as though announcing the arrival of the Starship Enterprise, followed by a repeat of three, six, nine, or twenty-five amens, possibly follower by further trumpet."

Now... Let us watch and see if the folks here point out that rubric doesn't exist or If their heads explode about Trek/Wars confusion.

Matthew, be at peace, my dear Frodo...

Fr. Krisman - I did find it humorous. And I would say that there is legitimacy in such a critique of my programming (even if intended to be humorous) because it is never a good thing to allow one's programming to be dominated by one composer (unless, of course, that composer is Gregory the Great!)

Alstott is very present in my programming because, as I said before, I find his material more liturgically minded than most. It is often modeled after traditional hymnody or chant and, in some cases, the propers (see his "Grant Them Eternal Rest" for the funeral Introit.)

Anyhow - back to the topic at hand -
Do keep in mind that that was only one piece of the email. There were other parts that are going to require further discussion, but this whole thing has me scratching my head. It also means my analysis of how the pastor handles this situation is not going to be as simple as the Option 1, Option 2 scenario PGA put forth earlier.

As always, thanks for your help and support. I hope this is sparking fruitful discussion rather than making everyone feel uneasy or feel like I'm whining. :) I am, more or less, just trying to add to the wealth of practical information present on the forums.

In reading this thread, I've learned quite a lot from all of you. I looked at bkenney27's choices for Christmas and I found them perfectly wonderful. I often add an English translation to alternate with the Latin verses for hymns which may be unfamiliar to my congregation. This helps them to become accustomed to the meter and melody of the hymns. A hymn that you haven't mentioned for Christmas which I use every year is "Quem Pastores Laudavere".   

IMHO, the criticism you have received reflects a bias against Latin. This is pretty common and you can overcome it with patience. These encounters are opportunities to teach if both sides actually listen to each other. Don't give up. This is God's work and we are privileged to do it.

I had gone through something similar PGA, and my pastor also took an interest and sided with me.

No, you have not failed, but the people with clout in the parish have gotten to him and there is no way to fight this but to start looking for another position now.

I went through this exact situation and the same words were used. You have to understand that he has other major battles he is dealing with and there are people who have gotten him to believe that you are disobeying what he said, taking advantage of the fact that he cannot concentrate on figuring out what is going on with you because of the other battles.

The letter I got was handwritten and used phrases that came from someone other than himself who obviously had coached him in what was wrong and what to write.

Culprits will be in the form of a KOC guy who always wears three piece suits and an alto who also sings soprano and both of them will probably be cantors. I wish that I were kidding.

They have gotten to him and there is NOTHING that you can do to halt this.

This is a classic When Sheep Attack situation. If you had gotten two copies of the book, shared one with him and then met him to discuss it a few days later this might have been solved. Once the rumors get to this point and he believes that you are disobeying....you're screwed, to use the proper term.

You are in a toxic parish. Run like a bat out of....fear for its life. You knew that there was turnover there when you got the job. You are not the director of music, you are the moving target. Run, run, run, Rudolph.

You could...and this is a long-shot, request a meeting with the diocesan HR officer and Father. But that could brand you for life in the diocese...do not request a meeting with the Bishop citing your right to Recourse under Canon law. If you do, Father will refuse to show up, you will meet with the Chancellor, get invited to Mass with the Bishop and the Chancellor who preaches that day about, (I am not kidding you) What Would Jesus Do, and then discover that the bishop refuses to see you and the Chancellor punches your TS card and shoves you out the door.

Other than all this, how was your Christmas? Get coal in your stocking?

I remember one pastor telling me that he was unhappy I was doing certain things. When I told him that I hadn't disobeyed and had always done as he requested, he replied (in as many words) that he expected me to anticipate what he wanted and do it without him having to tell me about it -- in other words, read his mind.

Once there's a situation like that with a pastor, I've found it's basically the DM just following along without any real say. You get to keep the fancy title, but it's meaningless. Or at least it was in my case!

In regard to sheep attacking, I have had, twice, a situation in which someone told the pastor a blatant lie about me and he (the pastor) took action against me before verifying whether or not the statement was true. In both cases, they were false, but the damage was already done. I don't know what it is, but pastors seem very quick to assume that anything a parishioner says about a DM to be true. Guilty 'til proven innocent -- and then you still get treated as if you're guilty because they don't want to admit to having made a mistake!

To reiterate what others have said: get out ASAP. Surely you can do better than this place and keep your sanity. Find another job.

Many are the sorrows of the music director. My sympathy goes out to you, bkenney27. You haven't failed. What you are describing is common. Some pastors feel the need to placate the folks who complain the most.  Some pastors trust our training and experience, while others dont. I have been in my current parish for 20 years and have seen 4 pastors come and go. I have never had a problem directing the music for the entire parish (which worships in English, Spanish and Portuguese) until the current pastor arrived. Mind you, I only gave direction on the few occasions that we all worked together in those trilingual masses that I have grown to despise. Unfortunately, these masses are imposed upon us at the worst times. (eg...Christmas Eve, Holy Thursday and Glorious Saturday) each of the communities has its own choir director.  The new pastor allows them to do as they please, seeking (it seems) to be friends with them rather than their supervisor. As a non musician, he does not possess the background to do so.

The former pastors would consult me with respect to the music and it was my duty to make certain that all of the music was appropriate and well rehearsed.   I reviewed selections (attending additional rehearsals if necessary) and notified all of the participants (choirs, lectors, EM'S, Altar Servers) by email of the final program and their places in it at least a week prior to the mass. I also insisted on all choirs joining in the Kyrie (in Greek), Alleluia, Amen, Sanctus and Agnus Dei (in Latin).

The current pastor is apparently more interested in being the liturgist himself, and doesn't enjoy or want the input of anyone who actually knows what they are doing. The result is that on Christmas Eve 2013, one cantor and choir sang the WRONG psalm. One of the community's lectors forgot to proclaim the Word, so it was skipped.  The so - called charismatic influence appeared as well as another choir actually had the audacity to sing a Sanctus in which they changed the words of that angelic hymn. The same choir also altered the words of the Agnus Dei.  One choir actually did a version of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town".   These were sung in the vernacular (not English). After hearing the Santa Claus piece, I actually went out to my car and cried a little.  

I was able to squeeze in some Latin (Adeste Fideles and Quem Pastores Laudavere) and Greek (Kyrie- Missa De Angelis), and a few decent parts (Gloria - Leopold Syre) but since we split up the parts between choirs, and no one feels the obligation to share what they were going to sing, everything was a surprise...a very unpleasant surprise. BUT...we are called to build great things...ANYWAY.

It is very difficult to sit through Liturgy Committee meetings if you are the only one who understands Catholic liturgy. Remember also that complaining to a bishop or diocesan committee can backfire on you. Not everyone who passes through the church doors is a Christian.

I don't think that you should quit unless you are finished or unable to finish the good work that God called you to that parish to do. I would also advise that it is never good to find yourself in open opposition to the pastor. The canon law speaks about him, not us. In the end, he is responsible for teaching, preaching and sanctifying the parishioners under his care. You should comply to the letter with his demands unless you feel violated by doing so.

Don't listen to the folks here. If you're truly unhappy then look for another position. If you like your job do good English hymns, English chant, good organ music, etc. If you worry you're doing a disservice to the parish, choir, liturgy, etc... Ask yourself who they'd hire to replace you. Odds are can run a beautiful and faithful music program and keep your job. Use a bit more charm and befriend your enemies. They can't hate you if they love you.

The one thing I can never understand is the outright bans on Latin, and Latin specifically. To me, this is clearly someone elses agenda, and doesnt have anything to do with the Pastor, but for some reason the poor man has to be involved with it. My two cents for what it's worth is this: there are some people who use the church environment to play out their power grabs. Music is one of those areas that they use as leverage, and if the Pastor does not support you, that's what you become: leverage, especially since you are overseeing an area that many do not fully understand, so it's easy to control the information people receive about it. This is why it is so important to stay in contact with your Pastor, and educate him to the best of your ability. This is the only way he will see through the lies and manipulations. If you're fortunate like I am, you have a Pastor that asks for this.

Again, it's about the PASTOR. The problem is not liturgy committees, complainers, parochial vicars, or anything else. All of these are kept in check by the right pastor.

My parish has a liturgy committee. They don't bother me one bit and I don't dread the meetings. They are advisory only, and we spend more time collaboratively planning decorations and what days and times special events should occur.

The last time someone brought up a music "complaint" at a meeting, it was a member who had went to mass somewhere else and heard "Table of Plenty." She asked if we could do it. I said "No, we really couldn't even if I wanted to. That's OCP and we don't own a reprint license for them. It would also be really expensive to buy a single use license just to reprint that one song." (True) And that was that.

It's all about the pastor.

The problem is, in HAD the Pastor's support. I frequently checked in with him and asked him "How do you think things are going, and do you have any criticism?" I almost always got "Nope! It's great." It's a very delicate situation because I'm certain he agrees with whomever it is he happens to be speaking which is what has put me in this position and made it seem like I'm not listening to him. We RARELY use Latin, and the Latin wasn't even at the heart of the issue when I started this thread. It was simply the fact that the congregation (read: PPC) felt it selection of hymns was majorly unfamiliar. This development (the Pastor's letter) came in the middle of Christmastide when I have been using Christmas Carols (with the exception of a few selections on Holy Family and Mary, Holy Mother of God) so it is clear to me something else over which I have no control is going on. I know for fact from a reliable source that there are not only congregation members, but STAFF members trying to get me out (and I told the Pastor that so he could be alert for such manipulative conversations), but it seems like they're winning and there's nothing I can do about it.

With regard to our Lit Committee, our Director of Liturgy is the only person on staff that I know supports me 100% so I don't dread the Liturgy or what they are going to tell me to do nearly as much as some others might. However, in May, her position was cut from 15 hrs/wk to 200 hrs/year so, in addition to not having any support around the office at all anymore (with the exception of the three men in collars that DON'T hold any weight), SHE is just bout as unhappy with the church as I am.

I don't know. I have a strong feeling that trying to fix this, even if it is possible, is just going to lead to a damaging end on my resume and, as this is my first position as DM, I can't afford that. On the flip side, there aren't any jobs in my area right now so I would need to move across the country to take another one, if anyone else decided to hire me without a degree.

Happy 2014, everyone!

I will say this ... "Don't listen to the folks here" if you want to be fired just when you thought things finally weren't AS bad and were getting better ... i.e., when you don't see it coming.

If you need to get out of full time ministry, do it. Get a job as an assistant manager at the GAP if you have to, for $30,000/yr until you find a better parish job. At least you won't be tossed out and need to find a job within the month or lose your house.

Thanks Charles.

It's painful to watch because I've been there. At my last job I took my own advice and quit before I could be shown the door.

In fact, not to pat myself on the back, but I'd at least managed to handle things in a manner so as to get the ensured temporary support of the pastor - and it was explicitly temporary. He said "When your contract comes up, I will renew you for one more year if you want to stay, but during that year there needs to be major changes and we need to work together closely." I took that to mean I could guarantee myself a job for a year while I looked for a new position. I finally told him "I want to be as upfront with you as you've been with me. I am looking for a new position in [faraway city where I'm originally from]. If I find one, I'll take it; if not, I'd like to take you up on your offer for another year. I promise to communicate to you in plenty of time so that you aren't caught in a lurch."

I ended up moving back.

If Brenden doesn't do something he WILL be caught off guard. I remember that nightmare place vividly; just when I had a seemingly breakthrough conversation with some cantankerous person - and it seemed like we'd cordially agreed to disagree and had become friends, things would seem to get a bit better. No big bombshells for a few weeks. Then - WHAM. A HEATED e-mail to the pastor, from another complainer, with him coming to me and saying "We've still got major problems. We've got to get this right." There were only moments of tranquility followed by the hammer dropping when I least expected it.

I don't miss that place.

Yep. And apparently they don't have a good history with musicians. I wonder why. They will dig their own hole and have no one decent willing to work for them. The music will be left to volunteers, things will get bad ... people will leave who didn't think they had a dog in the fight but just don't like badly done music of any stripe ... the parish will suffer. And they will get what they deserve.

And apparently they don't have a good history with musicians. I wonder why.

THIS.

I do have to say that I am not even angry or even truly upset by he Pastor's remarks. I am overwhelmingly RELIEVED that he is finally being direct and taking a side. It's the wrong side, but it at least gives me somewhere to start. I am going to meet with him this week and see what he has to say, smile and nod, and cry on the inside or when I get home. I'll do whatever he wants me to do for a few months, won't argue him on any choices he makes with regard to music, and let HIM see what it's like to be in the position of choosing music for this parish. They can't attack me if he has the final authority and all my decisions cross his desk. Hopefully there is a lesson to be learned by him here.

In the meantime, I will circulate my resume and see what happens. That way, all bases are covered.

It's not, and it's sad. Many in the congregation are thankful for what I am doing and that they no longer need to worry that the pianist (no, they did not have an organist) might come in late for Mass, hungover, with a bottle of bright orange Gatorade placed on the piano, in front of the tabernacle, for quick access during Mass.

Unfortunately, I think those that are complaining and working to get me out forget that it was like that or, worse, didn't see anything wrong with it.

Again, the silver lining here is that my pastor is willing to work with me whether or not I agree with him, and he is FINALLY, Deo gratias (Oh, I'm sorry! That means "Thanks be to God"), taking a direct approach, the lack of which in the past has brought to where we are now.

martyrdom can be white or red... but it is still martyrdom.

So can Bolshevism, francis...

The above should be purple but I'm not sure how to do that from my phone!

Everyone on this forum could tell you that you are doing an incredible job, but we're not the ones you need to impress.

Correct, but understanding that I am on the same page as my colleagues helps counteract the overwhelming feeling that I am insane and that my direction is failing or downright wrong. Because that's the feeling the staff at my parish is giving me. If I know the direction I am trying to take is validated by others, it helps in forming my overall goal for the Ministry and deciding where compromise is possible where made necessary by the fact I work for a pastor that sees change necessary.