Irish Grinch steals mood music

By Diogenes ( articles ) | Dec 02, 2004

I mean, is nothing sacred?

From the Irish Independent comes the news that "Frosty the Snowman" cannot be performed during Christmas-carol services in the parishes of the Kerry diocese. Also explicitly banned is "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer." (I confess that I am not familiar with that particular oeuvre, but then I don't own the comprehensive edition of Glory and Praise.)

Padraig McIntyre, the music director for the Kerry diocese, explains that music performed in churches should seek to "create an encounter with God." Leaving aside the possibility that Grandma's accident might have led her into an encounter with God, I guess I can see what he means.

But just when you start thinking that the iron discipline of the Kerry diocese knows no bounds, McIntyre reveals that these guidelines are really just suggestions. Like all good liturgical guidelines, they won't be enforced.

Now tell me this: If a pastor is so spiritually tone-deaf that he can't see for himself why "Frosty the Snowman" shouldn't be sung in church, do you suppose a "suggestion" from the chancery will set him straight?