Pope, in audience on Vatican II, reflects on sacred music

August 19, 2026

Continuing his series of Wednesday general audiences on the Second Vatican Council and its documents, Pope Leo XIV today reflected on sacred music.

Today’s audience (video) took place in St. Peter’s Basilica. It was the twenty-second in the series and the seventh devoted to Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (1963).

Quoting the Council fathers, Pope Leo said that “sacred music is to be considered the more holy in proportion as it is more closely connected with the liturgical action, whether it adds delight to prayer, fosters unity of minds, or confers greater solemnity upon the sacred rites. But the Church approves of all forms of true art having the needed qualities, and admits them into divine worship.”

“Here we find the core of the Council’s teaching, which confirms and deepens the ministerial function of music in the liturgy, which had already been highlighted by Saint Pius X in the Motu Proprio Inter sollicitudines,“ Pope Leo commented. “Music, indeed, is part of the liturgical action and is not merely a decorative part of the celebration.”

“Singing also fosters communion. It contributes to the unity of hearts, overcoming differences between people and bringing everyone together in praise of God through the symphony of voices,” the Pope continued. “Thus, it becomes an epiphany of the Church, a tangible manifestation of the communion that belongs to her very nature.”

The Pontiff said that “certain requirements arise from the profound theological significance of sacred song as an integral part of the liturgical action”:

• “The first is that it must respond at every level to what is most appropriate for the liturgical moment, beyond fashions or the particular sensitivities of composers. Its form, especially in its melodic aspect, must be at once noble and simple, of high musical quality and easily performable, particularly when it is intended to be sung by the whole assembly.”
• “The texts too should be suitable, profound and at the same time readily understandable, inspired mainly by Sacred Scripture, the liturgical books and the spiritual Tradition of the Church.”

Quoting Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Leo said that active participation must be understood “on the basis of a greater awareness of the mystery being celebrated and its relationship to daily life.” Pope Leo added:

The Council then attributes great value to Gregorian chant, without excluding other genres of sacred music from the celebration. Particular attention is also given to the organ (cf. SC, 120), while the use of other instruments is permitted “on condition that the instruments are suitable, or can be made suitable, for sacred use, accord with the dignity of the temple, and truly contribute to the edification of the faithful.”

After discussing inculturation, the schola cantorum, composers, and the need for formation in sacred music, the Pope concluded:

Dear brothers and sisters, the Fathers of the Church held liturgical singing in great esteem as a symbol of ecclesial communion. We can therefore conclude with these beautiful words of Saint Ignatius of Antioch: “Let each of you become a choir, so that, harmonious in agreement and taking the pitch of God in unity, you may sing with one voice through Jesus Christ to the Father, so that he may hear you and, from the good works you perform, recognize that you are members of his Son.”

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Audiences in series “Vatican Council II through its Documents”

• Introductory catechesis (1/7/26)

On Dei Verbum, the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (1965):

• God speaks to men as to friends (1/14/26)
• Jesus Christ reveals the Father (1/21/26)
• A single sacred deposit: The relationship between Scripture and Tradition (1/28/26)
• The Sacred Scripture: the Word of God in human words (2/4/26)
• The Word of God in the life of the Church (2/11/26)

On Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church (1964):

• The mystery of the Church, sacrament of the union with God, and the unity of all humanity (2/18/26)
• No audience on 2/25 (Pope, Roman Curia on retreat)
• The Church, a Visible and Spiritual Reality (3/4/26)
• The Church, people of God (3/11/26)
• The Church, a Priestly and Prophetic People (3/18/26)
• On the foundation of the Apostles: The Church in her hierarchical dimension (3/25/26)
• Living stones in the Church and witnesses in the world: The laity in the People of God (4/1/26)
• Holiness and evangelical counsels in the Church (4/8/26)
• No audience on 4/15 and 4/22 (in Africa), followed by a special general audience on his apostolic journey to Africa (4/29/26)
• The Church, pilgrim in history towards the heavenly homeland (5/6/26)
• The Virgin Mary, model of the Church (5/13/26)

On Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (1963):

• The liturgy in the mystery of the Church (5/20/26)
• The reform of the liturgy: tradition and development (5/27/26)
• Rite, sign, and symbol (6/3/26)
• No audience on 6/10 (in Spain), followed by a special general audience on his apostolic journey to Spain (6/17/26)
• The mystery of the Eucharist (6/24/26)
• No audiences in July
• The prayer of the Church (8/5/26)
• The liturgical year (8/12/26)
• Sacred music (8/19/26)

 

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Further information:

• General Audience (Dicastery for Communication - Vatican Media, 6/19/26)