National Centre for Liturgy

St Patrick's Day

The Solemnity of St Patrick is celebrated this year on Saturday, 15 March.
New prayer texts and readings for Mass have been approved by the Congregation for Divine Worship.

English version.pdf                         As gaelige.pdf                       

The following documents are available here:

• Sacramentum Caritatis the post synodal apostolic exhortation on the Eucharist 

• Guidelines for Payment of Parish Church Musicians - please note that the Guidelines are updated for 2008

• Guidelines for Payment of Parish Church Musicians - updated for 2007

• Churches must be churches - a response to the decision on Cobh Cathedral

• Guidelines for Payment of Parish Church Musicians –updated for 2006

• Leading the Prayer of God’s People –statement on Presiding at Liturgy

• The Year of the Eucharist, including the Apostolic Letter, Mane nobiscum Domine

• Redemptionis Sacramentum –instruction of the Congregation for Divine Worship (2004)

• Spiritus et Sponsa –on the 40^th anniversary of the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy

• Celebrating a Catholic Funeral –statement on funerals (2003)

• Architectural Heritage Protection –guidelines of the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government on Places of Worship, agreed by the Churches (November 2003)

• Ecclesia de Eucharistia –encyclical of Pope John Paul II on the Eucharist (2003)

• Music Guidelines for Funerals –two statements of the Advisory Committee on Church Music (2002)

• The Planning Acts and their implications –statements of the Advisory Committee on Sacred Art & Architecture

• Popular Piety and the Liturgy –directory of the Congregation for Divine Worship (2002)

• A Guide to Liturgical Requirements –memorandum of the Advisory Committee on Sacred Art & Architecture (2002)

• Broadcasting of Liturgy –guidelines of the Irish Commission for Liturgy (2001)

• Music in the New Millennium –"a blueprint for the renewal of liturgical music," by the Advisory Committee on Church Music (2001)

• Norms for the Sacrament of Reconciliation –norms issued by the Episcopal Conference, June 2000

22 February 2007   

Sacramentum Caritatis, the post synodal apostolic exhortation on the Eucharist as the source and summit of the Church’s life and mission has been published. The Synod of Bishops took place on 2-23 October 2005. Sacramentum Caritatis  is published by CTS/Veritas and is available on www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/apost_exhortation/index_en.htm  

*These fees relate to a combined organist/choir director position. Where the positions are shared between two people as choir director and organist, it is suggested that each should receive at least 75% of the above fee with the implication that the total cost to the parish will be at least 50% higher than the rates above.

WEDDINGS AND FUNERALS

Where a church has an appointed organist it is normal practice to pay him/her the appropriate fee when the marriage couple/family wish to engage an organist of their choice. The implementation of this principle requires flexibility, so as to avoid misunderstanding and unfair criticism of musicians. It is recommended that each church should have a worked out policy in this matter, agreed in advance between clergy and musicians.

Weddings: The minimum suggested fee is €170, but should be higher when the musician is required for a rehearsal or when music has to be bought or learned.

Funerals: The minimum suggested fee is €100 for one service; €150 when music also is provided at a service in church on the eve of a funeral. Travelling expenses, 77c per km, may be paid where appropriate. (The Association of Funeral Directors has been informed of these rates.

MISCELLANEOUS

(a) Fees should be reviewed annually by reference to pay inflation and national pay agreements.

(b) Church musicians should be entitled to at least four Sundays off each year and the parish should pay the deputy for those Sundays. The responsibility for finding a deputy should be primarily that of the musician.

(c) Musicians should be allowed two Sundays sick leave in any one year, for which period the parish will meet the cost of a deputy.

(d) The minimum rate for deputy work is €65 for the first service on any day and €45 for each subsequent service

 12th September  2006

Churches must be churches

This article written by Patrick Jones was published, slightly edited, as the “Rite & Reason” column in The Irish Times, 3 July 2006.  It is also reprinted in the summer issue of New Liturgy and the September issue 2006 issue of Intercom.  It argues that a design plan that expresses the liturgy of Vatican II must have overriding weight.  In the case of planning situations, as required under the Planning and Development Act, the guidelines produced by the Department of the Environment and accepted by the Churches, remain the best way forward.

Click here for article

18th November 2005

The following should be regarded as guidelines and advice, not directives. The qualifications and ability of the musician, his/her expectations, the ability of the choir, the quality of the church organ, are among the matters which must be borne in mind when applying the guidelines to the local situation.

The recommended minimum remuneration levels relate to amateur musicians. Here ‘amateur’ indicates musicians, who may be professionally qualified, and who earn their living principally outside the world of music. Higher rates would be appropriate for musicians who earn their living principally by performing and/or teaching music.

It is recommended that the church musician should be engaged as an independent contractor on a ‘for services’ basis. However, if the musician is engaged on a contract of service, the parish should note its legal responsibilities in relation to taxation, social welfare insurance, employer’s liability insurance, and health and safety.

It is appreciated that in some cases a local agreement exists whereby the church musician either accepts no payment or donates it back. While of enormous benefit to the parish, this generosity on the part of the musician distorts the cost of running the parish. It is recommended that in such cases the parish should pay the appropriate level of fee into a separate fund as, when the present musician leaves, it is probable that the successor will have to be paid. This procedure will establish a realistic payment level for the post and will avoid a sudden sizeable additional cost in the future.

The value of regular in-service training cannot be over-emphasised, especially in these times of changing liturgies and the wide variety of styles of music now used in our churches.

We suggest that clergy should be pro-active in drawing the attention of their musicians to opportunities for professional development. The annual summer school of the Irish

Church Music Association is an obvious course to consider and the Advisory Committee will be happy to recommend other appropriate courses to those seeking advice. See recommendation (h) p.3

It is hoped that pastors will find these guidelines useful in determining an appropriate payment level. The Advisory Committee emphasises that it is essential that the value of music in the worship of the Church and the musician’s training, skill and commitment are appropriately recognised in monetary terms.

RECOMMENDED MINIMUM FEES FOR CHURCH MUSICIANS - 2006

The amounts above are the minimum recommended fees for trained and competent church

musicians. Factors such as level of qualifications, length of service, responsibility

for a junior choir and the amount of administrative work involved should also be taken

into consideration.

*These fees are ones recommended for a combined organist/choir director position. Where

the positions are shared between two people as choir director and organist, each should

receive at least 75% of the recommended fee with the implication that the total cost to the parish

will be at least 50% higher than the rates above

WEDDINGS AND FUNERALS

Where a church has an appointed organist it is normal practice to pay him/her the appropriate fee when the marriage couple/family wish to engage an organist of their choice. The implementation of this principle requires flexibility, so as to avoid misunderstanding and unfair criticism of musicians. It is recommended that each church should have a worked out policy in this matter, agreed in advance between clergy and musicians.

Weddings:

The minimum suggested fee is €160, but should be higher when the musician is required for a rehearsal or when music has to be purchased or learned.

Funerals:

The minimum recommended fee is €90 for one service; plus travelling expenses, 41c per km, where appropriate; a higher fee should be paid in cases where there are two services. (The Association of Funeral Directors has been informed of these rates.)

OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS

(a) Fees should be reviewed annually by reference to pay inflation and national pay agreements.

(b) Church musicians should be entitled to at least four Sundays off each year and the parish should pay the deputy for those Sundays. The responsibility for finding a deputy should be primarily that of the musician.

(c) Musicians should be allowed two Sundays sick leave in any one year, for which period the parish will meet the cost of a deputy.

(d) The minimum rate for deputy work is €60 for the first service on any day and

€42 for each subsequent service.

(e) A written contract should be entered into, outlining the terms and conditions of service and listing the duties, including the festivals other than Sundays, for which the musician is required.

(f) Additional payment should be made for duties over and above those set out in the contract.

(g) Church authorities should reimburse expenses incurred by church musicians - such as choir music, postage and stationery – within an agreed budget.

(h) Church authorities should encourage and expect musicians to attend appropriate courses (in music, liturgy, theology, etc.) in Ireland and elsewhere at least once every three years and should contribute towards the cost, recognising the benefit accruing to both the parish and the musician from continuous professional development.

Leading the Prayer of God’s People

In 1991 the Association of National Liturgy Secretaries of Europe issued a document on the role of presider at liturgy. It was prepared at their meeting in Bruges in June 1990 and finalised by their executive at two meetings, in Liège (December 1990) and Carlow (March 1991) and approved by all the Secretaries. Leading the Prayer of God’s People, liturgical presiding for priests and laity has been out of print for many years. But it remains "a very valuable document," to use Cardinal Daly’s words in its foreward. Cardinal Daly also noted the involvement of the National Centre for Liturgy (then based in Carlow) in the preparation of the text.

Leading the Prayer of God’s People is available on the web by courtesy of the Liturgy Office in London.

Available at http ://www.catholic-ew.org.uk/liturgy/Documents/Leading.pdf

16th December 2004 - Guidelines for remuneration of church musicians - update for 2005

The Guidelines were first issued in October, 2002. The revised version for 2005 is now published. The 2005 recommendations are jointly published by the Advisory Committee on Church Music and the Church Music Committee of the Church of Ireland Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough.

Click here for Guidelines

7th October 2004 - The Year of the Eucharist

In the Apostolic Letter Mane nobiscum Domine, Pope John Paul II inaugurated The Year of the 

Eucharist, to begin with the closing of the Internation Eucharistic Congress in Guadalajara, Mexico on 17th October 2004.

Click here for further information from this site on the Year of the Eucharist.

Click here for Mane nobiscum Domine

23rd April 2004 -Redemptionis sacramentum 

The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments issued Redemptionis Sacramentum, an instruction on certain matters to be observed or be avoided regarding the Most Holy Eucharist.

Click here  for text of Redemptionis sacramentum

4 December 2003 - Spiritus et Sponsa  

Pope John Paul II issued an apostolic letter, Spiritus et Sponsa, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy at Vatican II. 

Click here for text of Spiritus et Sponsa

11th November, 2003

Celebrating a Catholic Funeral

The Order of Christian Funeral, the book we have used at funerals since Easter 1992, offers much pastoral guidance on the celebration of funerals. Such guidance is based on what we believe a Catholic funeral to be. This statement by the Episcopal Commission for Liturgy and the Irish Commission for Liturgy emphasises our understanding of celebrating a Catholic Funeral. It was issued in November 2003.

Click here for Celebrating a Catholic Funeral

12th November, 2003

A rchitectural Heritage Protection

These guidelines, drawn up by the Department for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government with the agreement of the Catholic Church, Church of Ireland, Presbyterian Church and Methodist Church, were formally approved at a meeting with the Minister of the Environment, Mr Martin Cullen, T.D. and representatives of the Churches on 12 November 2003.  

Click here for Architectural Heritage Protection for Places of Public Worship

17 April 2003- Ecclesia de Eucharistia  

Pope John Paul II issued the Encyclical Letter Ecclesia de Eucharistia on the Eucharist and its relationship to the Church. 

Click here for text of Ecclesia de Eucharistia  

October 2002- Guidelines for Payment of Parish Church Musicians  

The Advisory Committee on Church Music has prepared Guidelines for the payment of PArish Church Musicians. It was presented to the meeting of the Bishops' Conference in December 2002. The Guidlelines are issued as guidelines and advice, rather than directives and offer as a help to a pastoral question often asked. 

Click here  for Guidelines

October 2002- Music Guidelines for Funerals  

Two statements, drawn up by the Advisory Committee on Church Music, reflect on the place of music in our funeral rites. They are of a practical nature, addressed to music ministers and others involved in planning the funeral rites, but also the family members and relatives of the deceased as they prepare for the Funeral Mass of a loved one. 

The first statement, Music for the Funeral Rites offers general and specific guidelines to the Funeral Rites as we receive the body of the deceased at the church and celebrate the Funeral Mass. 

The second statement is about Music for the Reception of the Body at the Church, good practice guidelines for music ministers. Thus, while repeating some of what is said in the first statement, it is concerned with the occasion when we receive the body of the deceased at the church and is addressed to music ministers. These statements are available as leaflets and will also be published in New Liturgy, Autumn 2002. 

Click here for Music for the Funeral Rites

Click here for Music for the Reception of the Body at the Church

May 2002 (updated) - The Planning Acts and their implications  

The following is taken from reports and memoranda of the Advisory Committee on Sacred Art and Architecture. It contains some updating to the version as originally published in New Liturgy, summer 2001. 

Click here for statement

April 2002 - Popular Piety and the Liturgy, Principles and Guidelines  

A Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy, Principles and Guidelines was issued in April 2002 by the Congregation for the Divine Worship. Dated 17 December 2002, the Directory explores the relationship between popular piety and liturgy whose first principle must be the recognition "that the Liturgy is the centre of the Church's life and cannot be substituted by, or placed on a par with, any other form of religious expression"(Pope John Paul addressing the plenary meeting of the Congregation for Divine Worship, 21 September 2001). 

Click here for document

November 2001 - A Guide to Liturgical Requirements  

This memorandum was drawn up by the Advisory Committee on Sacred Art and Architecture for its discussions on planning laws since the legislation requires that liturgical requirements must be respected in the planning process. It has been made available to diocesan representatives at the annual meeting of the Episcopal Commission for Liturgy and its agencies in November 2001. It was published in New Liturgy, summer 2002. 

Click here for statement

May 2001 - Irish Commission for Liturgy - Broadcasting of Liturgy

For several years, the Irish Commission for Liturgy worked on drawing up guidelines for the broadcasting of worship on radio and television, national and local. This statement was finalised in May 2001 and presented to the Irish Episcopal Conference at its June 2001 meeting. 

Click here for statement

March 2001 - Music in the New Millennium - A Blueprint for the Renewal of Liturgical Music  

This statement from the Advisory Committee on Church Music was presented to the Irish Episcopal Conference in March 2001. Based on the variety of work that diocesan directors for music have been doing, it offers a blueprint for the renewal of liturgical music with these directors playing a key role. 

Click here for statement

June 2000 - Norms for the Sacrament of Reconciliation  

At its General Meeting in June 2000, the Episcopal Conference decided to publish these Diocesan norms. They were published as a supplement to Intercom September 2000 and included in New Liturgy winter 2000/2001. 

Click here for document