At all of our Sunday Masses, except during the seasons of Advent and Lent, the Church invites us, after having acknowledged our sins, to raise our hearts in praise to God as we sing the Gloria. That movement strikes me as something that is quite profound. It is a reminder to us that we, who are weighed down by our sinfulness, have been given the gift of Jesus to save us from our slavery to sin. This is the very message that the angel of the Lord delivered to the shepherds on the night that Christ was born in Bethlehem:
Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.” (Luke 2:10-12)
The very next line provides the scriptural foundation for the angels intoning this great hymn that we sing at this point of the Mass: “And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” (Luke 2:13-14)
I find this transition from sorrow for sin to immediately giving glory to God a helpful reminder to us to not be so down on ourselves when it comes to our sinfulness. Sure, it is appropriate to have a proper sadness for our lack of correspondence to God’s will. But thanks be to God for the gift of Jesus and the infinite mercy He offers to us out of His love for us. The society in which we live would have us fixated on ourselves, how we do not measure up, how we miss the mark. But the Church, as a loving mother, does not want us to wallow in self-pity, but invites us to raise our hearts to the glory of God, whose “light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.” (John 1:5)
In a previous article, I wrote about the importance of joining our hearts and voices to the praise of God during the times of the liturgy when the Church invites us to sing. This is especially true in the Gloria! How unfortunate if we choose to remain silent during this great hymn in which we glorify the God who has saved us. The only reason I can think we do not join in this hymn is that we are stuck in being too focused on ourselves and not on God. “I can’t sing.” “I don’t want to sing.” “I don’t know the music.” This past Sunday I was talking with a former parishioner from my first assignment as a priest. She told me that she is not a good singer, but she at least whispers along because she wants to join in the music, limited as her musical ability may be. I found that to be a beautiful expression! Even if we do not have a good singing voice, or know how to sing, we can all at the very least whisper as we join the song of the angels in giving glory to God for saving us from our sins. So at the next Mass you attend where we sing or recite the Gloria, sing, speak, or even whisper. If we are truly aware of God’s goodness to us and the mercy He offers to us, then we think of the words of that familiar song: “How can I keep from singing?”