At one point in my peregrinations, I drove from Bozeman to Kalispell. The radio stations offered three choices: Country and Western, Christian, and Christian Country and Western. I listened to each as long as I could stand it: Rollin in my Sweet Baby’s Arms (when does the mail train come back?), Yes We’ll Gather by the River, and Drop Kick Me Jesus Through the Goal Posts of Life. There was also a translation of In Himmel Gibt’s Kein Bier: In Heaven There is No Beer, which seems to have been a fusion piece.
The Catholic churches in Montana towns are largely afflicted with the musical schlock that has become mainstream Catholic fare. I dislike it, because trivial, sentimental, and narcissistic music is inappropriate for the Divine Liturgy and also tends to keep men away. But at one church I was reminded that such schlock coexists with profound Christianity: the prayer of the faithful was for those suffering fatal diseases, for those afflicted by war, for those who have no one to pray for them, for the forgotten dead.
Every day I think of my ancestors and descendants, going back to Adam and forward to the end of the world, and I pray that none of them may be lost. Some Christians (like Augustine) seem to want to view salvation as restricted to a small group of the Elect; I know from Scripture that God loves all that He has made and I have hope in His mysterious plans, although no human eye can penetrate them.
I agree with you about the “schlocky” music and how it often co-exist with profound Christian sentiments. I often find this to be the case.
As well, I agree on your hope that more than a small minority will be saved. I have always struggled with the pessimism expressed by St. Augustine and many other Church Fathers regarding the number of the elect. As you said, God loves all that he has made, especially those creatures he’s made in his own image and likeness. My spiritual director has a doctorate in theology from Navarre University in Spain, not exactly a hotbed of theological liberalism. He suspects that just as a majority of angels remained faithful, with a large minority choosing damnation, so most humans will be saved, though many (through their own free choice) will be eternally lost.
On another note, I had a great trip to Ireland. I stayed (as I usually do) in a small town on the border of counties Galway and Mayo. The region’s people are traditionally strong in the practice of the faith. Even now, I would say at least half are going to church regularly. The folks I talked to are loyal to the faith, the local parish and their own pastor. They were however critical of the hierarchy. One said that “The people in the palace aren’t listening to those of us who live out in the fields.” Whether or not this perception is fair, it is probably representative of many Catholics, not just in Ireland, but throughout the world.
Now country music at Mass would at least be authentic music! And definitely not homoerotic, which is what we have now.