Restoration of sacred song and music – the relevance of the St. Pius X’s
message Inter sollicitudines pastoralis officii from 22
nd
November 1903
Restoration of liturgy has become one of the crucial actions aimed at restoration of
Christian life undertaken by The Church in the XIX and at the beginning of the XX cen-tury. Liturgy one more time became the core of Christian life and the source of its restora -tion “not only with the new means of influence” but by giving the life of the Church “an
expression of required solemnity and dignity”.
The first and the most authoritative person presenting the liturgy as a source of the
spiritual life of each Christian, and not only of small groups of the “chosen” believers,
became the Pope Pius the Xth, “the Sheppard of souls”, whose apostolic mission is ex -pressed by the words: “Instaurare omnia in Christo”. Undertaking the realization of his
programme “restoration of all in Christ” in the field of liturgy, The Pope Pius the Xth, fo -cussed primarily on restoration of the liturgical song and music: motu proprio Inter solli-
citudines pastoralis officii - Tra le sollecitudini .
This document was published on 22
nd
November 1903 in the liturgical memento of
the St. Cecilia, a virgin and martyr, the patron of sacral music. On 8
th
January 1904 the
St. Congregation of Ceremonies issued a decree announcing the Pope’s document “a le -gally valid act of sacral music”.
The Holy Father Pius X in motu proprio from 22
nd
November 1903 pu -blished in the form of Instruction of the Sacral Music (Instructio de musica
sacra ), happily restored the honourable Gregorian chants, described in the
manuscripts, to the prime use in Churches, and at the same time collected
main rules, aiming at enlarging or restoring the sacral dignity of Gregorian
Chants. He also, with the Apostolic Power, ordered to make this collection
a legal code of sacred music.
The Holy Father Pius X, just at the beginning of his pontificate, directed this relatively
voluminous and strict instruction of the sacral chants and music to the whole Church.
He was convinced that this was necessary in the situation of a misuse in the field of life
of the Church.