In the things of God, it is He who goes ahead opening the way, we, at His side, listening to where He leads our life, our music ministry and our faith. The artist must go "behind", because the one we need, in this context of worship, is the worshipper.
But there are other dimensions of contemporary Catholic Christian music that do not refer to worship, but to other latitudes where the musician or artist has to be "in front". This is the case of contemporary Catholic music in pre-evangelizing, social contexts, Catholic music that speaks of values, music of life witness and music of evangelization. We will address these three dimensions.
In pre-evangelization context
Pre-evangelization is a time when the person is in search, attracted by the transcendent, but our deficiencies in carrying the message, and the vital obstacles to receive it, do not allow the encounter with Jesus.
On this occasion, the Catholic musician, through his songs, plays the role of "intermediary", and here he places himself in a plane of greater "exposure". His songs can be like the scalpel of a surgeon who opens and penetrates the tissue of the body to access the place where the operation is to be performed.
In this case, the intervention that takes place in the life of the person who is minimally open, continues to be built by Grace, but the Catholic musician has a large dose of involvement, visibility, challenge, responsibility and commitment, something that is sometimes difficult to combine and balance.
As Luis Guitarra, a well-known singer-songwriter from Madrid, says when interviewed, "that language of pre-evangelization is always more subtle, more global, more indirect [...] it arises from the most human forms and expressions, [...] they are songs that speak of human rights, friendship, peace, justice, love." (Luis Guitarra en la canción de autor de la música española. A pre-evangelizing language in the music of values, Enrique Mejías, Universidad Complutense de Madrid).
In Spain
Spain, since the last 20 years, has awakened with a multitude of proposals. Today there are many Catholic "artists" who develop their ministry in these fields.
This is the case of the aforementioned Luis Guitarwho has an extensive trajectory. His deep themes, his vindication in the field of social justice, his poetry, his sensitivity, and his person take him all over the national and international territory, in some moments of his life. Also to record his productions from an alternative system, especially as far as distribution is concerned, You set the pricewith which he has managed to combine music and solidarity, making possible the financing and realization of human development projects through the association Like you, like me.
We invite you to learn more about him and his songs. We recommend songs such as Unlearn, In the deep o Everything belongs to everyone. From its website you will be able to discover and enjoy their proposals.
In the same vein, but with a festive and celebratory dimension, we find the mythical MigueliHe has been working in these seas for more than 30 years, carrying the message of Jesus with that spark and humor that characterizes him so much and that runs through his entire discography. As he himself reminds us in his biography, his musical creativity has the strength of the everyday, of a life committed to social reality.
Globetrotter and all-rounder are adjectives that define him. He has always combined music with a job accompanying people in vulnerable situations, all this combined with radio and TV programs. Don't forget to dive in his website.
Other artists who follow this pre-evangelizing language are Emilia Arija(Alberto and Emilia), Pedro Sosa, Álvaro FraileJuan Carlos Prieto, etc. We recommend their songs, they will help you to deepen your life, your relationship with others and with God, even if it is not from an explicit language, nor a religious language.
Life testimony music
We do not want to forget another of the great paths where contemporary Catholic music leaves its mark, and that is the one marked by the Testimony of Life.
Here, as an emblematic group we find Olive Shoots, which arises in the context of the faith experience of Pueblo de Dios, has been going for more than 40 years and has been linked to music since its beginnings. A whole family that very soon opened itself to listen to where God was leading this project of family and community life open to all and for all.
Undoubtedly, they are one of the most vital spearheads that the Holy Spirit has generated in Spain and from which many of us have drunk, with which we have grown at a human level, of faith, of singing, of experience, and that has led to meetings both in the lands of Huelva, as well as in other latitudes, highlighting in Madrid the Encounters of the Holy Spirit. NAO (Night of Art and Prayer). We would write thousands of pages about this group, the community and its trajectory, and about this family that from simplicity and acceptance of the Word, has "let itself be made" by the Spirit of God.
The versatility of groups and artists forces us not to pigeonhole or label, only to suggest where you can listen to them. On their website you can download a songbook with 28 albums, proposing a free distribution of their work. We invite you to listen to their songs and their reflections, their prophetic denunciations that open windows from which to contemplate other perspectives and realities of faith, as well as their passion for the Gospel of Jesus. In this line is the Andalusian group Ixcis. Be sure to listen to them.
Music of evangelization
Finally, in this journey through contemporary Catholic music, we find another context where this great potential is placed at the service of God and faith as a tool for Evangelization. Here we are no longer in that pre-evangelizing language, of values, of solidarity; we have already taken a step further, the person is already receptive to listen and welcome a personal relationship with Jesus, and can be ready to accept that religious language that pushes him to be part of the ecclesial community through different ways. We are entering a garden where many proposals have flourished in recent years, artists, consecrated, religious, missionaries, communities, groups that sing, or play and put their music at the service of the Church.
We can contemplate from a rock concert on a large open-air stage, with the group The voice of the desertThe band, where most of its members are priests, to a simple acoustic concert by Jesús Cabello, an Andalusian of this new batch of Catholic singer-songwriters. Among them is also the Malaga-born Unai Quirós, where beyond his music one can breathe a person of a committed, humble and musically brilliant disposition.
You may encounter Roberto VegaA Valencian of Mexican origin linked to the charismatic renewal and who knows very well the evangelizing applications of music in the field of faith, and with whom you can organize a day of evangelization, faith and music. Or with Amparo Navarro, another Valencian singer-songwriter who has been able to combine sensitivity, delicacy, depth in her message and Word of life for small format evangelizations.
Breaking down barriers from contemporary Catholic music you can find other styles that connect more with the youth world, such as rap, with Grilex o Smdani, a Marianist priest, a gamer rapper who collaborates with other Catholic artists of the same musical style.
This type of evangelizing musical formats and styles are not the only ones. Music performs other functions such as the dynamization of moments of prayer with preaching. Here it is important to meet Paola de Pablo, a young Dominican in Madrid who will help you to mobilize your youth group with her preaching, her videos and her guitar.
So much for this second installment of contemporary Catholic Christian music in Spain. We hope it will help you to have a better understanding of the music and faith scene. We will continue in a third installment knowing much more.
