For his services to church music, Bertold Hummel was honoured by Pope John Paul II with the Order of St Gregory (1998), by Bishop Paul-Werner Scheele of Würzburg with the Bruno Medal (1985) and by the General Cecilia Association (ACV) with the Orlando di Lasso Medal (1995). On 13 June 1998, he received the Art and Culture Prize of the German Catholics together with his esteemed colleague Petr Eben. Cardinal Lehmann gave the welcoming address.

Text of the certificate:

On the occasion of the 93rd German Catholics' Day in Mainz, Professor Bertold Hummel, Würzburg, is awarded the Art and Culture Prize of the German Catholics for his musical work.

Bertold Hummel is one of the most respected German composers, university teachers and promoters of new music in our time. His broad musical oeuvre is characterised by vital energy, sophisticated compositional technique, virtuosity and a colourful sense of sound. Sacred works form a continuum in his oeuvre. In them, he achieves a seamless combination of modernity, lucid spirituality and mystical meaning. We thank him for this contribution to the musical culture of our time.

Mainz, 13 June 1998

Bertold Hummel describes his relationship to religion and the church in the magazine "CHRIST IN DER GEGENWART im Bild" (April 1995, issue 4, sixth year) as follows:

Questionnaire
"Now tell me, how do you feel about religion?" (Faust I, verse 3414)
... Our questionnaire is aimed at believers and non-believers, those close to the church and those far from it. Today it is answered by Bertold Hummel.

Do you enjoy reading the Bible?
Yes, it is a great source of inspiration for my artistic work, especially the Psalms, the writings of the prophets (Jeremiah) and the Revelation of John.

What do you like about the Church?
Its catholicity in the true sense of the word.

What don't you like?
All the horrible petty bourgeois and narrow-minded things that stand in the way of catholicity.

Which saint and which saints do you like?
Francis of Assisi and Hildegard of Bingen (although not formally canonised).

A figure from church history?
John XXIII.

And from the present day?
Dom Helder Camara.

Should the church services remain as they are, or should there be further reforms?
The suggestions of the Second Vatican Council have often been discussed and evaluated one-sidedly in Germany; a reform in the sense of an overall view (looking forward and looking back) is needed, which makes imaginative use of all the possibilities and freedoms of organising church services.

Do you think it is important to go to church every Sunday?
For me, Sunday church services are not an unwelcome compulsory exercise. Rather, I see it as an opportunity to encounter God again and again in his word and his sacrament. So the answer is yes.

Should the celibacy of secular priests be abolished?
Celibacy should be retained as a Pauline ideal, but marriage should be permitted for secular priests.

And should women be ordained to the priesthood?
I am convinced that there is not much to be said against this if they are suitably qualified - not because of some kind of proportional thinking.

Which hymn do you like to sing?
"Now we pray to the Holy Spirit" (GL 248)

Would you like to name a theologian whom you hold in high esteem?
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Romano Guardini, Edith Stein, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Hans Urs von Balthasar.

When do you think the ecumenical unity of all Christians and churches will come?
When everyone reflects on the essentials of Christianity and overcomes personal dogmatism and vanity, greed for power and selfishness - i.e. probably not in the near future without the help of the Holy Spirit. Mutual tolerance and respect - not just as full-sounding lip service - would be a considerable step on the way to the goal.

What special wish do you have for the church?
That it should be open to the artistic and creative forces of the present and think about the opportunities for genuine popular education.

Thank you very much for answering these questions.

Bertold Hummel formulated his credo for church music in 1979 in a much-discussed lecture entitled "The meaning of the world in the praise of God".