A journal dedicated to the life and mission of St. Gaspar del Bufalo, and to a life lived in response to the call and the cry of the Most Precious Blood of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Our on-going mission is to share good news of hope and communion.
There has been some discussion going on with other blogs about the sad day when music died. Seems this pastor wanted the congregation to be invited to sing the entrance antiphon, and the psalm response. It apparently did not matter whether it was English or Latin. In response, the choir kicked up their heels, shook the dust from their feet and left. In much of the comments the pastor has been taking a bit of heat. In my humble opinion, the pastor's request was legitimate, and even possible to fulfill, without loss of integrity.
One person was heard to say, "My heart is very sad. It is a sad day indeed for the status of Roman Catholic church music and lack of appreciation of historical musical modes." On further reading it seems not to be lack of appreciation of music, but ignorance of the liturgy by the musicians. Here, many months later, the Mass is still celebrated in Latin. It seems the choir was also devoted to sacred polyphany and to concerts and to cutting CDs.
There are different degrees of participation, and pride of place is to be given to chant and to the sacred traditions of the church. But the congregation should not be silent spectators, no matter how beautiful the music.
It was all chant and polypany at the Duomo in Florence Italy two years ago, and the Mass was sung in Latin and Italian. But I was able to sing the chant and understand the Latin even when I did not know the Italian. I was in a foreign land but felt right at home in the Sunday Eucharist. The Shrine Choir at the Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi in San Francisco does a beautiful job, but we got to sing the psalm, and they printed out the Credo for us to sing along. I visit that church when I can when I am at home. (Hey Peggy, I have no commitments on 2/16, want to go to Mass at the shrine?)
Here is what we will be singing at Bond Chapel for most of the next four Sundays before Lent starts. Most of it comes from Missa II from the Ordinary Time section form the Graduale Simplex The Antiphons are all printed for the assembly and they are invited and expected to participate. If it is in Latin, an English translation is provided. The more the music is repeated, the better the assembly does.
Tempus per Annum
Sundays in Ordinary Time
Antiphona ad Introitum: Psalm 18, You, Lord, have become my defender, BFW 230
Kyrie XVI, Liber Cantualis 4
Gloria de Angelis, Liber Cantualis 40
Psalmody: BFW 267,268, vs 1-6
Alleluia: Psalmus Alleluiaticus C I, Graduale Simplex, 239
Preparation of the Table: Intende Voci, Graduale Simplex 223
Sanctus XVIII (Liber Cantualis, 17)
Mysterium Fidei (Liber Cantualis, 18)
Amen (Liber Cantualis, 19)
Agnus Dei XVIII (Liber Cantualis, 23)
Communion: Cantabo Domino, Graduale Simplex 224, Fundamenta eius, Gradulae Simplex 264
Closing: Father We Thank Thee
Earlier I had only been able to find it in Italian. There is a web service that translates web pages in other languages. There is now a link to it on my side bar on the right. When using mechanical translations like this it is important to know that these services do not understand Church Langage and customs. This means that you have to have a sense of humor and read through the translation to see if it actually is translated right. This became most clear when the Pope begans an address with Carissimi Fratelli e Sorelle! and it gets translated as Most expensive Siblings and Sisters! instead of My dearest Brothers and sisters. In another place on our CPPS Italian site our shrine “Madonna del Fosco” gets translated as “Madonna of the gloomy one” instead of “Sorrowful Mother.”
I have written a letter to the President of one college, the one listed as being in Chicago. If I do not get a satisfactory answer from him then I will write a letter to Cardinal George.
It is easy to be somewhat sympathetic when going to the V-Day website. There is absolutely no way I would support violence against women. As Catholics, though, there has to be a different way to raise our voice.
Here is another link to Maria de Mattias. I do not know what sources this web site has but he consistently get the dates wrong. Maria's feast is today, February 4th. There is a chance the feast day may change after she is canonized this year.
I hear Amy Welborn is shutting down her blog.I had stopped reading her a long time ago, as well as those blogs that just kept focusing on the recent church scandals. I had had enough of it. There is so much good in the Church to focus on. The young people I work with at Calvert House, and these Candidates that I work with here at the House of Formation are enough of a shining light to keep focused on.
The Feast of Blessed Maria de Mattias (soon to be Saint) is tomorrow, February 4th. Stay tuned.
