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Sunday, June 13: EXTERNAL SOLEMNITY OF THE SACRED HEART
10:00am Solemn High Mass, Chant: Rex Gloriae schola, directed by Paul Wierzbowski
Ordinary: Missa "O quam gloriosum" Tomas Luis de Victoria (1548-1611)
Offertory: "Improperium expectavit" Giovanni Batistta Casali (1715-92)
Communion: "O sacrum convivium" Lodovico Grossi da Viadana (1560-1627)
Benediction Motet: "Ave verum" William Byrd (1540-1623)
Choral Music: members of the William Ferris Chorale
Free luncheon reception to follow. -
Sunday, June 13: HIDDEN TREASURES OF CLASSICAL MUSIC
SPRING CONCERT SERIES, Free Admission
2:00pm Concert: "Sacred Brass of the Baroque" by Axiom Brass Quintet
Universalis, your very own breviary in pixels...
Friday, 11 June 2010
This Sunday
I have been remiss, in not posting of some of the wonderful opportunities of which people should avail themselves if they are in the area; the one, (in Chicago, Illinois,) I just mentioned:
Remarkable Story of Maternal Faith and Love
Tenor Andrea Bocelli
...interrupted a show to recount a 'little story' of how a pregnant woman was admitted to hospital with appendicitis.(I should note, I'm not much of a fan the man's singing - but what a wonderful testament of faith!)
After being treated, the doctors suggested the woman should consider an abortion, the Italian singer revealed to his audience.
They had told her it was the 'best solution'.
'But the young brave wife decided not to abort, and the child was born,' he said. 'That woman was my mother, and I was the child.'
He added: 'Maybe I'm partisan, but I can say that it was the right choice.'
Bocelli, 51, does not explain why doctors recommended an abortion at a time when it was still illegal in Italy. The present law dates from 1978. [I wondered the same thing at the beginning of the story, but also know that people have always and everywhere been able to procure abortions, from real doctors]
The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus
An extraordinary (small "e",) sight, (for which I seem to be able to find no image to reproduce here): some fifteen thousand priests, from 94 different nations, concelebrating, with the Holy Father, the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, to mark the close of the Year for Priests.
A thrilling sight, so auspicious, filled with such hope!
I am fortunate to be attending the Mass for the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart this weekend at the Institute of Christ the King, ( also, a concert of sacred music that I have no doubt will be splendid,) but for today, let me pray:
A thrilling sight, so auspicious, filled with such hope!
I am fortunate to be attending the Mass for the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart this weekend at the Institute of Christ the King, ( also, a concert of sacred music that I have no doubt will be splendid,) but for today, let me pray:
MOST sweet Jesus, whose overflowing charity for men is requited by so much forgetfulness, negligence and contempt, behold us prostrate before Thee, eager to repair by a special act of homage the cruel indifference and injuries to which Thy loving Heart is everywhere subject.
Mindful, alas! that we ourselves have had a share in such great indignities, which we now deplore from the depths of our hearts, we humbly ask Thy pardon and declare our readiness to atone by voluntary expiation, not only for our own personal offenses, but also for the sins of those, who, straying far from the path of salvation, refuse in their obstinate infidelity to follow Thee, their Shepherd and Leader, or, renouncing the promises of their baptism, have cast off the sweet yoke of Thy law.
We are now resolved to expiate each and every deplorable outrage committed against Thee; we are now determined to make amends for the manifold offenses against Christian modesty in unbecoming dress and behavior, for all the foul seductions laid to ensnare the feet of the innocent, for the frequent violations of Sundays and holydays, and the shocking blasphemies uttered against Thee and Thy Saints. We wish also to make amends for the insults to which Thy Vicar on earth and Thy priests are subjected, for the profanation, by conscious neglect or terrible acts of sacrilege, of the very crimes of nations who resist the rights and teaching authority of the Church which Thou hast founded.
Would that we were able to wash away such abominations with our blood. We now offer, in reparation for these violations of Thy divine honor, the satisfaction Thou once made to Thy Eternal Father on the cross and which Thou continuest to renew daily on our altars; we offer it in union with the acts of atonement of Thy Virgin Mother and all the Saints and of the pious faithful on earth; and we sincerely promise to make recompense, as far as we can with the help of Thy grace, for all neglect of Thy great love and for the sins we and others have committed in the past.
Henceforth, we will live a life of unswerving faith, of purity of conduct, of perfect observance of the precepts of the Gospel and especially that of charity. We promise to the best of our power to prevent others from offending Thee and to bring as many as possible to follow Thee.
O loving Jesus, through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mother, our model in reparation, deign to receive the voluntary offering we make of this act of expiation; and by the crowning gift of perseverance keep us faithful unto death in our duty and the allegiance we owe to Thee, so that we may all one day come to that happy home, where with the Father and the Holy Spirit Thou livest and reignest, God, forever and ever. Amen.-- from the Enchridion of Indulgences
Come, Bishops, Tarry Not!
Stuck on hold for an unconscionably long time, (ah, the oxymoronic "customer service!") I came across a scrap of paper and polished a hymn-text I'd begun some time ago.
To those still fighting their rearguard "what if we just said 'wait'" action, I dedicate, or at least address this:
To those still fighting their rearguard "what if we just said 'wait'" action, I dedicate, or at least address this:
1.Come, bishops, tarry not
New missals aim our way!
O why these years of waiting here,
These ages of decay?
2.Come, for we PIPs still wait;
Daily ascends our sigh;
The Spirit and the Bride said, “Come”;
ICEL ignored their cry.
3.But now their work is done.
We cry, Fish or cut bait!
You have all dithered far too long,
No longer will we wait.
4.Father, obstruct this not,
Stand not in progress's way,
Leave off your whinging and your ploys,
We'll brook no more delay.
5.Translations new, at last
Faithful, and good and true.
If you defy the Church, well then...
Who's wrong, the Church or you?
6.Come and make all things new,
Build up Your Body, Lord.
Our faded foretaste of Your Heav'n,
To splendor be restored!
Wednesday, 9 June 2010
The Cheeseburgers They Will Serve in Heaven?
In the midst of a frantic and not altogether pleasant week, I had almost perfect day.
What I expected to be a low Mass had fully (and beautifully and prayerfully,) sung Gregorian Ordinary and propers, and a really educational homily, (sometimes information is more inspiring than direct attempts inspiration.)
The day brought a Rosary procession, (a totally unexpected and totally new experience -- why aren't there more processions?); an unlooked-for gift certificate from one of my favorite stores, and actual proximity to a location so that I could use it, (is there a better caramel than the sea salt utterlycornandcornproductfree gems from World Market?); utterly gorgeous weather; brilliantly thoughtful gift from Himself, (Slings and Arrows nails the actual experience of preparing a stage performance as accurately and entertainingly as Topsy-Turvy, my previous benchmark); despite wicked traffic, somehow getting everywhere on time; and Bellinis at bedtime.
I love my life.
Oh, and I forgot -- the cheeseburger that I firmly believe will be served in Paradise.
The Hop Haus, Franklin in the Loop
What I expected to be a low Mass had fully (and beautifully and prayerfully,) sung Gregorian Ordinary and propers, and a really educational homily, (sometimes information is more inspiring than direct attempts inspiration.)
The day brought a Rosary procession, (a totally unexpected and totally new experience -- why aren't there more processions?); an unlooked-for gift certificate from one of my favorite stores, and actual proximity to a location so that I could use it, (is there a better caramel than the sea salt utterlycornandcornproductfree gems from World Market?); utterly gorgeous weather; brilliantly thoughtful gift from Himself, (Slings and Arrows nails the actual experience of preparing a stage performance as accurately and entertainingly as Topsy-Turvy, my previous benchmark); despite wicked traffic, somehow getting everywhere on time; and Bellinis at bedtime.
I love my life.
Oh, and I forgot -- the cheeseburger that I firmly believe will be served in Paradise.
The Hop Haus, Franklin in the Loop
Monday, 7 June 2010
I Supect the Piety Was There All Along
Dr Jerry expresses surprise that young people reject the trends the VCII generation pushed:
Softening? Quite the opposite, I should say: strengthening, thanks to the witness of these young people whose devotion would once have struck you as cringe- worthy.
I have been playing at liturgies [connected with] a program for vocational discernment aimed at Catholic young adults...I suspect the piety was there all along but disparaged, denied its rightful outlets; and worst, when it was allowed, shoehorned into the Mass, (too often the context for every little individualistic and exclusive bit of parish life,) where its expression was out of place.
I have been involved with this program for a number of years and it has been interesting to watch the subtle shift in piety with these young adults. A few years ago there was a request for a holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament. This was not a request that we had anticipated. We celebrate Eucharist, Morning Prayer, and Evening Prayer regularly at these conferences. This year, I noticed one member of the conference praying the rosary during the various liturgies. I heard that one young adult confronted one of the vowed religious, asking her why she was not wearing a habit. One young woman wore a head-covering during the celebrations of Mass. I must admit that I haven't seen one of those since I was a teenager. ...
I guess I am softening up as I grow older. The kind of pious practice I have seen with these young adults would have made me cringe several years ago.
Softening? Quite the opposite, I should say: strengthening, thanks to the witness of these young people whose devotion would once have struck you as cringe- worthy.
"One Small Step for a Liturgical Musician, One Giant Step for Liturgical Music"
...or so one imagines Dom Neil Alden Armstrong saying, in his role as chantmaster.
Gary Penkala, (of CanticaNova, the first place you should check when you want to buy appropriate Catholic liturgical music,) offers not one, but TEN of those "small steps.":
Gary Penkala, (of CanticaNova, the first place you should check when you want to buy appropriate Catholic liturgical music,) offers not one, but TEN of those "small steps.":
Go read the details and begin that ascent up the Holy Mountain.
- Jubilate Deo — Start with Jubilate Deo before [anything else]...
- Dialogues — Encourage (and help) your priests to sing the dialogues of the Mass, particularly when the new Mass translation is introduced. [emphasis supplied]
- Children — Teach chant to children... they have many fewer hang-ups about singing Latin than adults do — in fact, they enjoy the challenge tremendously!
- Teens — Teach teens chant. ...
- Adult choirs — These groups should have an ample repertoire of chants, from the In paradisum sung by the Funeral Choir to the Te Deum sung by the Festival Choir at the church dedication. ...
- Basic Mass — If your parish doesn't already know it, teach them the so-called Missa primitiva, introduced in this order over a period of several years:
- Agnus Dei XVIII
- Kyrie XVI
- Sanctus XVIII
- Pater noster
- Gloria VIII
- Credo III
- Seasonal chants — Sing some chants that will last a whole season. Some easy ones: Veni Emmanuel for Advent, Parce Domine for Lent, Alleluia for Eastertide.
- Repetition — Learn pieces that can be repeated often, not only within the liturgical season, but from year to year....
- Organ music — Play organ music based on chant....
- Patience & Praise — Perhaps the most inportant advice in this article is this: Be extremely patient with the choir, the congregation, the priest and deacon and Praise them abundantly....
With these small steps begin your journey toward the ideal of "principal place" of chant in the Mass. Once chant is comfortable and accepted, scholas can begin the work of actually singing the Mass, rather than singing at Mass. The Propers (Introit, Gradual, Alleluia/Tract, Offertory and Communion) can once again be recognized as the music that belongs to the Roman Rite and belongs in the Mass itself.
And BUY something.
Terrific site, Canticanova, really a treasure.
"Should This Be the Last We Hear From Peter Singer?"
My suggestion for a new title for this.
I think the nihilism and joylessness and purposeless seeping as if from a wound from much of the commentary, not to mention the piece itself, is directly traceable to the absence of any mention of God, of Faith, of Christ, of salvation... I didn't bother to follow the comments past the first page, but I hope I can remember to keep these sad little souls in my prayers.
I won't say, as per usual, go and read the rest there -- DON'T read the rest.
It is hard to value that for which we have paid nothing, and if we are blind to the price Another has paid on our behalf, well....
Love to the loveless shown, that they might lovely be
Oh, who am I that for my sake,
Oh, who am I that for my sake,
My Lord should take frail flesh and die?
I think the nihilism and joylessness and purposeless seeping as if from a wound from much of the commentary, not to mention the piece itself, is directly traceable to the absence of any mention of God, of Faith, of Christ, of salvation... I didn't bother to follow the comments past the first page, but I hope I can remember to keep these sad little souls in my prayers.
I won't say, as per usual, go and read the rest there -- DON'T read the rest.
Have you ever thought about whether to have a child? If so, what factors entered into your decision? Was it whether having children would be good for you, your partner and others close to the possible child, such as children you may already have, or perhaps your parents? For most people contemplating reproduction, those are the dominant questions. Some may also think about the desirability of adding to the strain that the nearly seven billion people already here are putting on our planet’s environment. But very few ask whether coming into existence is a good thing for the child itself. Most of those who consider that question probably do so because they have some reason to fear that the child’s life would be especially difficult — for example, if they have a family history of a devastating illness, physical or mental, that cannot yet be detected prenatally.No wonder we have lost our way in regard to the sanctity of life!
All this suggests that we think it is wrong to bring into the world a child whose prospects for a happy, healthy life are poor, but we don’t usually think the fact that a child is likely to have a happy, healthy life is a reason for bringing the child into existence. This has come to be known among philosophers as “the asymmetry” and it is not easy to justify. But rather than go into the explanations usually proffered — and why they fail — I want to raise a related problem. How good does life have to be, to make it reasonable to bring a child into the world? Is the standard of life experienced by most people in developed nations today good enough to make this decision unproblematic, in the absence of specific knowledge that the child will have a severe genetic disease or other problem?The 19th-century German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer held that even the best life possible for humans is one in which we strive for ends that, once achieved, bring only fleeting satisfaction. New desires then lead us on to further futile struggle and the cycle repeats itself.
Schopenhauer’s pessimism has had few defenders over the past two centuries, but one has recently emerged, in the South African philosopher David Benatar, author of a fine book with an arresting title: “Better Never to Have Been: The Harm of Coming into Existence.” One of Benatar’s arguments trades on something like the asymmetry noted earlier. To bring into existence someone who will suffer is, Benatar argues, to harm that person, but to bring into existence someone who will have a good life is not to benefit him or her. Few of us would think it right to inflict severe suffering on an innocent child, even if that were the only way in which we could bring many other children into the world. Yet everyone will suffer to some extent, and if our species continues to reproduce, we can be sure that some future children will suffer severely. Hence continued reproduction will harm some children severely, and benefit none....
I do think it would be wrong to choose the non-sentient universe. In my judgment, for most people, life is worth living. Even if that is not yet the case, I am enough of an optimist to believe that, should humans survive for another century or two, we will learn from our past mistakes and bring about a world in which there is far less suffering than there is now. But justifying that choice forces us to reconsider the deep issues with which I began. Is life worth living? Are the interests of a future child a reason for bringing that child into existence? And is the continuance of our species justifiable in the face of our knowledge that it will certainly bring suffering to innocent future human beings?
It is hard to value that for which we have paid nothing, and if we are blind to the price Another has paid on our behalf, well....
My song is love unknown, my Savior's love to me
Oh, who am I that for my sake,
Oh, who am I that for my sake,
My Lord should take frail flesh and die?
Sunday, 6 June 2010
After 40 years in the desert, I think I catch sight of....
...!
A truly surprising, (to me,) and gratifying, (to me,) post from a member of the liturgical publishing establishment:
And I think the real promised land, (instead of the mirage of an oasis populated by the Middle East's equivalent of sirens,) may be coming in to sight.
A truly surprising, (to me,) and gratifying, (to me,) post from a member of the liturgical publishing establishment:
A few weeks ago, after a choir rehearsal for which I was filling in, a young twenty-something choir member approached me and said something like, "I'm not sure you're the appropriate person to talk to, but I have a question." I told him I would do what I could to answer his question. He said something like, "Why all the inclusive language at this parish?" I asked him what he meant exactly. He responded, "You know, like changing the word "his" to "God" in the refrain of the Gloria." I told him that this was something that had been a part of the parish's heritage for many years—at least as long as I had been attending Mass there. I then told him that the new translation of the Gloria would not include the phrase "and peace to his people on earth," so things would soon be changing. And, besides, the practice of changing the readings to inclusive wording had ceased in the parish a few years ago. So, I left the conversation with this young man at that. I was tired; it had been a long day and a long rehearsal. I didn't have the energy to engage in a long conversation about the whole issue of inclusive language. And, I honestly thought that he was overreacting just a bit to this change of one word.I truly think that over-reaching, and straining at gnats by people who thought they were working for gender equality has harmed the cause of women, of the gifts that women genuinely have to offer being fully recognized by many people in positions of power in the Church.Until Sunday. The choir has sung the traditional spiritual Come Let Us Worship the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness for a couple of years.... As the choir began singing it on Sunday, it started to dawn on me that the words had been changed. The references to God as "him" had all been changed to "God" or something like "the one." I was totally distracted by this. When I looked in the worship aid, I noticed that, following the name of the composer of this piece, there was an additional phrase added in parenthesis, which read "New lyrics by . . . ," with the name of a choir member inserted there. Granted, I am a firm believer in creating texts that do not refer to God exclusively in the masculine, nor refer to God's people as "brothers" or "men." But I wonder how far, when dealing with established texts, is too far?Of course, this brought me back to my days in the 1980's. I am being honest here. In the parish where I was music and liturgy director, we had the "inclusive language committee" of the liturgy commission that painstakingly moved through the Lectionary, with Wite-Out® and black pen in hand, purging the readings of any masculine pronouns referring to God. This group added "and sisters" in places and changed "man" to "human," etc. Frankly, it all seemed perfectly acceptable at the time; "everyone was doing it." When I think of some of the awkward phrases in the readings that resulted from this activity, I now cringe. What were we thinking? Followers of this blog know that I am not an advocate for "adjusting" the Church's official texts. Hearing the same readings and prayers as my parents do, as my siblings do, as my friends in other parishes do, as Catholics all over the world do, is something that helps identify us as Catholic. I believe this is a treasure. I regret having entered the practice of "altering" texts in those early days of my ministry. And what happens to the collective lex orandi lex credendi when parishes all over the world are hearing and praying altered texts?What will happen when we implement the new translation of the Roman Missal? I have heard some pastors say that they will painstakingly move through the Missal, altering the texts so that they make better sense for them and for their people. I certainly hope that this doesn't occur. The Church in the English-speaking world needs to work together to make this new translation our own. And we need to work together, if need be, to make concrete suggestions to improve this translation.
And I think the real promised land, (instead of the mirage of an oasis populated by the Middle East's equivalent of sirens,) may be coming in to sight.
Yet Another Brilliantly Reasoned Rebuttal
This at Inside Catholic struck me a wrong-headed in a few particulars, and condescending, as much in further replies to posts as to the original piece.
But a long and painstakingly gracious and irrefutably rational riposte bemoaning the general resistence to Faith in the supernatural powers of God's grace, (a hobby horse of mine just now, sorry....), upon my clicking on the "Submit" button, was inexplicably lost to the ether.
And so instead, I here, in my usual schoarly, sober-sided and unanswerable manner, provide a precis of my reasoned argument, saying:
There, Mrs. Conclusion, I run rings a round ya, logically.
But a long and painstakingly gracious and irrefutably rational riposte bemoaning the general resistence to Faith in the supernatural powers of God's grace, (a hobby horse of mine just now, sorry....), upon my clicking on the "Submit" button, was inexplicably lost to the ether.
And so instead, I here, in my usual schoarly, sober-sided and unanswerable manner, provide a precis of my reasoned argument, saying:
Piffle.
And furthermore:Pish.
There, Mrs. Conclusion, I run rings a round ya, logically.
.... it's Still the Goats You Have to Watch Out For?
Much conversation at The New Liturgical Movement and on the CMAA discussion boards about a book by an Episcopal priest entitled "When Sheep Attack!" (I loves me a good, snarky title.)
In broad strokes, it is about the oft-times calamitous results when an entrenched cabal in a parish insures, or tries to insure that a new leader cannot lead.
The next higher up in the chain of command through inertia, spinelessness or genuine conviction fails to support the new leader who rapidly becomes the ex-leader, and the cabal awaits the next sacrificial victim.
It happens to pastors, (bishops don't stand behind them,) it happens to music directors, (pastors don't stand behind them,) ... some details of the "It happened to me!" stories that poured out had me on the verge of joining the threads and asking who'd been reading my diary, until I learned last night of an incident that is emblematic of something far sadder.
It happens to pastors, yes and music directors.... but it happens to parochial school principles, and since the window of opportunity to affect the lives of those in their charge is much smaller, the consequences may be even worse.
Pray for Catholic educators. (And pray for those who are subjected to Catholic education?;o))
A slightly OT anecdote: When I was very young I was involved in a family situation in which I was a selfish brute and a villainess and a liar.... no, really, you could ask anyone not immediately involved in the situation and they could have told you what a little $#?% I was being.
There was nothing I could do to convince anyone otherwise.
But a few years went by and I was "rehabilitated," or at least my reputation was -- nearly everyone else in the family experienced similar episodes with the person at the center of the problem, and realized where the truth lay.
It was nice to have reassurance that I was neither a scoundrel nor a madwoman, that what I had perceived was indeed what had happened, I had not made it up, and I could stop wondering if it had been my fault or if I could have done something to change it.
Something similar has happened to a friend in a parish near me -- the person, (and that person's minions,) responsible for the firing of the most competent and consciousness musician to ever darken the doors of their loft has now managed to run off two principles in as many years, as well as the 1st music director's pretty decent successor.
The musician told me that hearing the details of the latest firing from both sides (it's a small diocese,) didn't make him happy, but at least he felt vindicated, could now understand how his fall from grace had been orchestrated, and could stop thinking that his ouster had been his fault, although he had never been able to figure out exactly how.
Is none of this giving the parish administrator a clue as where his personnel problem really lies?
Anyway, back to the comments on the book at hand:
There is also a sad case come to our attention recently of a MORE than competent, (and seemingly more conscientious and knowledgeable regarding Catholic praxis than many Catholic musicians,) Episcopalian MD at a Catholic parish who after years of good service was kicked to the curb for not being Catholic.
Huh?
Oh, and I feel I should take the opportunity now, because I have whined about it in the past, to say that it is absolutely my own fault I had to offer a letter of resignation a few years ago.
I should have been savvy enough know that the power couple who didn't like me, (though that was unbeknownst to me at the time,) were too firmly ensconced in parish life and the parish power structure for anyone to fail to knuckle under to them and last, even if they should have had no say in matters that were technically my purview.
And I should not have added, even collaterally, in any way whatsoever to my priest's already over-filled plate of woes.
(Have you ever noticed, though, how people who have no respect whatever for others' years of experience or degreed expertise in a field other than their own, are often the most puffed up about their own credentials, their ten whole hours spent in diocesan training with a certificate to follow, or whatever? I digress....)
And I should have found a more felicitous way to describe the energy drain that is, all too frequently, the modern American teenager than "soul sucker." Sullen little darlings are made in the image and likeness of God, too....
One lives, one learns...
Am I going to regret writing this? I'll think about that while I pour another shandy.
In broad strokes, it is about the oft-times calamitous results when an entrenched cabal in a parish insures, or tries to insure that a new leader cannot lead.
The next higher up in the chain of command through inertia, spinelessness or genuine conviction fails to support the new leader who rapidly becomes the ex-leader, and the cabal awaits the next sacrificial victim.
It happens to pastors, (bishops don't stand behind them,) it happens to music directors, (pastors don't stand behind them,) ... some details of the "It happened to me!" stories that poured out had me on the verge of joining the threads and asking who'd been reading my diary, until I learned last night of an incident that is emblematic of something far sadder.
It happens to pastors, yes and music directors.... but it happens to parochial school principles, and since the window of opportunity to affect the lives of those in their charge is much smaller, the consequences may be even worse.
Pray for Catholic educators. (And pray for those who are subjected to Catholic education?;o))
A slightly OT anecdote: When I was very young I was involved in a family situation in which I was a selfish brute and a villainess and a liar.... no, really, you could ask anyone not immediately involved in the situation and they could have told you what a little $#?% I was being.
There was nothing I could do to convince anyone otherwise.
But a few years went by and I was "rehabilitated," or at least my reputation was -- nearly everyone else in the family experienced similar episodes with the person at the center of the problem, and realized where the truth lay.
It was nice to have reassurance that I was neither a scoundrel nor a madwoman, that what I had perceived was indeed what had happened, I had not made it up, and I could stop wondering if it had been my fault or if I could have done something to change it.
Something similar has happened to a friend in a parish near me -- the person, (and that person's minions,) responsible for the firing of the most competent and consciousness musician to ever darken the doors of their loft has now managed to run off two principles in as many years, as well as the 1st music director's pretty decent successor.
The musician told me that hearing the details of the latest firing from both sides (it's a small diocese,) didn't make him happy, but at least he felt vindicated, could now understand how his fall from grace had been orchestrated, and could stop thinking that his ouster had been his fault, although he had never been able to figure out exactly how.
Is none of this giving the parish administrator a clue as where his personnel problem really lies?
Anyway, back to the comments on the book at hand:
Parishes are complex social structures. They invite everyone to join and encourage everyone to contribute time and money. But it is inevitable that pockets of interest group pressure develop within them. There are always factions. These factions can be based in ideology and theological outlook, but they are more commonly based in issues of control and perceived ownership over some sector of parish life....
There is usually one ring leader. Most often it is someone on the staff of the parish, perhaps even having retired from some ministerial position. It could be a church secretary. It could be a former youth minister. It could be the person who organizes first communions. Regardless, it is the sort of person that the whole parish regards as a fixture, someone who is seemingly indispensible to parish life.
What is the motivation for this behavior? The person and his or her follows have high “control needs.” They must be in charge if not in name then at least in reality. They are accustomed to determining structures and outcomes of parish life. They resent anyone who would interfere with their power. I know that this sounds petty and ridiculous but it is a reality....They pass on unattributed complaints....They try to recruit other people to their cause, using in particular their status as indispensable fixtures of parish life.... New pastors should not fear replacing problem staff, even to the point of cleaning house completely. The seemingly indispensable person who is the source of the problem must be sent packing as soon as possible.- I>o....................
I thought I was reading my autobiography -- exactly what happened in my last parish!
There is actually an epidemic of this behavior at present, so much so that in one large archdiocese there are currently seven parishes without a pastor -- because every priest has refused the assignment, for the very reasons noted in this piece.
The bishops have caused this mess by creating a Protestant parochial polity over a forty-year period. Now, the chickens are coming home to roost.- A priest/commenter............
On the other hand, I've witnessed new pastors who clearly lack the emotional intelligence to accomplish their goals well. It's sad to see, and it's sad to see them be so insecure as to shy away from people who try to help them, because they feel it undermines their authority.- Another poster [wise words!]I know that a small but vocal Neo-Cat group at a parish about 10 miles away from forced the ouster of a non-sympathetic pastor. Instead of a sympathetic pastor, though, they go a traditionalist-leaning ex-Jesuit who I am quite sure does not coddle the sometimes odd liturgical praxis favored in certain NC circles.... I think the chancery decided to have a sense of black humor about the ferocious sheep.-- ibid...............
have a small group of singers in the church...often cantors who want things back the way it was before you got there...having done their best to discourage new singers who were interested in the group...solved their problem, the new director, the new music, the new people, by poisoning the pastor with their take on things?- Another musician
There is also a sad case come to our attention recently of a MORE than competent, (and seemingly more conscientious and knowledgeable regarding Catholic praxis than many Catholic musicians,) Episcopalian MD at a Catholic parish who after years of good service was kicked to the curb for not being Catholic.
Huh?
Oh, and I feel I should take the opportunity now, because I have whined about it in the past, to say that it is absolutely my own fault I had to offer a letter of resignation a few years ago.
I should have been savvy enough know that the power couple who didn't like me, (though that was unbeknownst to me at the time,) were too firmly ensconced in parish life and the parish power structure for anyone to fail to knuckle under to them and last, even if they should have had no say in matters that were technically my purview.
And I should not have added, even collaterally, in any way whatsoever to my priest's already over-filled plate of woes.
(Have you ever noticed, though, how people who have no respect whatever for others' years of experience or degreed expertise in a field other than their own, are often the most puffed up about their own credentials, their ten whole hours spent in diocesan training with a certificate to follow, or whatever? I digress....)
And I should have found a more felicitous way to describe the energy drain that is, all too frequently, the modern American teenager than "soul sucker." Sullen little darlings are made in the image and likeness of God, too....
One lives, one learns...
Am I going to regret writing this? I'll think about that while I pour another shandy.
You call it "sloth", I call it forbearance....
I am, (I confess to Almighty God, and to you, my brothers and sisters....,) the laziest person on God's green earth.
I went elsewhere than my parish for Mass this weekend, and intended to duck in to pick up a bulletin.
Time got away from me as I lazed away hours and now the church is certainly locked.
BUT.....
Saved from myself, I cannot now check out the hymn board, and I should acknowledge that descrying the inappropriate selections was a different, and perhaps primary reason for my intention to drop in, as I realized as I was looking for my keys and sunglasses.
It's an ignoble impulse.
And it isn't healthy, it's like picking at a scab, seeing that however much my efforts fell short, there now seems to be no concern at all for liturgical specificity, as we avail ourselves of the Frightful Fourth.
I went elsewhere than my parish for Mass this weekend, and intended to duck in to pick up a bulletin.
Time got away from me as I lazed away hours and now the church is certainly locked.
BUT.....
Saved from myself, I cannot now check out the hymn board, and I should acknowledge that descrying the inappropriate selections was a different, and perhaps primary reason for my intention to drop in, as I realized as I was looking for my keys and sunglasses.
It's an ignoble impulse.
And it isn't healthy, it's like picking at a scab, seeing that however much my efforts fell short, there now seems to be no concern at all for liturgical specificity, as we avail ourselves of the Frightful Fourth.
In the dioceses of the United States of America there are four options for the Entrance Chant: (1) the antiphon from the Roman Missal or the Psalm from the Roman Gradual as set to music there or in another musical setting; (2) the seasonal antiphon and Psalm of the Simple Gradual; (3) a song from another collection of psalms and antiphons, approved by the Conference of Bishops or the Diocesan Bishop, including psalms arranged in responsorial or metrical forms; (4) a suitable liturgical song similarly approved by the Conference of Bishops or the Diocesan Bishop....The procession bringing the gifts is accompanied by the Offertory chant...The norms on the manner of singing are the same as for the Entrance chant...While the priest is receiving the Sacrament, the Communion chant is begun....In the dioceses of the United States of America there are four options for the Communion chant: (1) the antiphon from the Roman Missal or the Psalm from the Roman Gradual as set to music there or in another musical setting; (2) the seasonal antiphon and Psalm of the Simple Gradual; (3) a song from another collection of psalms and antiphons, approved by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops or the Diocesan Bishop, including psalms arranged in responsorial or metrical forms; (4) a suitable liturgical songUmm, yeah....
In Praise of Lard
The more I know of Jeffrey Tucker, the more I like him, (this despite his kinda sorta Thom Browne sartorial aesthetic, though I love the bow ties.)
I have not had the opportunity to try every use he here prescribes for the glory that is rendered pig fat, (and a few I think are best entrusted to its cousin, the similarly disdained, and similarly sublime bacon grease,) but I like the way he thinks.
(And I am craving some real biscuits just blogging about this...)
I have not had the opportunity to try every use he here prescribes for the glory that is rendered pig fat, (and a few I think are best entrusted to its cousin, the similarly disdained, and similarly sublime bacon grease,) but I like the way he thinks.
(And I am craving some real biscuits just blogging about this...)
The use of lard in cooking is slowly being rehabilitated but the cultural shock of the stuff hasn’t diminished in the slightest....
I use lard for making biscuits. Sometimes I fry those lard biscuits in lard, and these I call "hot puffs" and eat them with honey. Lard is essential for pie crusts. It makes great chocolate chip cookies. I can’t imagine frying potatoes in anything else. It is excellent for chicken. Pancakes and waffles are never better than when made with lard. Popcorn not fried in lard (air pop? please!) is noticeably inferior. Cakes are wonderful with lard. The refried beans you eat are not authentic if they do not include lard. All that amounts to nearly a bucket per week of lard use. I admit it.... Look, I really don’t know if lard is unhealthy as compared with vegetable oil or butter or peanut oil or some other poor substitute. I do know that when I fry with lard as opposed to vegetable oil, there is more lard remaining in the fryer, from which I conclude that less is in the food...I also know that lard has a very high smoke point, so it is cleaner and makes less of a mess. Also, lard, which is nothing but rendered pig fat, has been a staple of the Western diet for many centuries. I see no reason why I must automatically adopt the widespread prejudice against it and regard it as a poor-person food
(Is that biscuit sticking its tongue out at me? Have I stumbled on an image of one of those "saint miraculously appears in foodstuff" moment? And which saint?)
Saturday, 5 June 2010
If Catholics Actually Believed What They Say They Believe....
... could you imagine it?
I think one problem is that we are so rational, so post-modern, so cynical and skeptical, that many of ususe, or rather waste the scintilla of ability we have to wrap our minds around the supernatural, the implausible, the wondrous, on .... vampires. Or space aliens. Or the deadly power of mentos and diet soda.
Okay, I'm being snarky, but this is the case -- if you cannot believe in the supernatural, you cannot believe in God's Grace, and you cannot believe in the efficacy of the Sacraments as a conduit for that Grace.
Which is why people in positions of authority denigrate Confession, think the real point of the Anointing of the Sick is gathering your community to pray for you, and postpone infant Baptism until a convenient time for them, when they can gather a passel of infants, and get all the initiations over with at once, (acknowledging that the Sacrament of Baptism is not primarily about getting your membership card would be to acknowledge our need for Sanctifying Grace, which would require acknowledging the existence of Original Sin. How unpleasantly quaint.)
And Communion?
What are the effects of that Sacrament? what should they be? and how much more could they be if we didn't make God do all the work?
Provocative opening from Msgr. Charles Pope:
I think one problem is that we are so rational, so post-modern, so cynical and skeptical, that many of us
Okay, I'm being snarky, but this is the case -- if you cannot believe in the supernatural, you cannot believe in God's Grace, and you cannot believe in the efficacy of the Sacraments as a conduit for that Grace.
Which is why people in positions of authority denigrate Confession, think the real point of the Anointing of the Sick is gathering your community to pray for you, and postpone infant Baptism until a convenient time for them, when they can gather a passel of infants, and get all the initiations over with at once, (acknowledging that the Sacrament of Baptism is not primarily about getting your membership card would be to acknowledge our need for Sanctifying Grace, which would require acknowledging the existence of Original Sin. How unpleasantly quaint.)
And Communion?
What are the effects of that Sacrament? what should they be? and how much more could they be if we didn't make God do all the work?
Provocative opening from Msgr. Charles Pope:
Some people put more faith in Tylenol than they do in Holy Communion. That’s because when they take Tylenol they expect something to happen. But many people don’t really expect anything to happen when they receive Holy Communion.In fact this is a problem that is present for many in regard to all the Sacraments and to liturgy in general. Many seem these things as tedious rituals rather than transformative realities. How many people really reflect that, in the Sacred Liturgy, Jesus is ministering to them? It is a sad truth that for many the liturgies of the Church are rather mindlessly attended: Sit, stand, say Amen, recite the Creed but all rather absent-mindedly
But how many really expect to be changed by the Liturgy the attend? How many expect to hear a Word proclaimed and preached that will powerfully change the way they think and see the world? How many expect to actually encounter Jesus Christ and be changed forever by that encounter? How many expect to receive communion and to be marvellously helped by this reception in ways far beyond what Tylenol or any other medicine could ever do in the physical order?
Sadly, expectations are very low among the people of God. The blame can begin with the clergy who have not often taught the faithful to expect dramatic conversion of any kind let alone from receiving Holy Communion. But the blame does not end with the clergy. The fact is low expectations can sometimes be developed as a kind of strategy by many who fear change and see authentic conversion and true holiness as a fearful thing or as requiring just too much of what they would rather not surrender. And so expectations remain low, perhaps out of ignorance or perhaps out of fear and aversion.
On this Feast of Corpus Christi, What do you expect from receiving the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ in Communion?
I can only say that I expect to become Christ. I will say it has not happened in an instant. But rather, incrementally, organically. But, as I have been faithful to Holy Communion, to prayer, scripture, Confession and the liturgy, I have experienced dramatic change. I have seen sins be put to death. I have more joy in the Lord, I am more confident and serene, less anxious and resentful. I love more, am more compassionate and have more understanding. I do not fear most of the things that I used to fear. I am less greedy and more generous.
I do not boast here since it is not I who have done any of this. It’s just Jesus in me. I am not what I want to be but I am not what I used to be. I am becoming the One I receive in Holy Communion. And I promise you the same. If you are faithful to the Sacraments, God will heal you. You will become holier each day. It may seem imperceptible on a day to day basis, but it is underway. It is true there are some setbacks along the way, but even these can bless us if we let them give us humility. Holiness will grow if we but take our medicine.
What do you expect from Holy Communion? I promise you, in the Lord Jesus Christ that if you are faithful to Confession, Communion, prayer, and the Liturgy, I promise you vigorous progress and ultimate perfection: ….being confident in this that God who has begun a good work in you bring it to perfection (Phil 1:6)
Friday, 4 June 2010
Uh, please, NO.......
I may have blogged on this before.
I am cleaning up, (kinda....,) and came across a scrap torn from a bulletin from when I attended Mass while traveling.
Anywhere, if you are looking to place blame for the fact that you can't hear yourself think at your parish, I may have found your answer....
I am cleaning up, (kinda....,) and came across a scrap torn from a bulletin from when I attended Mass while traveling.
One Minute MeditationsI suspect this was concocted not by the parish, but by these people who "do" their bulletins.
A warm hello: Mass is a community celebration. Try to arrive five to ten minutes before Mass is to begin and greet people around you.
Stay for the entire Mass and visit after it is over.
Making others who may be new to your parish feel welcome strengthens the entire Body of Christ.
Anywhere, if you are looking to place blame for the fact that you can't hear yourself think at your parish, I may have found your answer....
Taxes, the Gift That Keeps On Giving
Taxes..... argh. (By which I mean to indicate that pirates had the right idea.)
It's not enough that trying to gather the paperwork about, and to fill out the forms for, and crunch the numbers of, and execute the bank transaction necessitated by them ruins the time leading up to April 15.
Now they can ruin your month of June, as well.
And the Feds could take lessons from the states.
Apparently, if they only process half of what you send in, they half no trouble sending you an enormous erroneous bill based on that half.
And apparently if their computers aren't acknowledging schedules so that it seems as if not a single person in an entire part of the state had a single penny withheld from wages so they DofR must know it's wrong, they still find it expedient to send out heart attack-inducing bills to all those people before the glitch is addressed, (what? on the premise that some people will just pay them without checking the figures?)
And apparently the much bally-hooed and much encouraged e-filing, while nearly instantaneous, is somehow processed after the after the snail mail filing done even days later...
Anyway, I've practically made myself sick the past few days by thinking about and thus worrying about their little missives, instead of ignoring it all, as I should have.
Say "boo!", to you, pooh-pooh to you,
Say "bah!", to you, ha ha to you...
It's not enough that trying to gather the paperwork about, and to fill out the forms for, and crunch the numbers of, and execute the bank transaction necessitated by them ruins the time leading up to April 15.
Now they can ruin your month of June, as well.
And the Feds could take lessons from the states.
Apparently, if they only process half of what you send in, they half no trouble sending you an enormous erroneous bill based on that half.
And apparently if their computers aren't acknowledging schedules so that it seems as if not a single person in an entire part of the state had a single penny withheld from wages so they DofR must know it's wrong, they still find it expedient to send out heart attack-inducing bills to all those people before the glitch is addressed, (what? on the premise that some people will just pay them without checking the figures?)
And apparently the much bally-hooed and much encouraged e-filing, while nearly instantaneous, is somehow processed after the after the snail mail filing done even days later...
Anyway, I've practically made myself sick the past few days by thinking about and thus worrying about their little missives, instead of ignoring it all, as I should have.
Say "boo!", to you, pooh-pooh to you,
Say "bah!", to you, ha ha to you...
Thursday, 3 June 2010
What is the Church?
Brilliant description of what She is not, sprung from a discussion of the suitability of Lifeteen for Catholic worship:
a sort of religious banqueting and burial club like all our neighbors
Wednesday, 2 June 2010
How Does Anyone Know Whose Ticket to Punch?
Serious question, sincerely asked (prompted by various bits of Newman brouhaha)-- when a miracle is attributed to someone whose cause for sainthood is being investigated, how do they know the dead person in question is the one who ought to be credited?
Certainly, never did anyone in dire straits, in all of Christendom, in the history of of the world, say, "Please, whatever you do, don't' pray for the the intercession of ANYONE on my behalf, except this one person who is not yet a tried and true inhabitant of heaven."
(You know, 'cause I want to see if this guy's got the goods, and my curiosity on this point supersedes any piddling transitory desire to, oh, I dunno.... LIVE?!?#?$?!??)
Certainly, never did anyone in dire straits, in all of Christendom, in the history of of the world, say, "Please, whatever you do, don't' pray for the the intercession of ANYONE on my behalf, except this one person who is not yet a tried and true inhabitant of heaven."
(You know, 'cause I want to see if this guy's got the goods, and my curiosity on this point supersedes any piddling transitory desire to, oh, I dunno.... LIVE?!?#?$?!??)
And also...? aw, right back atcha, Father!
This is why you reply with [and with your Spirit] ….reminding yourselves by this reply that he who is here does nothing of his own power, nor are the offered gifts the work of human nature, but is it the grace of the Spirit present and hovering over all things which prepared that mystic sacrifice.
-- A Pentecost Homily of Saint John Chrysostom
I just need to cleanse my palate after this
Breathing Room
Strangest thing, so caught up FIRST in the scripture, and THEN IN the song of the angels, that at a Mass celebrating the great consolation that is OUR LORD DEIGNING TO BE RECEIVED BY US AS FOOD AND DRINK, my receipt of the Body and Blood, my actual communion passed almost unnoticed -- does that make sense? I wasn't distracted, exactly... or perhaps that is exactly what I was.
I was thinking about words, rather than the Word.
On the other hand, the communio and a Eucharistic motet gave me pause, and then leisure to recollect myself.
And it was very powerful.
Sometimes I think Himself is right, (although he is not as he is deliberately,) sometimes the best, deepest, and most meaningful experience of the Liturgy is allowing it to "wash over" you, in all its "sacramenty goodness."
I think my participation may have been utterly actuosa, if not activa...
(Incidentally the motet was .... a bicina, maybe? anyway, contrapuntal, 2 voice, began Ave Verum, and sent me off into spirals of contemplation. Quite, quite, quite wonderful. Sometimes the most surprising things lift your mind and heart and soul to where you wish they could always be.... the duo_organ_recital I attended this weekend was marvelous, and uplifting, and brilliant, and varied, and beautiful... but what floored me on Sunday, and stayed with me was the fanfare/intro/background music/improv, that one of the organists stayed to provide before the Tantum Ergo at the Vespers cum Exposition and Benediction that followed the concert So striking, and gave such focus to the proceeding -- WHICH IS THE WHOLE POINT OF LITURGICAL MUSIC, NO?)
I was thinking about words, rather than the Word.
On the other hand, the communio and a Eucharistic motet gave me pause, and then leisure to recollect myself.
And it was very powerful.
Sometimes I think Himself is right, (although he is not as he is deliberately,) sometimes the best, deepest, and most meaningful experience of the Liturgy is allowing it to "wash over" you, in all its "sacramenty goodness."
I think my participation may have been utterly actuosa, if not activa...
(Incidentally the motet was .... a bicina, maybe? anyway, contrapuntal, 2 voice, began Ave Verum, and sent me off into spirals of contemplation. Quite, quite, quite wonderful. Sometimes the most surprising things lift your mind and heart and soul to where you wish they could always be.... the duo_organ_recital I attended this weekend was marvelous, and uplifting, and brilliant, and varied, and beautiful... but what floored me on Sunday, and stayed with me was the fanfare/intro/background music/improv, that one of the organists stayed to provide before the Tantum Ergo at the Vespers cum Exposition and Benediction that followed the concert So striking, and gave such focus to the proceeding -- WHICH IS THE WHOLE POINT OF LITURGICAL MUSIC, NO?)
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