Happy St. Nicholas Day a day late

St. Nicholas is a favorite of many in the early part of the Advent season.  Many legends and traditions have grown up around this saint.  In my home while growing up St. Nicholas would appear on the evening of December 6 and bring us fruit, nuts and candy.  It was always an exciting day.

When I was in seminary there were a number of Byzantine rite students living at the North American College.  St. Nicholas Day was always a special celebration.  Those of us willing to attend Divine Liturgy were also invited to the grand dinner afterward.  At the dinner there was a special song we sang to St. Nicholas.  I have the words around somewhere but even when I can't find them I hum it as part of my own personal celebration.

Happy St. Ambrose Day



Today we remember St Ambrose of Milan (340? - 397), Bishop and Doctor.- He was born in Trier (now in Germany) between 337 and 340, to a Roman family: his father was praetorian prefect of Gaul. Ambrose was educated at Rome In about 372 he was made prefect of Liguria and Emilia, whose capital was Milan.

In 374 the bishopric of Milan fell vacant and when Ambrose tried to pacify the conflict between the Catholics and Arians over the appointment of a new bishop, the people turned on him and demanded that he become the bishop himself. He immediately gave his money to the poor and his land to the Church He was assiduous in carrying out his office, acting with charity to all: a true shepherd and teacher of the faithful. He defended the rights of the Church and attacked the Arian heresy with learning, firmness and gentleness. He also wrote a number of hymns which are still in use today.

Ambrose was a key figure in the conversion of St Augustine to Catholicism, impressing Augustine (hitherto unimpressed by the Catholics he had met) by his intelligence and scholarship.

(from the Doylesford Norbertine website)

In the liturgical life of the Church there are several rites which celebrate the liturgy in ways different from the Roman Rite.  One of these is the Ambrosian Rite which is centered in the Archdiocese of Milan.  The structure of the Mass is very similar to that of the Roman Rite but has a body of chant that is unique and beautiful.

I visited The Basilica of St. Stanislaus Kotska in Winona today in prepration for the Mass of Elevation in a few weeks.  I took a few pictures but can't figure out how to get them off my phone.  Will work on that in the coming days so check back and see the crest, the umbrellino, the tinntinabulum and more. 

Feast of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross

Today is the feast of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross who was Edith Stein in secular life.  She was an atheist philospher who came to the Gospel through her studies. She entered the Carmelite order and was put to death at Auschwitz.

"In order to be an image of God, the spirit must turn to what is eternal, hold it in spirit, keep it in memory, and by loving it, embrace it in the will."
~ Edith Stein

We Give Thanks and Praise

The NPM convention is coming to an end. At least for me.  I will be heading home tomorrow.  It has been a good experience and I feel like I have a better feel for what has been happening in the world of church music.  As often happens there were far more workshops I would have liked to attend than there was opportunity. 

Tonight we gathered for Eucharist.  The music was wonderful, as one might expect.  It is particularly moving that the whole assembly would sing in parts.  It makes for a great sung prayer.  The Eucharistic Acclamations came from Christopher Pardini's New Century Mass.  They were festive and easy to pick up.  I also liked Michael Joncas' communion song, "Sacramentum Caritatis." The refrain was in Latin and while perhaps a little long was easily singable and by the last couple of verses I was able to sing it by memory. 

I am glad I was able to be a part of this convention and I am sure that it will enliven my ministry both in the parish and in the diocese.

NPM Day 2

Today was another fun day at the National Meeting of the National Association of Pastoral Musicians.  We began with morning prayer.  Today is the memorial of St. Scharbel. Following the example of the fifth-century St. Maron, Sharbel lived as a hermit from 1875 until his death. His reputation for holiness prompted people to seek him to receive a blessing and to be remembered in his prayers. He followed a strict fast and was very devoted to the Blessed Sacrament. When his superiors occasionally asked him to administer the sacraments to nearby villages, Sharbel did so gladly.

The reading was sung in Arabic. 

The Plenum (keynote) of the day was Fr. Michael Joncas speaking on the connections between liturgy and life.  He took as his basis the hymn O sacrum convivium.  O sacrum convivium! in quo Christus sumitur: recolitur memoria passionis ejus; mens impletur gratia; et futurae gloriae nobis pignus datur. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia. (O sacred banquet! in which Christ is received, the memory of his Passion is renewed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory to us is given. Alleluia.)

He spoke about the life of the disciple as memory (the memory of his Passion is renewed), present life (the mind is filled with grace), and future (a pledge of future glory to us is given).  He linked these to quotes from the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy of Vatican II.

I went to workshops on the use of technology and music for the RCIA.  Tomorrow is the day in which the publishers present their "showcases" which highlight a lot of their new music. Should be fun - lots of singing.

Day 1 - NPM convention

Yesterday was Day 1 of the National Convention of the National Asssociation of Pastoral Musicians.  This organization has 7,500 members with 67 chapters and 2,000 parishes represented.  The National Convention brings together over 2,000 members to learn, sing and pray. 

The events started in the morning with various tours of local interest.  I had not signed up for any so spent a quiet morning in my hotel.  The first event I attended was a showcase by Tony Alonso and Marty Haugen about a new collection of psalms they had put together. Containing new and old music it sets psalms for the various Sundays of the year but also for the responsorial psalms for the solemnities and feasts.  It includes psalms that are not set often so should be a good resource for use on those days, especially.

The keynote was by Fr. Ronald Raab who works in a parish in downtown Portland.  The parish has a strong social justice outreach to respond to the needs of its community.  Fr. Raab took each of the four parts of the Mass and reflected on our call to holiness as it is revealed in his community.  It was very inspiring and moving.  One moment that really caught my attention was his sharing about a litany that his community uses on the streets of the neighborhood when a murder takes place.  It is a prayerful witness and as he says, "a prayer that we never have to use this litany again."  What a different experience from my own.

In the afternoon I took part in a reflection on the new translation of the Roman Missal with Cardinal DiNardo, Msgr. Richard Hilgarten (ex. director of the Secretatiate for Divine Worship of the USCCB) and Fr. Robert Webster.  It was designed for and primarily attended by clergy so offered a unique perspective.  It was organized around the questions, "what went well?" "what surprised?" "what challenged?"  Not the kind of presentation that looked for solutions so it is hard to summarize but it was interesting.

Today, we begin with Morning Prayer and then a keynote by Fr. Michael Joncas entitled: "Disciples at Worship: Connecting Liturgy and Life."