Seeking Royalty

Like Mary, the time of confinement is nearly complete.

Our seeking and waiting is near an end.

New royalty, an heir to the throne of David, shall grace us, in more ways than one, with His presence.

The time is drawing near, as the following Advent hymn suggests.

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The King shall come when morning dawns
and light triumphant breaks;
when beauty gilds the eastern hills
and life to joy awakes.

Not, as of old, a little child,
to bear and fight and die,
but crowned with glory like the sun
that lights the morning sky.

The King shall come when morning dawns
and earth's dark night is past;
O haste the rising of that morn,
the day that e'er shall last;

And let the endless bliss begin,
by weary saints foretold,
when right shall triumph over wrong,
and truth shall be extolled.

The King shall come when morning dawns
and light and beauty brings:
Hail, Christ the Lord! Thy people pray,
come quickly, King of kings.

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Ero Cras.

Antiphonal Echo

Once again, we enter into the homestretch of Advent.

Once again, we begin our final preparations for the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ.

Once again, we meditate on His coming into the world.

With that in mind, I humbly present once again my series of meditations on the "O" Antiphons.  Along with my meager thoughts, I will once again be linking to posts by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf of "What Does The Prayer Really Say" and Fr. Mark Kirby, OSB of "Vultus Christi", who, each in their own wonderful ways, will expound on these short verses found in the Liturgy of the Hours.  In fact, Fr. Zuhlsdorf has a short primer on these simple yet profound phrases.

My posts on these are arguably the most popular among my readers, judging by the increase in traffic during this time.

Once again, I hope you enjoy them.

Ora Pro Nobis

From Immaculate Conception Church; Marrero, Louisiana

As patroness of the United States of America under this title, we are under her care. On this feast day, let us pray for the welfare of our country, that we may continue to be "one nation, under God".

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone that fled to your protection, implored your help, or sought your intercession was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, I fly to you, O virgin of virgins, my mother; to you I come, before you I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in your mercy hear and answer them. Amen.

St. Bernard

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Originally posted 12/8/2005.

Re-posted 12/8/2009.

Gone Before Me

The house where I live is only two blocks away from the city-owned cemetery. It serves as a good reminder to watch and be ready, for one doesn't know the hour of death. I exercise the seventh Spiritual Work of Mercy nearly every time I pass it.

Today, it also reminds me of another soul who needs my prayers. It is now twenty years to the day since the passing of my father. The story of his death and funeral are still to this day the saddest in my life. The only other detail I can add is the citation of the First Reading for his Funeral Mass--Isaiah 55:6-9.

Kindly say prayer for the repose of his soul, as well as those who dwell in Purgatory.

Take comfort in these words.

I still do.

Awaiting A Savior

Happy New Liturgical Year, from this infinitesimal corner of the universe.

A full four weeks this calendar year to prepare ourselves to celebrate the mystery of the Incarnation. All 28 days to reflect on these events in our salvation history. We once again will hear the prophets announce His coming into the world, the Blessed Virgin Mary bearing Him so tenderly in her womb, all the ends of the earth anticipating His arrival.

We cannot have a Resurrection without a Death. We cannot have a Death without a Birth.

Advent is here! Prepare the way of the Lord! Maranatha!

2011 Thanksgiving Day Card

While we should count our blessings every day and thank God for them, it is nice to have a day set aside to remember and be grateful for what we have. To "give thanks" is also an act of humility, as what we have is really not from our hands. May God continue to abundantly bless us and give us the grace to see those blessings.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Cecilia: Virgin & Martyr

Martyrdom of St. Cecilia (1600) , by Stephano Maderno

The Catholic Encyclopedia brings us the details about this most popular saint.

Listen to your favorite piece of music today.

Pray for those who are musicians, especially those who labor in the vineyards of our parishes today.

May those efforts always strive to give, as Johann Sebastian Bach would write in a abbreviated manner upon his scores (without the Protestant connotation), this ultimate expression:

Soli Deo gloria!

Glory to God alone!

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My other posts about this day:

Musical Quotes And Thoughts (2005).

Quotes About Notes (2006).

Quotable On Notes (2007).

Canto; Ergo Sum (2008).

Mechanical Musicianship (2009).

Make We Music (2010).

Until The End

From the Huffington Post, a story which does witness to the power of the Sacrament of Marriage.

Talk about the complete fulfillment of the vow "for as long as you both shall live."

The ideal perfectly realized.

Indefinite Intermission

I am still digesting some rather unsettling news.

At our weekly church choir rehearsal at St. Olaf last night, we were informed by our music director that he had been laid off by the parish due to budget cuts.

The choir's last formal appearance will be this Sunday at the 11:15 AM Mass.

This is not to say there will be no music at St. Olaf. There is a staff of volunteer accompanists and singers (myself included) that assist the congregation at other Masses when the choir was not scheduled. Who will schedule them now is also a concern, as the wife of our music director (and also a choir member) handled that duty on a monthly basis.

Stunned is a very accurate word to use right now. Granted, nothing is sacrosanct; but why do you gut what is considered by many parishioners a significant and appreciated part of their parish life, not to mention an important asset in the liturgy? Our new priest has a very fine singing voice; in fact, in his first Mass here, he chanted the Opening and Closing Prayers as well as most of Eucharistic Prayer II. I had a glimmer of hope of the possibility of "singing the Mass" could have been done. It's still there; it's now been clouded by this.

I am not going to make it any more of a problem than it could be. Musical life at St. Olaf will continue, but it will be diminished.

Am I going to be part of the problem or part of the solution?

I'm leaning toward "B", but I need to discern my role.

(UPDATE): Please note this is only a part-time position.

112 Years Of Harmony

One of my fondest memories of my undergraduate days at Morningside College (Sioux City, IA) was my involvement with Gamma Xi Chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America.

Today the organization celebrates the 112th. anniversary of its founding at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, MA.

It has undergone lots of growth and development during its existence, not without some growing pains.

But its commitment to its ideals make it what it is today.

The Fraternity's current National President, John Alan Mongiovi, is marking the day with the following announcement:



Having been a voting delegate at the 1988 National Convention in Kansas City, MO and given the recent success of past Conventions, it looks to be another promising assembly.

Even though it has been over twenty years since my last involvement, I can still say with pride, "Once a Sinfonian, Always a Sinfonian. Long live Sinfonia!"

Come, Brothers, Hail!

(UPDATE: 10/6/2011): Whoops! I can't subtract. 2011 is the 113th. anniversary of the Fraternity. I have changed the title of the post and properly edited it to reflect that correction.