Christmas Vigil Chant Mass, Ft. Worth

Once again, our schola will be singing for the Christmas Vigil Mass this evening at the 7 p.m. Mass at San Mateo. Some of us will also be returning to sing for the bilingual Mass tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. Our group size varies between six and eight members, depending on individual availability. Tonight I expect there will be six of us.

Last year, when we first began singing together... when Gregorian chant was completely new to most of the members, I told them that it would be easier with each successive year. I think they probably were thinking to themselves: "Oh, yeah... sure it will!", as they struggled to learn the meanings of the various neumes, ictus locations, rhythmic markings, Latin pronunciation, etc.

This year, beginning with Advent, they could see that I had, indeed, spoken the truth. As we prepared to sing the Ad te levavi Introit for the 1st week of Advent, it was like finding an old friend. As we moved through the Advent season, re-visiting the propers we learned last year and adding a bit to our repertoire, it was low-key, relaxed and very pleasant.

We are finding the same thing as we prepare our Christmas music for the season. We tend to sing more English hymns at this time of year than any other, due to the great affection most parishioners have for Christmas carols. But, we are continuing to expand our knowledge of the great treasure of music the Church has available to us. We learned the Puer natus Introit for Christmas Day so quickly I believe the schola members amazed themselves. We also learned another wonderful chant hymn for Christmas, Personent hodie. We'll be singing several chanted hymns before the beginning of Mass this evening and tomorrow morning including: Cordis natus, Puer natus, Resonet in laudibus, and Personent hodie. We'll also continue the singing of the Alma Redemptoris Mater at offertory each week during Christmas.

I am so glad to be a part in making these small steps toward a rediscovery of the liturgical music we are asked to sing at Mass.

Evangelism

Well, we had a wonderful Holy Week! At Mass, our pastor re-emphasized the fact that evangelism is needed throughout the world. He quoted from words of Pope Benedict XVI while he was in Cameroon to that effect.

My youngest son has taken it to heart. Using his newly purchased (with his own money saved up from selling Nintendo DS games on ebay) digital camera, he filmed Pope Benedict during his Easter Urbi et Orbi address. My husband just heard him showing the clip to two of his friends... and he was heard to say:

" That is Pope Benedict. He is a very holy man. He is very close to God. He can change wine and bread into the actual body and blood of Jesus Christ!"

He heard the message... we should all be so bold in proclaiming the Word of God!

WordOnFire.org Trailer

There is a new 10-part series entitled: Catholicism coming to TV and DVD soon... check out the trailer over at Sacred Miscellany. This is very inspiring... thanks, MJ.

First Posting of 2009

My 8-year old valiantly struggled to stay awake for Mass at midnight last night. But, the church was warm and cozy, the words of the Te Deum (in English) were rhythmic enough to make it hard for him to keep those heavy eyelids open during the end of the prayers during Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. He soon succumbed to his tired body and was sound asleep at the end of a pew, resting on a jacket and sweater. There was no complaint about going straight to bed when we arrived home (around 2 a.m.).

Reposition of the Blessed Sacrament was more formal than the weekly reposition that normally occurs on Sunday morning, just prior to the 10 am Mass. Last night, Father wore beautiful vestments and wore a Cope for elevation of the monstrance and the actual reposition. It was the first time for the younger altar servers to assist with a Cope, but you could tell they were pleased to be a part of the solemn occasion.

Bishop Vann, Fr. Bob, and four altar servers processed into the church, incense billowing, miter and staff prominent in such a small place. Although there is an (untuned) piano in the church, I have never heard it used. At the English Masses, no instrumentation is used, even during the hymns from missalettes. It followed that pattern last night. It was quite pleasant to have a group of people in the pews singing so enthusiastically with all the Mass ordinaries and hymns. We also got very good participation from them on the Ave Maria. It was an honor to be able to sing when the bishop came to San Mateo.

This morning, I am awake and thinking about getting ready soon. I was asked by a friend, who is director at another parish in the city, to sing with them for the noon Mass today. We'll be singing the Communion proper Exsulta filia Sion. It isn't one I have had the opportunity to sing at Mass before... I'm looking forward to it, although I am still a wee bit weary. It is the proper Communon chant for Christmas Mass at dawn and also the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. Perhaps next year the schola can learn it.

Several forum friends and past Chant Intensive attendees will soon be heading out to San Diego for the Winter Chant Intensive with Scott Turkington. It would have been very nice to be able to go, but just not possible this time of year. In the weeks prior to Christmas we got several updates on how people from the Summer Chant Intensive were doing in their cities... I'll post some excerpts in the coming days. Good things are happening in the world of Sacred Music.

CCHD Second Collection This Weekend...

I have written about how unhappy I was to discover the way our donations have been used by the leadership of the CCHD (See my posts from here and here). This is the weekend (Nov. 22-23) when they will be asking for our donations. I plan to express my displeasure by not donating this time around. I realize this doesn't completely take care of the problem, since I believe that other diocesan funds are used to fund the CCHD in addition to this collection at Masses.



We do have the opportunity to say something to the bishops by withholding donations this time around, however. There are many other ways to support and aid the poor. We should be good stewards of the gifts God has given us and find charities that are in line with Catholic teaching. I personally have some I like very much. Edmundite Missions, Mercy Home, local parish food drives, etc. I also like supporting various cloistered religious orders, such as the Poor Clares (there is a wonderful monastery in Roswell, NM) and Benedictines (Clear Creek Monastery is one of my personal favorites).

Mass for Unbaptized children in Ft. Worth

I was invited by a friend, who is director at St. Mary of the Assumption in Ft. Worth, to sing some polyphony at a Mass for children who died before being baptized on Saturday. [Bishop Vann was to have celebrated the Mass at St. Mary of the Assumption Church, but was unable to attend. Instead, Fr. Bristow of St. Mary's was the celebrant.] The music was lovely, including many lovely polyphony pieces, as well as two solo pieces, some traditional English hymns and chanted propers by the local men's schola.

Father Bristow has a wonderful singing voice... a very deep bass that found us searching out our lowest chest voice for responses! The men's schola sang the Requiem Introit, the Communion Proper for funerals and In Paradisum and did a very nice job. The polyphony was a treat. The singers were very talented (some college music majors among them) and easy to sing with. I'm hoping to get to hear recordings that were made of the day. For more information, check out Richard's blog at: http://stmaryoftheassumption.blogspot.com/.

Thanks, Richard, for the corrections.

Hurray for local Bishops!

Our local bishops, Bishop Kevin Vann (Fort Worth) and Bishop Kevin Farrell (Dallas) have issued a joint letter to the faithful in the two dioceses regarding the sanctity of life in this Respect Life month. See the entire document here:

http://www.cathdal.org/img/Flash/EngFarrellVann.pdf

They very clearly lay out the information for the Catholics in their flocks with which they can inform their consciences in accordance with Church teaching. I was most pleased to see this and happy to know that they are speaking out in this crucial time in an election year.

Pray for an end to abortion!

HT to James at Opinionated Catholic.

Steve Ray visits Ft. Worth

Yesterday afternoon the boys and I attended a short talk given by author Steve Ray. The talk was about teaching your children to love their Faith. The boys truly enjoyed his way of talking about raising children to love God. He sprinkled his talk with many anecdotes about his own family and illustrating his points with actual occurrences. I was impressed with his excitement about being a Catholic and his positive encouragement for us all to live our faith daily.

We left with one of his books, a DVD and a CD. I also plan to check out his website regarding his trips to the Holy Land, including his cruise tour of the journeys of St. Paul. I think my parents would really enjoy such a trip... Steve and his wife, Janet, are both licensed tour guides in Israel.

I've already begun reading his book Crossing the Tiber. It is wonderfully documented and very compelling. I think it would be great reading for anyone who is interested in why (how) a good evangelical could possibly consider becoming a Roman Catholic. It has big value in giving a level of understanding of the logic, as well as a fair analysis (and refutation of the underlying assumptions) of the typical prejudices taught in many protestant denominations. For a Catholic, I think it offers great information for apologetic occasions... I sometimes find myself at a loss to know just how to approach a discussion with a non-Catholic about faith and religion. I feel the need to share the truth with them, but would like to do it in a way that may actually do some good, rather than just give me a feeling of having 'been right'. To me, the goal isn't winning the argument so much as helping them to find their way home to the Church if at all possible.

Crowning Mary

This weekend, particularly appropriate on Mother's Day weekend, our homeschooling group had a special Crowning ceremony in the back yard of one of our members. We first shared a bit about Mary and praying the rosary and the importance of having her as our mother in heaven and asking for her intercession with the children.

Next, we prayed the Memorare, and sang O Mary We Crown Thee With Blossoms Today as we placed a flower crown and flowers in a vase for Mary by her statue. Then we prayed The Litany to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Afterwards, while the kids played in the pool, the adults had a chance to catch up on news and enjoy the beautiful day. Much fun was had by all.

Cardinal Egan and Shreveport's Red Mass

The boys and I attended this morning's "Red Mass" at Holy Trinity Church in downtown Shreveport. Edward Cardinal Egan, from New York was the main celebrant. It was a very nice service. From up in the choir loft, we had a very nice view, but it was very warm... the water was in a locked cabinet, so we just had to wish and wait...

The prelude music was provided by a choir from a local Baptist

church... while it was very nice, it was so loud as to be almost

deafening. A bit less volume would have been very nice. I was a bit

puzzled as to why we had a guest choir at a Catholic Mass from a Baptist church, but that was explained later on... apparently this was supposed to be in some way an ecumenical service. The local St. Cecilia choir sang for the Mass music.

At the end of the Mass, just before the final blessing, visiting protestant ministers were given the opportunity to say a short prayer... a couple of them must not have realized it was only supposed to be a short prayer and we were treated with a couple

of protestant-flavor sermons. As we were up in the hot choir loft fanning ourselves at the end of this almost 2-hour Mass, we weren't as appreciative of their words of wisdom as we might have been otherwise.

I quite enjoyed the homily given by Cardinal Egan. It had a very pro-life message throughout -- both in support of the unborn and for death penalty convicts. He spoke of the wonders of modern medicine in the unlocking of the mystery of babies in the womb and also of the great benefits to justice made possible by the DNA analysis now available to us. He spoke of those who have been wrongly convicted who have later been cleared of crimes because of the new technologies available to us in law enforcement.

As I have grown older, I am less in favor of the death penalty than I was as a younger person. I think, at least here in our country, we have the means to separate dangerous criminals from the rest of society for the rest of their natural lives without killing them. And, with the high cost of appeals and more appeals in death-penalty cases, I don't believe one could even argue that it is a higher cost to society in any practical way to keep them in prison for life. As Christians, we also hope that, perhaps, additional time to reflect on their misdeeds will also give them a chance to repent and maybe save their souls.

A few local news reports...

From My Bossier:

Edward Cardinal Egan, the Archbishop of New York, presided over a Red Mass today at Holy Trinity Church in Shreveport. The last Cardinal to visit Shreveport was Cardinal Cushing of Boston in 1968.

The Red Mass, held for the legal profession, was attended by most area attorneys and judges, as well as ministers of other faiths and members of the lay public.

Egan presided over the Mass, and also served as its principal celebrant.

Describing the law as “a splendid calling” and contrasting that with the view of it as a profession, he said people must be inclined to “love the law and embrace it,” just as they must discharge it “so civilization may progress in a manner worthy of the children of God.”

Shreve Talk reported:

"There is nothing more precious than the life of a human being," said His Eminence Edward Cardinal Egan, the Archbishop of New York, at the 16th Annual Red Mass held today at Holy Trinty Catholic Church in Shreveport, Louisiana. Cardinal Egan delivered his homily, which included a meassage not only supporting the right to life, but challenging the death penalty where many innocent persons have been cleared by DNA tests.

More photos... St. Patrick's Cathedral, Ft. Worth, TX

Facing the altar...















In the front of the church, to the left of the altar... this was fabulous!


St. Joan of Arc... one of my favorites...

Photos St. Patrick's Cathedral, Ft. Worth, TX

Beautiful baptismal font...























Detail of statue of Mary...


















This Sacred Heart statue is just to the right of the altar...


















More stained glass windows...

St. Patrick's Cathedral, Ft. Worth, TX

While doing a few tourist-type activities on our house-hunting trip, we were able to stop in to see the cathedral in Ft. Worth. St. Patrick's Cathedral is right in downtown Ft. Worth (currently in the middle of a lot of construction going on in the next block).

The cathedral itself was a beautiful old church, with almost none of the changes one can associate with the effects of Vatican II. The only real change I could guess must have occurred was the moving out of the altar toward the front to allow for the priest to say Mass facing the people. It also looked like there may have been a portion of the altar rail removed as well. However, the majority of the altar rail seems to be intact and is quite beautiful.

The ceiling of the church appears to be simple plaster, with a few wooden arches. Unfortunately, the entire church is carpeted. I was imagining how great the music would have sounded in there without the carpeting.

What was truly amazing in the church was the collection of absolutely fabulous stained glass windows and the many beautiful statues of saints all through the church.

The wonderfully carved stations of the cross were also very nice.

Can't say enough about this beautiful church. I am looking forward to attending Mass there sometime after we are living there. I am posting a photo of the St. Cecilia stained glass window. I may add a few other photos later... enjoy.

Monsignor Georg Ganswein does a great job...

I was watching the interreligious gathering at the John Paul II center at Catholic University and the giving of gifts to Pope Benedict when it occurred to me what a good personal secretary Msgr. Georg is. I realize this is a sidenote from the main event, of course. But, think of all the people who are involved in the planning and details of a visit such as this... One small detail in a sea of details jumped out at me...

As they were getting ready for this gift presentation portion of the meeting, a man in a suit came forward carrying a tray with (I assume) papal medals to be presented to the gift bearers. The man came and stood with his tray right next to Pope Benedict. Then, when the first gift was presented, I noticed that Msgr. Georg moved in to assist. The gift looked to be a bit heavy... not a good idea to expect Pope Benedict to stand there holding it ad infinitum. Georg smoothly moved in, carried the gift away and put the medal to be presented close at hand for Pope Benedict. (This seemed to greatly annoy the tray bearer, from my perception).

The point is... Pope Benedict, with Georg's help, was able to focus all his attention on the person who was in front of him. He didn't need to wonder what he was going to do with the gift and "where the heck are those darn coins?" . Georg's quiet assistance allows Pope Benedict to be unconcerned with the details and focus on the bigger things...

My husband and I had a few good-humored musings in German about what type of exchange could (only in our minds, of course) take place should there turn out not to be enough coins...

All right... who took two coins???

Too busy watching the Pope...

... to make any sort of decent post... currently watching the Vespers service. Seeing the beautiful crypt brings back the remembrance of our Masses there this past summer during the Colloquium. The acoustics in the crypt (with the arched, tiled ceiling) are amazing.

The boys and I did make it to daily Mass today on Pope Benedict's birthday. We had a much better schoolday today than yesterday. It is nice to have a dramatic improvement from one day to the next. The boys are approaching the end of their 1st quarter, so testing is coming soon.

Interesting tidbits for a Monday morning

Politics...


Michele Malkin has a funny response to Obama's comments about blue-collar America's bitterness... check out her site here.

In case you missed the comments that led to the hoopla... here is a quote from Obama's speech about those poor jobless folks in PA:

You go into these small towns in Pennsylvania and,
like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25
years and nothing's replaced them...And they fell through the Clinton
Administration, and the Bush Administration, and each successive administration
has said that somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have
not.

And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion
or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or
anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.

Obama's 'former' pastor is 'wright-on' again here...





Catholicism...


Georgetown University commissioned a poll among Catholics. It seems that many young Catholics are under the misconception that Sunday and Holy Day Mass attendance is optional. On the bright side, the younger generation tends to take fasting and abstinence requirements during Lent more seriously than would have been expected. One interesting fact. The general attitudes of those born before 1960 and post 1980 are more similar than those in-between...

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At Mass yesterday, our pastor reminded us that Pope Benedict's visit to the U.S. is an opportunity to really listen to what he has to say to us as part of the Church in America. I intend to have EWTN going full-blast a lot this week. I had the great pleasure to be able to sing with the Centenary Camerata, which was the guest choir at Mass at 5:30 pm.

WYD Vestments Need Explicitly Christian Symbols

HT Absolutely No Spin... In an article in an online Australian news site, it was reported that Pope Benedict has rejected the proposed WYD vestment design. The reason for it is the Pope's opinion that all symbology on vestments must be explicitly Christian... not such a very radical requirement, in my opinion. A quote from the article:

The Pope is known to dislike vestment symbols that are not
explicitly Christian. He may, though, wear some variation on the vestment design, a WYD spokeswoman said.

Take a gander at the photo of the proposed design... the front of the vestment features a symbol of the southern cross constellation. The back features something called "Margorie's Bird" (I have no idea what that is).

Another quote from Angelqueen.org gives a little insight as to how the design came about:

"They feature the Southern Cross on the front, signifying
Australia as the Great Southern Land of the Holy Spirit. "This is reinforced by the indigenous image on the back of the chasuble - Marjorie's Bird - also representing the Holy Spirit. "We want to ensure we reflect our unique landscape, history and cultural influences when the international spotlight is on Sydney for this great event," he said. Marjorie's Bird was created by indigenous artist Marjorie Liddy from the Tiwi Islands in Northern Territory.

Both sets of vestments were designed by Melbourne firm Stuart Pettigrew Design and Sr Rosemary Crumlin RSM.

You can see a (not very good) small photo of the vestment back at a pdf here...

New Bishop Announcements!

More bishop announcements today... see all the news at Catholic Heirarchy News. It looks like our neighbors to the north will also have a new bishop...

Bishop-elect William J. Justice was named an Auxiliary Bishop of San Francisco, California, USA and titular bishop of Mathara in Proconsulari.

Bishop-elect Oscar Cantú was named an Auxiliary Bishop of San Antonio, Texas, USA and titular bishop of Dardanus.

Bishop-elect James Douglas Conley was named Auxiliary Bishop of Denver, Colorado, USA and titular bishop of Cissa.

Bishop-elect Anthony Basil Taylor was named Bishop of Little Rock, Arkansas, USA. The Diocese had been vacant since Bishop James Peter Sartain was named Bishop of Joliet in Illinois in May 2006.

Bishop Richard Edmund Pates was named Bishop of Des Moines, Iowa, USA. The Diocese had been vacant since the resignation of Bishop Joseph Leo Charron, C.Pp.S. one year ago today. Bishop Pates had been serving as an Auxiliary Bishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Msgr. Michael Duca update...

Yesterday at about 10:00 am, Monsignor Michael Duca was officially introduced at a press conference at the chancery... here is an excerpt from the news story:

Applause greeted the new bishop-elect of Shreveport before he was officially introduced at a press conference this morning.Pope Benedict XVI named Msgr. Michael Gerard Duca, of the Diocese of Dallas, as the second bishop of the Diocese of Shreveport today.

“I should thank Pope Benedict XVI for this awesome and exciting blessing,” he said to a group of media, priests and diocesan staff. “It’s a great joy to come to this diocese.”

Duca will fill the seat left vacant when Bishop William Friend retired in December 2006.Since he is a priest, he will be ordained bishop and installed as the head of the Shreveport diocese in a joint ceremony. It is tentatively set for May 19.

Duca, 55, is a Dallas native and attended Holy Trinity Seminary in Irving, Texas, where he is now the rector. Ordained in 1978, he has also served as vocations director for the diocese, campus minister at Southern Methodist University and associate pastor at several Dallas churches.

“This is a great day for the diocese,” said the Rev. Peter Mangum, pastor of the Cathedral of St. John Berchmans. “I believe the holy father has matched the right person with his background in priestly ministry, vocations and law.”

Some data about the Shreveport diocese:

Diocese of Shreveport by the numbers

11,133 square miles

40,000 Catholics

27 parishes

14 quasi-parishes

7 schools

2 early childhood centers

38 active priests

21 permanent deacons

3 active seminarians

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Bishop-elect Duca will be the second bishop of the Diocese of Shreveport, which is located in northwestern Louisiana.

This information courtesy of the Shreveport Times.

A video of the announcement can be seen here...

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One more bit of information from Zenit:

Established in 1986, The Diocese of Shreveport covers 11,124 square miles in 16 civil parishes and has a current total population of 788,793, of whom approximately 39,425 are Catholic.

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Also check out James' (Opinionated Catholic) blog entry on the subject here...

Shreveport has a new bishop!!!

As we had rumored a few weeks ago, Shreveport will have a new bishop very soon... Monsignor Michael Duca, the longtime rector of Holy Trinity Seminary in Dallas, will be wearing the bishop's miter. The tentative date for ordination/installation is set for May 19th, so mark your calendars... I think the schola had better start working on a few ordination-type chants... just in case our services are needed!
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Here is the web posting from the Cathedral of St. John Berchmans in Shreveport...

See the article at Whispers in the Loggia...
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Dallas News release:

Pope Appoints Duca to Lead Diocese of Shreveport
Dallas Seminary Rector Named New Bishop
(Dallas) A Dallas native will be the new bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Shreveport, Louisiana. The Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Pietro Sambi, announced this morning that His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI, has appointed Reverend Monsignor Michael Duca of the Diocese of Dallas to serve as only the second bishop of Shreveport.
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Bishop-elect Duca’s appointment comes just one month away from his 30th anniversary of ordination to the priesthood in Dallas on April 29, 1978. He has served as the Rector of Holy Trinity Seminary in Dallas since 1996. He has also served on numerous boards and commissions in the Diocese of Dallas including: the College of Consultors, Presbyteral Council, Personnel Board, the Commission for Orders and on the Diocesan Tribunal, presently as a Judge and as Associate Judicial Vicar. He is currently the Director of the Office for the On-going Formation of Priests. He is also a Fourth Degree Knight of Columbus and a Knight of the Holy Sepulcher.
Early in his priesthood, Bishop-elect Duca served as Associate Pastor at several parishes in the Diocese of Dallas including: All Saints, St Patrick and St. Luke. He also served as Campus Minister at Southern Methodist University from 1985-1992 and as Vocations Director for the diocese from 1985-1992.
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In 1994 he was chosen for further studies in Canon Law. He attended the University of Saint Thomas in Rome (The Angelicum) where he graduated with a License in Canon Law in 1996. Upon his return from Rome, he was appointed to serve as Rector of Holy Trinity Seminary. Bishop-elect Duca has served as rector until the present.
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At the announcement of the news, Bishop-elect Duca said “I am humbled and honored by the Pope’s decision to appoint me as Bishop of the Diocese of Shreveport. It is an incredible blessing that I look forward to, but not without some mixed emotions. My 30 years as a priest in the Diocese of Dallas have been a very enriching experience. The opportunity to serve in parishes and to work with the future priests of our diocese as rector of Holy Trinity Seminary has helped me to grow as a minister and person.”
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The Most Reverend Kevin Farrell, Bishop of the Diocese of Dallas, issued words of support stating “I am delighted and thrilled for Bishop-elect Duca. The diocese has benefited from his ministry, his leadership and his many other talents. I will miss his support here but I am pleased the Diocese of Shreveport is getting such a strong and capable spiritual leader. We will pray for his success and happiness.”
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The new bishop-elect, son of Lewis and Aline Duca of Dallas, was born June 5, 1952. He was baptized at Sacred Heart Cathedral now the Cathedral Shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe. He attended St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School through eighth grade and is a 1970 graduate of Bishop Lynch High School. Since Holy Trinity was a collaborative seminary with the University of Dallas at the time of his studies, Duca received both a B.A in Psychology and a M.Div. in Theology from UD.
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Bishop –elect Duca will be ordained a bishop and installed as the Chief Shepherd of the Diocese of Shreveport in a ceremonial Mass tentatively set for May 19th in Shreveport.