Chant Café

Are you on the fence about the XXIV Summer Colloquium?  Well, if you hop off on the right side, you can save some lettuce for your Easter basket with Early Registration

$60 in fact – and that will buy a lot of chocolate bunnies.  Or it’s money you put toward another cool chant book at the Colloquium.

Yesterday was the Ides of March – not a good day for Julius Caesar.  However, you can make today a good day for you and sacred music wherever you live by registering for the Summer Colloquium in Indianapolis.

But you only have until March 31st.  And my experience is that the second half of the month always goes by faster.  So do it today – and you don’t have to think about it tomorrow.

Join us – and all the lovers of chant, polyphony, great organ music, and fellowship that make this a wonderful week! (And did I mention the 4th of July fireworks?)

Tomorrow is the first anniversary of the election of our Holy Father Pope Francis. Probably everyone remembers watching the Holy Father waving from the balcony. I was on retreat, and with no tv or wireless, a group of us watched the picture on the retreat master’s ancient laptop, which was missing its sound card, and whose picture was delayed about a minute behind the intermittent audio signal coming through on one of the retreatants’ iPhone.

I have heard that some parishes are planning to celebrate this Sunday by singing papal hymns that might be considered, well, rather treacly and sentimental. I’d like to offer the following as an alternative, which can be sung to the sturdy, manly hymn tune ISTE CONFESSOR. St. Peter lives, today, in heaven. St. Peter lives, today, in his successor, called to confirm the brethren.

Saint Peter lives! The gatekeeper of heaven,
Once young and free, once bound for crucifixion,
Now crowned in splendor, prince among the elders.
Pray for your people.

Saint Peter lives! The binding and the loosing,
Bridging the earth unto the highest heavens,
Servant of servants, bishop of that city
Where Peter witnessed.

Hell shall not win. The Church will stand forever.
“Peter, I prayed that your faith will not fail you.
And when the time comes, and you have converted,
Strengthen your brethren.”

All those who give up fam’ly or possessions,
They shall inherit, in that endless Kingdom,
And in the present, many times the blessings
With persecution.

Praise to the Father who sent us Christ Jesus.
Praise to the Son, who came as the Messiah.
Praise to the Spirit, Guardian of the teaching,
Trinity blessed.

A few days ago, an interview with longtime Papal Secretary Msgr. Alfred Xuereb appeared. The interview is a candid and emotional account of the events surrounding the resignation of Pope Emeritus Benedict. Msgr. Xuereb became the Secretary of Pope Francis following his election, and just now has been promoted to the #2 position at the new Secretariat for the Economy, an appointment that shows the total trust of yet another, and very different, Holy Father.

One of the many helpful points in the interview is the discussion of the Holy Father’s prayer life prior to his resignation, and the times he began Mass later than usual, because he was absorbed in prayer. Likewise, the tapes of the resignation show the emphatic, emotional way the Pope spoke of examining his conscience, “iterum atque iterum coram Deo,” “again and again before God” (starting at the :15 mark in the video below).

The worst of the Dan Brown conspiracy theories have thankfully quieted down since the anniversary of the resignation has passed, but for those who have lingering doubts, perhaps they will believe this eyewitness testimony. The interview appears in two parts, here and here.

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I can’t quite establish the provenance of this setting of a centonization of Gustate et Videte with other, seasonal texts, but it is too appropriate to the day not to post it, even without proper attribution.

For those parishes who might be looking for an accessible way to sing the Entrance Antiphon this Lent, please feel free to sing these Lenten Hymn Tune Introits.

The Hymn Tune Propers Project combines the familiar experience of hymn singing with the new experience, in the life of many parishes, of singing the proper texts of the Mass. Hopefully this will be the beginning of a smooth and painless transition which eventually leads to thorough use of chanted and polyphonic propers. In the meantime, parishioners have the benefit of the proper texts, in a congregational, familiar form.