A demo of the organ at my Parish, Our Lady of Lourdes. I love this because you can hear the 16' Pousaune + 32' Contrebasse combo that works so well. You can also hear the 32' Contrebombarde in the processional hymn, as well as the chamades.
See, even if the church building was built awkwardly and without an organ in mind, the one that's there now works fine.
Not much to comment on. Sadly, our choir director was out of own, so no choral music.
Still the music was lovely: Veni Creator, Come Holy Ghost, Come down o Love Divine, and some nice pieces by Bach to boot. (The second movement from the first organ trio sonata- one of my favourites, (BWV 525. We got the first and third movement last Sunday) and Bach's hymn-prelude on Veni Creator Spiritus. (Bwv 667)
(A photo of the procession form a few years ago.)
Music:
Entrance: Alleluia!, sing to Jesus!
Mass setting (Except gloria) Missa de angelis.
Gloria: Missa Secunda, Hans Leo Hassler
Alleluia: Mode 7, graduale simplex.
Credo: Credo III
Offertory: Ave verum corpus,W.A.Mozart,O food of exiles lowly. (Innsbruck.)
Communion: Proper chant, O sacrum convivium, Palestrina
During the procession:
Of the Glorious Body Telling
Fairest Lord Jesus
As thou at thy first eucharist didst pray
To Jesus Christ our sovereign king
Soul of my Saviour
Pange lingua gloriosi
Recessional: Holy God, we praise thy name! (Grosser Gott)
Today was an interesting day. And by 'interesting', I mean "It was nearly 100 degrees and we still did an outdoor procession in the blazing hot sun."
Things went well considering the circumstances. Nine servers who I was counting on didn't show up, which meant some improvising. We ended up with :Crucifer, two acolytes, thurifer, second thurifer, and four torchbearers.
The opening procession went the long way from the sacristy to the sanctuary . I expected the mass to be in English, facing the people, but it was said in Latin, ad orientem. After the collect, the readings (this year is always my favourite year of the lectionary cycle for Corpus Christi.) and the psalm, the sequence Lauda Sion was sung, and then the alleluia.Everything else proceeded as we normally do at solemn mass, including communion at the altar rail. After communion, the torchbearers went to the sacristy. After the ablutions, the thurifers went to the sacristy. After the postcommunion prayer was sung, the celebrant changed to a cope and stole, the torchbearers knelt at the communion rail, and the thurifers had incense laid on and blessed. The celebrant intoned the 'Pange Lingua', and the procession went out and around the neighborhood, with the blessed sacrament under the canopy and two girls scattering rose petals before it. There were three benediction stations, and a fourth at the church.It was kind of fun that the procession passed Holy Cross Baptist church, where some close friends of my family attend. Quite a few of the people stood outside and watched the procession, some took photos.
Now, thanks to the Wonderful city of Philadelphia, mostly thanks to PGW, there are no corners on any of the blocks near the church. They've been dug up, and the sidewalks cordoned off. Which meant that after the benediction station at the parish school, we had a some trouble trying to get back to the church. After the final benediction and the recessional, I was too busy trying to remove the two extra layers of clothing that the cassock and surplice make to listen to postlude, but I did hear the chamades in the organ chorus and the 32' Double Ophicleide.
This is about the third time that I found that the fabric of a set of vestments at my parish was also used in vestments for another rite.More specifically, the last two were Russian, and the other one Ukrainian.
Music:
Gradual: Christus Factus est, Felice Anerio
Tract:Psalm 33, chanted in English to a Gregorian tone, alternating between the men and women of the choir.
Passion: Roman chant, adapted to English
Veneration of the cross: Reproaches, Vittoria. Crux Fidelis/Pange Lingua...Certaminis, Roman Gradual.
Procession of the Blessed Sacrament: O crux Ave, G.P. Da Palestrina
Communion: Hymn: The Royal Banner Forward Go, Adoramus te Christe, Dubois.
For Good Friday.There were three servers , the M.C., and three priests in choir, all wearing plain surplices.The celebrant wore the same roman chasuble, stole and maniple as on Palm Sunday. After the prostration, the collect was said, and then the readings read by a reader. After the gradual and tract, the passion was chanted to the traditional Roman tones by the Celebrant (taking the part of Christ) and two men from the choir. The final verses were sung to the traditional 'burial tone'. The homily was given by Fr.Brennan, one of the priests who helps out at the parish.(He also helps by celebrating the tridentine low mass on Sundays.)
After the sermon, the solemn collects were sung by the celebrant in a ferial tone, with everyone kneeling or standing as appropriate.Afterward, the cross was brought to the sanctuary by one of the servers, while the other two held candles. The celebrant sang the invitation "This is the wood of the cross" three times, in successively higher tones as he uncovered the cross,and all genuflected toward it. The servers took the cross to the footpace of the altar.The celebrant then removed his shoes and chasuble, and after genuflecting three times, venerated the cross. The three priests in choir came into the sanctuary and after genuflecting, venerated it as well.Then the cross was taken to the the sanctuary gates and venerated by the people. Almost everyone (Really, there were only two exceptions) venerated it by genuflecting and then kneeling and kissing the cross. While this happened,two of the brothers covered the altar with an altar cloth and put the missal on it.
The servers, M.C. and priest went to the altar of repose to bring the Blessed Sacrament to the altar. After putting on the humeral veil, the celebrant carried the Blessed Sacrament in procession to the altar.The servers put the two candles on the altar. The Our Father was sung, and after the celebrant's communion, communion was given at the altar rail by the celebrant and one of the assisting priests.After the purification of the vessels and the priests' hands, the postcommunion was sung, and then the prayer over the people. The servers and M.C. went to the sacristy by the short route, and the parish's relics of the True Cross and the Crown of Thorns were available for veneration at the altar rail.Most people came and knelt down to kiss the relics.
For Maundy Thursday.
Music:
Kyrie and gloria: Community Mass, R.Proulx.
Psalm:Gregorian psalm tone, alternating between male and female voices of the choir.
Tract: Set to Kyrie Orbis Factor.
Antiphons at the maundy: Antiphons from the Roman Gradual. (Postquam surrexit Dominus, Domine,tu mihi lavas pedes, Si ego Dominus, In hoc cognoscet omnes, Mandatum novum da nobis.) Antiphons, choral setting by Gregory A.Glenn.
Offertory: Ubi Caritas, Maurice Durufle. Hymn: Lord,Who at Thy First Eucharist Didst Pray. (Unde et Memores)
Sanctus: Missa Iubilate Deo
Agnus Dei: Holy Cross Mass, David Isele.
Communion: Proper antiphon and psalm, adapted to English. Hymn: O Food of Exiles lowly. (Innsbruck)
Procession to the altar of repose: Pange Lingua Gloriosi, Roman Gradual.
There were nine servers: Crucifer and two acolytes, thurifer and boat-bearer, and four torches. Besides the celebrant, there were four concelebrants (all wearing birettas) and the M.C., the 12 'apostles', five Bernadettes (from the parish girls' society) some Knights of Columbus,one of the Knights of Malta, and the brothers who weren't serving.
This mass was celebrated Ad orientem, and the altar was incensed* facing that direction.After the sign of the cross, before the confiteor and kyrie,the bernadettes presented flowers to all the priests present.The collects was sung, and the mass went on as usual. At the gloria, the organist played a short but very nice fanfare, and bells were rung by two alternating servers on opposite sides of the sanctuary.Before the tract, incense was blessed at the sedilia, and the procession went lined up with the homilist, who also proclaimed the gospel. At the maundy, the 12 men who had their feet washed were led by one of the brothers, the celebrant having removed his chasuble.After the intercessions, the celebrant explained why the priest would be facing ad orientem, and he also explained that communion would be given at the altar rail.All were given the option to receive standing or kneeling, and to receive on the hand on on the tongue, both according to their preference.
At the offertory, the holy oils were brought up by the bernadettes and put into the aumbry in the side wall of the sanctuary by the celebrant and the M.C. The missal was removed from the altar during the incensation, as is now the custom at high masses, and after the celebrant was incensed, the concelebrating priests were incensed, followed by the M.C. and the people.The sanctuary gates were closed at the orate fratres.The super oblata, sursum corda and preface were sung, and the Roman Canon was used.At the elevations, the Blessed Sacrament was incensed from the side pf the bottom step, and the M.C. lifted the celebrant's chasuble.The crotalus replaced the bells.
After the per ipsum was sung,the Our Father was sung.Before the people's communion, the crotalus once again replaced the bells. Communion was given at the rail, with the M.C. holding one paten and a server the other.The vast majority of the people seem to have knelt anyway, despite the fact that they were given the option to stand.Most of those who knelt also received communion on the tongue, rather than the hand.
After the ablutions, the ciborium was veiled and the missal and chalice removed from the altar.After the post-communion prayer was sung,the celebrant changed from a white chasuble to a gold cope. Incense was blessed again, and the Blessed Sacrament incensed before the procession.The celebrant received the humeral veil from the M.C., and the torchbearers with their torches lined up with everyone who took part in the short procession from the sacristy before mass.The procession made a circuit around the church before going to the altar of repose, where the veiled urn was surrounded by a great many candles and flowers.After the Blessed Sacrament was incensed again, all genuflected and went to the sacristy.
The altars of the church were all stripped while the men of the choir chanted psalm 22 in latin, recto tono, with the antiphon diviserunt sibi.
The watch continued to midnight, and all departed in silence.
We would, after already getting 28 inches of snow on Saturday, get two more feet The Day Before our patronal festival. Hopefully things will go well.
