Sunday, July 31, 2011

18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

31 July 2011

EntranceWe come as guests invited
Penitential RiteSt Gabriels (mtgf)
GloriaAt the Table of the Lord (Collegeville Composers Group)
Psalm 144You open wide your hands (trad/mtgf)
Gospel Acclamation (A G Murray)
Preparation of GiftsNeither death, nor life (mtgf)
Eucharistic AcclamationsMissal (ICEL)
Lamb of GodSt Gabriels (mtgf)
CommunionTaste and see (Stephen Dean)
FinalGod is love, his the care

The story of the loaves and fishes and its eucharistic connotations inspired both the opening hymn and the psalm at Communion. The sense of the generosity of God who opens wide his hands was behind the final hymn and the preparation of gifts was based on the reading from Romans.

There was better sense this morning that the congregation was beginning to sing the Mass settings with confidence.

Sunday, July 24, 2011

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

24 July 2011

EntranceYour words are spirit and life (Bernadette Farrell)
Penitential RiteSt Gabriels (mtgf)
GloriaAt the Table of the Lord (Collegeville Composers Group)
Psalm 118Lord, how I love your law (mtgf)
Gospel Acclamation (A G Murray)
Preparation of GiftsThe love of the Lord (Michael Joncas)
Eucharistic AcclamationsMissal (ICEL)
Lamb of GodSt Gabriels (mtgf)
CommunionWhere your treasure is (Marty Haugen)
FinalBe thou my vision

Our homily this morning was, unusually, on the first reading and wisdom. Wisdom seen as understanding of the law and living by it. The music choices reflected and this some ways followed the trajectory of the Liturgy of the the Word. An alternative psalm in praise of the law to begin — Psalm 18. The Joncas song in some ways goes beyond the gospel — even gold and silver cannot compare. At Communion an image from the Gospel (though here the more pictorial Lucan version) which can also be applied to Communion itself. And finally Be thou my vision brought wisdom and treasure together.

Sunday, July 17, 2011

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time

17 July 2011

EntranceChrist is alive
Penitential RiteSt Gabriels (mtgf)
GloriaAt the Table of the Lord (Collegeville Composers Group)
Psalm 85O Lord, you are good and forgiving (mtgf)
Gospel Acclamation (A G Murray)
Preparation of GiftsThere is a longing (Anne Quigley)
Eucharistic AcclamationsMissal (ICEL)
Lamb of GodSt Gabriels (mtgf)
CommunionAs seed for the sowing (Collegeville Composers Group)
FinalThe kingdom of God

It often seems to happen that we are unaccompanied on a Sunday soon after we begin new Mass parts. It can be a good text of whether they have 'settled' yet. Three weeks in we are not there yet. I think pieces do take a while unless they are exceptionally simple towards the banal. It does strike me that the style of music is, though not unfamiliar, definitely at one end of our range of style. I am also aware that in both settings the Congregation are invited to sing everything and so they are more engaged with less familiar words than they would be with a responsorial setting.

Sometimes I am aware and I am sure that I have noted that, particularly when unaccompanied, a less well known opening hymn can seem to disengage people but the congregation definitely did sing the opening (and closing) hymn and responded well to the Lord have mercy.

As there were just two singers I went for the familiar. Anne Quigley's There is a longing inspired by the second reading and a repeat of the Psallite communion antiphon from last week, though with different psalms verses.


Sunday, July 10, 2011

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

10 July 2011

EntranceUnless a grain (Bernadette Farrell)
Penitential RiteSt Gabriels (mtgf)
GloriaAt the Table of the Lord (Collegeville Composers Group)
Psalm 64Some seed fell on rich soil (mtgf)
Gospel Acclamation (A G Murray)
Preparation of GiftsParable (M D Ridge)
Eucharistic AcclamationsMissal (ICEL)
Lamb of GodSt Gabriels (mtgf)
CommunionAs seed for the sowing (Collegeville Composers Group)
FinalGod, whose almighty word

The second week of new texts. Partly because I am animating the new settings, something I do not do just for the sake of it, it is noticeable that people are reaching for their Mass sheets. This is a good sign of a willingness to participate but also retrospectively how well people have know our current settings often without recourse to the Mass sheet. The Missal chants seemed less stark this week I am not sure why.

Today is a good example of how the Lectionary adds layers of meaning — though I think the layers make more sense if you know the gospel from the beginning and hear the rest of the word through that text. Though the gospel contains a quotation from Isaiah it is a different passage we hear in the first reading. The psalm takes a different perspective — though the response is taken from the Gospel (or Luke's version for the pedant). The idea of rain as heaven's river brimming over is a wonderful image. For the gospel it suggests that we grow through God's grace. The ideas of growth were present in the second reading as well — the groans of creation.

I am aware that I think of some hymns as opening hymns and some as closing. I am not sure what affects this judgement. It is not the OT -> NT that Stephen Dean sometimes suggests. I guess I think that some are better at drawing people in and others at sending them out. The reason for these thoughts was the choice of God, whose almighty word which I think we have always sung as an opening hymn. Unless a grain of wheat seemed also an appropriate choice; it added the dimension of the Paschal Mystery to the parable. It would seem even less suitable as a closing hymn — I am aware that I don't think cantor/choir verses work at this end (though I think congregation sang through this morning). I a fond of Parable by M D Ridge - it is definitely worth the effort. I do wonder what occasion inspired the original conjunction of texts; my guess is something an end of term or graduation.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

14th Sunday in Ordinary Time

3 July 2011

EntranceI heard the voice of Jesus say
GloriaAt the Table of the Lord (Collegeville Composers Group)
Psalm 144I will bless your name (mtgf)
Gospel Acclamation (A G Murray)
Preparation of GiftsLike a child rests (Christopher Walker)
Eucharistic AcclamationsMissal (ICEL)
Lamb of GodSt Gabriels (mtgf)
CommunionCome to me (mtgf)
FinalSing of the Lord's goodness (Ernest Sands)

Today we began to sing the new translation. We would usually have begun our 'Summer Mass settings' on Trinity Sunday to mark the break from the Easter season but the Conference last week meant I decided to hold off until now. We are using the chants from the Missal for the Eucharistic Acclamations. To be honest I am slightly ambivalent about them. In their favour is a simplicity which I think is suitable for the Summer period when music personnel can vary. I am also aware that the diocese, as I understand it, are encouraging the use of the chant to start with. What attracts me is the possibility of having a Mass setting people know and can be used wherever and whenever — in a similar way to the chant Paschal Alleluia. We also using the Psallite setting of the Gloria. Though melodically simpler than some settings it seems to have a bit more life about it. I decide to introduce everything in one fell swoop — in previous years the music for Summer Ordinary Time would be one of the clear breaks. The one thing I was not aware of when planning was a baptismal party who, as is often the case, can be less used to participating than the usual congregation.

The opening hymn made a nice connection between the gospel and baptism with 'come unto me and rest' in the first verse and then images of water and light in the second and third. Similarly Christopher Walker's setting of Psalm 132 at the Preparation seemed appropriate. The Communion Song uses the Gospel text for the refrain and the verses are drawn from the various 'I am' statements of Jesus ending with the invitation to 'come to me'.