Pastor's Column 9-17-2023
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September 17, 2023Dear Parishioners,
“Didn’t It Rain” is a Christian spiritual song about Noah’s flood. One of its first appearances was in 1919 by Henry Thacker Burleigh. The version I know best is sung by Louis Armstrong in his album Louis and the Good Book. This song came to mind as I drove through the deluge of the past week. Fortunately my Honda Civic made it through the rain (and very deep puddles at time). I am sure that it is fresh in our memories about the flood in the church hall. Fortunately that too stayed nice and dry. One possible reason is that we disconnected one of the roof drain pipes from the underground drain pipe to the street (at the north side entrance). We theorize that having this drain connected overwhelms the capacity of the system. So, for the time being it remains disconnected.
Back to the song. I highly recommend “Didn’t It Rain” by Louis Armstrong for those who are looking for a good Bible based song (and if continues to rain as it has). The entire album is worth a listen and you can find it on YouTube. That song is just one example of the varieties of the music we have as Christians to praise our Lord. Music, hymnody and chant have been part of the worship of God since the time of the Old Testament. Our whole selves are called to worship God, including our voices (even if we don’t have the best singing voice).
How do we choose which hymns and songs to sing for Mass? Fortunately, the Church provides guidance. In the General Instruction of the Roman Missal she provides a list of four possibilities: (1) the antiphon from The Roman Missal from the Roman Gradual as set to music; (2) the seasonal antiphon and Psalm of the Simple Gradual; (3) a song from another collection of psalms and antiphons, approved by the bishop(s), including psalms arranged in responsorial or metrical forms; (4) a suitable liturgical song similarly approved by the bishop(s). Often, we only hear the antiphon recited at Masses without music. At most Masses most parishes (including ours) use option (4); hymns. We choose hymns that most closely reflect the readings of the day or the season.
On a more practical note, this past week our custodian Mr. Paul Masses submitted his resignation. For the past year he has ensured that our parish is a clean and ready space to worship Christ. I want to express my thanks to him for his work cleaning the church, setting up for liturgies, and serving in so many ministries. While you may have seen him serving at various liturgies, he did a lot of work behind the scenes as well. Mr. Carlos Cruz, who also works at our parish school, will take over cleaning duties for the time being.
In Christ,
Fr. Barrow
