Hymnody and Chant

10:06:08 PM EDT
Thirty-Fourth and Last Sunday in Ordinary Time, A

Solemnity of Christ the Universal King

 

                Ezekiel 34:  11-12, 15-17

                Psalm 23

                I Corinthians 15: 20-26, 28

                Matthew 25: 31-46

                                               

 

When the Solemnity of Christ, the Universal King was established by Pope Pius XI in1925, it was observed on the last Sunday in October (which, not coincidentally, is Reformation Sunday).  At the calendar revisions of 1969, the solemnity was moved to the Last Sunday of the Church Year.  So, in each year of the Lectionary, we see the concept of the Kingship of Christ through a different angle of the prism, as it were.  In Year A,  the Gospel for the last Sunday is the Gospel of the old “Last Sunday after Pentecost,” with its parable of the Great Assize.  The visioning of Christ as King on this Sunday is multi-layered; it includes Ezekiel’s announcement that God Himself “will tend my sheep,” and that “I will judge between one sheep and another, between rams and goats,” which likely influenced the word painting in today’s Gospel; and the vision of the resurrection of the dead as given in the Second Reading from First Corinthians.  The Responsorial Psalm, of course, is the ‘shepherd psalm’ which concludes on the theme of today, “and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for years to come.”

 

St. Hippolytus of Rome says about today’s passage from the Gospel:  “ ‘Come, My Father’s blessed ones, inherit the kingdom prepared for you’ who did not make an idol of wealth, who gave alms to the poor, help to orphans and widows, drink to the thirsty, and food to the hungry.  Come, you who welcomed strangers, clothed the naked, visited the sick, comforted prisoners, and assisted the blind.  Come, you who kept the seal of faith unbroken, who were swift to assemble in the churches, who listened to My Scriptures, longed for My words, observed My law day and night, and like good soldiers shared in My suffering because you wanted to please Me, your heavenly King.  Look, My kingdom is ready, paradise stands open, My immortality is displayed in all its beauty.  Come now, all of you, ‘inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’”  (The Consummation of the World, and the Anti-Christ)

 

This Sunday has an embarassment of riches, musically.  The recording "Music for the November Feasts" has six tracks devoted to hymns, chant, and anthems for today.  The Responsorial Psalm is represented on two cds:  "This is the Feast: Music of Richard Hillert" and "Praise to the Lord: Great Hymns of the Church."  The Second Reading is given in a verse-anthem setting called "Christ Being Raised from the Dead" by John Blow, on the cd "Music for the Paschal Triduum;" and the Gospel is sung in verse-anthem form in a setting by Matthew Locke on "Sing the God of Ultimate Justice: Music for the End Times."  That reading also is represented in an anthem by James E. Clemens called "When You Shall Come," which is also on "Sing the God of Ultimate Justice."  All of these recordings are of the Schola Cantorum of St. Peter's in the Loop," published by The Liturgical Press (www.litpress.org).

 

 

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9:47:48 PM EDT


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9:33:56 PM EDT

Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, A

 

Proverbs 31: 10-13, 19-20, 30-31

Psalm 128

I Thessalonians 5: 1-6

Matthew 25: 14-30

 

Continuing the “End Time,” our readings today talk about using the gifts that God has given us.  The First Reading is that splendid passage from Proverbs which is used in every Orthodox Jewish home on Friday night, when the husband sings “A woman of valor” to his wife.  The reading shows, in the words of Reginald Fuller, “a picture of a gracious wife and mother who practices love for both God and man in the state of life into which God has pleased to call her.”  The Responsorial Psalm responds to that blessed marriage by singing, “Happy are those who fear the Lord!”  The Gospel is the parable of the talents.  In this story, some of the servants invest their portion of the master’s trust wisely, and increase it.  The third servant returns it to the master exactly as he received it.  In these days, as we think of the end of time and the Last Judgment, it is important to examine our consciences and our lives and see:  are we, in the state of life into which God has pleased to call us, living like the “woman of valor” and the wise servants, or are we burying ourselves and our talents to give them back to God untouched and unused? 

 

St. John Chrysostom says of this reading, “In the parable of the talents, the Master entrusted money to His servants and then set out on a journey.  This was to help us understand how patient He is, though in my view this story also refers to the resurrection from the dead.  Here is it a question, not of a vineyard and vinedressers, but of all workers.  The Master addresses everyone, not only rulers or the Jewish people.  What is the meaning of “the one who has not will forfeit even the little he has?”  That whoever has received for the good of others the ability to preach or teach, and does not use it, will lose that ability, whereas the zealous servant will be given greater ability, even as the other forfeits what he had.”  (Homily 78 on St. Matthew’s Gospel)

 

The in-course reading of First Thessalonians concludes today.  This is very much about today’s theme (i.e., the end of the world).  Paul warns his readers to pay attention, for the Lord will come “like a thief in the night.”  He charges us, too:  “We belong neither to darkness nor to night—therefore let us not be asleep, but awake and sober!”

 

The hymn based on all of today's readings, "The goodness of our God bestows," is recorded by the Schola Cantorum of St. Peter's in the Loop on the cd "Music for the Year of Matthew," published by The Liturgical Press (www.litpress.org).

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9:20:30 PM EDT


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9:04:30 PM EDT

Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, A

 

Wisdom 6: 12-16

Psalm 63

I Thessalonians 4: 13-18

Matthew 25: 1-13

 

With these readings, we are in “End Time,” i.e., the weeks of the lectionary which refer to the coming of the end of the world, connecting directly to the First Sunday of Advent.  The readings today connect “wisdom” and “watchfulness.”  The First Reading discusses personified Wisdom, and says that “he who watches for her at dawn shall not be disappointed.”  The traditional Latin of the Responsorial Psalm is actually more fitting for this Sunday than the English, because it follows up that dawn theme with “O God, I search for You early…,” rather than the more literal, “O God, You are my God whom I seek.”  Nonetheless, the psalm applies both to the longing of the bridesmaids for the Bridegroom (Gospel) and for the search of humanity for divine Wisdom (First Reading).  The Gospel is the parable of the wise and foolish virgins (NAB: bridesmaids).  This parable follows after the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew, where Jesus discusses the end of the world, and therefore is interpreted in the Church as having to do with the last things. 

 

St. Augustine says, “Watch with the heart, watch with faith, watch with love, watch with charity, watch with good works…make ready the lamps, make sure they do not go out…renew them with the inner oil of an upright conscience; then shall the Bridegroom enfold you in the embrace of His love and bring you into His banquet room, where your lamp can never be extinguished.”  (Sermo 93)

 

Our in-course reading of First Thessalonians continues today.  The short form of this reading leaves out the “juicy details” of Paul’s picture of the Second Coming of Jesus, and therefore may be opted for by many communities today.  Far too many of our literalist brothers and sisters get “caught up” (if you will please forgive the pun) in the details of this story, and miss the point, which is “For if we believe that Jesus died and rose, God will bring forth with Him from the dead those also who have fallen asleep, believing in Him.”  That is the dogma—the other is window dressing.

 

The Communion Antiphon for today is taken from today's Gospel; it is recorded by the Schola Cantorum of St. Peter's in the Loop on the cd, "Music for the Year of Matthew."  Three other pieces are also based on this Gospel:  the chorale "Wake, Awake!" recorded on "Music for Advent;" the Carpatho-Rusyn chant "The Bridegroom Comes in the Middle of the Night" and the metrical version of that text, "The Bridegroom Will Be Coming," both recorded on "Music for Advent II."  All of these are published by The Liturgical Press (www.litpress.org)  The last Sundays of Ordinary Time are oftencalled the "End-Time Sundays," and lead into both the solemnity of Christ the King and into the first Sunday of Advent.

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8:57:01 PM EDT


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8:43:45 PM EDT

Thirty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time, A

 

Malachi 1:14-2: 2, 8-10

Psalm 131

I Thessalonians 2:  7-9, 13

Matthew 23: 1-12

 

Today’s readings converge on the difficulties caused by false teaching.  In the book of the prophet Malachi, the message is that, despite having all the one Father in heaven, we break faith with each other, and thus violate the covenant God made with our fathers.  The Gospel has Jesus saying to the crowds and to His disciples, “The scribes and Pharisees have succeeded Moses…do everything they tell you, but do not follow their example.”  This is a difficult Gospel for Christians since the time of the Holocaust, because it seems to have such a “Jews are bad/Christians are good” kind of feel to it.  It is important to contextualize this pericope.  As best as scholars can tell, Jesus had more in common with the Pharasee movement in the Judaism of His day than with any of the others.  When reading (for example) the Gospel according to Luke, we have seen exchanges between Jesus and scribes and Pharisees that were very positive.  But in the case of the audience of the Gospel according to Matthew, scholars have come to the conclusion that it was mostly populated by Jewish Christians who had been expelled from the synagogue.  There was, after the destruction of the Temple in A.D. 70, a battle going on for the Jewish identity, and the two going concerns were the Pharisees and the followers of Jesus.  Some of this needs to be chalked up to this sort of situation.  On the other hand, we still need to hear this Gospel, so that we—the religious people of our day—can be aware of the dangers of saying one thing and doing another, or of making strict rules that oppress people and then can’t be bothered to assist them.  Rather than use this Gospel to point the finger somewhere else, we ought best use it as a mirror to assess our own spiritual life. 

 

In much the same vein, Paschasius Radbertus says, “This was said, not only for the instruction of His disciples, but also of those who are teachers in the Church.  None of them must seek positions of honor; whoever wishes to be greater than the rest must fist become the servant of all, as Christ Himself did…Christ gave this rule! Anyone who wants to be Christ’s disciple will be like His master.  Otherwise, if he refuses to learn the master’s lesson, far from being a master himself, he will not even be a disciple.”  (Commentary on St. Matthew’s Gospel)

 

The in-course reading of First Thessalonians continues today.  Paul reminds the church that he dealt with them “as a nursing mother fondling her little ones.”  Paul shared not only the good news, but his own life, with his converts.  Since they received his teaching as the Word of God, they understood the blessing that God had given them in their first teacher in the faith. 

 

 

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8:34:31 PM EDT


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9:08:34 PM EDT

Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, A

 

Exodus 22: 20-26

Psalm 18

I Thessalonians 1: 5-10

Matthew 22: 34-40 [MYMt #29, “Magister, quod est,” chant]

 

The readings converge today on the need to love our neighbor.  The First Reading, from the book of Exodus, is taken from a section of the book which gives laws governing social conduct.  The intention of the laws is to produce compassion, and specifically mentions the alien, the widow, the orphan, the poor, and the laborer.  The Responsorial Psalm, with its refrain, “I love You, Lord, my strength!” sings of God’s defense of those who trust in Him.  The Gospel is the encounter between Jesus and a Sadducee.  The Sadducee asked Him, “What is the greatest commandment of the law?”  Jesus creates what we have come to know as the “summary of the law” by connecting Deuteronomy 6:5 with Leviticus 19:18, and concludes, “On these two commandments the whole law is based, and the prophets as well.” 

 

Talking about this conflation, St. Augustine of Hippo says:  “People are renewed by love.  As sinful desire ages them, so love rejuvenates them.  Enmeshed in the soils of his desires, the psalmist laments, ‘I have grown old surrounded by my enemies.’  Love, on the other hand, is the sign of our renewal, as we know from the Lord’s own words, ‘I give you a new commandment—love one another.’  Love, however was present under the old covenant as well as in the new.  As love grows stronger, we feel more secure, and when our feeling of security is complete, fear vanishes, since, as the apostle John declares, ‘Perfect love casts out fear.’

(Sermo 350a)

 

We continue our in-course reading of I Thessalonians this week, still immersed in the “thanksgiving” of the letter.  Paul describes his work among them as bringing them from paganism to belief in one God, and then giving them the knowledge of God’s only Son, Jesus Christ.  His comments about being “delivered from the wrath to come” leads us into next week’s reading.

 

One of the Gospel Canticles at today's Liturgy of the Hours will be sung with the antiphon, "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment of the Law?"  You can hear the Gregorian melody to this antiphon, sung by the Schola Cantorum of St. Peter's in the Loop on the cd, "Music for the Year of Matthew," published by The Liturgical Press (www.litpress.org)

 

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9:01:45 PM EDT
"Vex not the stranger in your land,"
Thus spoke the Lord at Sinai.
"Orphan and widow safe must stand;
Surely I hear their outcry.
Extort not from the poor in need,
For I am merciful indeed."
Thus spoke the Lord to Israel.
 
Of the commandments, Jesus said:
"This is the first, most holy:
With heart and mind and all your soul
Love God the Lord, you lowly!
The second like to it you'll find--
As self, so love all humankind,"
Said Jesus, our Messiah.
 
Turning from self and selfish ways
We serve our God by loving
All that we meet in concrete ways,
Prompted by Spirit's moving.
Hence, loving God and neighbor too,
We strive God's holy will to do---
Thus living Jesus' teaching.
 
87.87.887.
Lobt Gott der Herren


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