Music and the Catholic Wedding Ritual

This weekend we welcome engaged couples from Pittsburgh and surrounding areas who have attended our Pre-Cana Day of Reflection on Saturday. We wish them well in their future marriages and thank those eight presenting couples who spoke so well about their own marriage journeys. Love is in the air at Saint Joseph Parish!

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner and Pre-Cana couples visiting, I thought this might be a good time to discuss the basics of music for the Wedding Ritual and also to remind couples planning to get married at Saint Joseph Parish to contact me at the rectory to plan the music for your wedding.

The Diocese of Pittsburgh in accordance with Canon Law has pertinent documentation regarding music and the wedding ritual:

Musical Elements of the Wedding Liturgy

A. Principles of Music Planning

1. The celebration of a wedding in the Catholic Church is a “liturgical” event, an action of the whole Church in whose presence couples freely commit themselves in the covenant of marriage. (This distinguishes the marriage rite from the receptions and other private family or social functions that also frequently mark the beginning of married life.)

You can download the entire document or also pick up a copy through the Music Office at the Rectory.

“At Your Side, I Will Seek Other Shores”

“Pescador De Hombres” or “Lord, You Have Come” is a very moving song expressing a response to a calling from Christ to “follow him.” The author, Casáreo Gabaráin, manages to combine imagery, symbolism, and metaphor: (“...at your side, I will seek other shores), with a simple but beautiful melody that inspires us and moves us to consider our own calling in our lives. I especially like the second verse which tells of the lack of possessions, “no power, no wealth,” which reminds us that Christ has no need for these things - He only wants us to follow His teachings in serving each other in love.

This January, please consider lending a hand to help the many different programs Saint Joseph Parish has to offer. There have been requests in recent bulletins about joining the many ministries and committees. Much help is needed to form an “Event Committee.” If you have any experience at all planning parties, please consider calling the rectory to sign up for this committee. If you enjoy taking pictures, a “photographer in the field” is desperately needed to take pictures of the different parish events. (Note to college students: this would look good on a résumé!

However you get involved, just remember that Christ wants you to cast your nets! Who knows? Your “catch” might be a blessing to your life!

Here I Am!

“Here I am Lord, here I am, I come to do your will.”

These are lyrics from Rory Cooney’s “Psalm 40” which we will sing this weekend. Many of us have felt a “calling” in our life to aspire to, accomplish or achieve a certain goal. Some pursue this calling feverishly while others merely hope an opportunity will somehow present itself. As Christians we must ask the questions, “Is this the Lord’s will? Is this what God wants me to do?” Sometimes it can be hard to decipher what is God’s will and what is our own desire. We may even ask God for a sign to allow us to feel safe to proceed with a new career, a new place to live, or even a marriage. But however sure or unsure we are of the future, of this we can be sure: God is calling us to a life of Christian holiness!

How best we serve God is really up to us. However simply or grand, God wants our very waking and sleeping to be in praise of Him. We hear His call in our working and resting, our praying and singing, our loving and caring. God is not impressed with our grandiose accomplishments, but is pleased with our simple love for each other. God wants our hearts. If our desire is to love with generosity and compassion, then we can see His will for us made plain. His love is made manifest in us when we heed the call to serve in His name, and we can then answer with a resounding, “Here I am!”

Thank you for your generous outpouring of concern during my recent illness. I am feeling much better and I’m anxious to get back to making music with you!

What Shall I Bring Him?

The gifts of the Magi, gold, frankincense and myrrh, are to most of us unfamiliar, ancient and possibly a mystery. Merriam-Webster’s definition of gold is “a yellow malleable ductile element.” Frankincense is “a fragrant gum resin from trees in regions of Somalia and Arabia, used in religious rites.” Myrrh is “an aromatic yellowish-brown gum resin used in perfumes.”

No one I know received any of these exotic gifts this Christmas, not even gold. Gift-giving has certainly changed since Jesus’ birth but the intention behind the giving has surely remained the same. Our gifts come wrapped in ribbons of kindness, generosity and love. We give, hoping the gift will bring a moment of happiness to the receiver. Most of us give with generosity and without expecting something in return.

This Epiphany Sunday we will sing about “paying homage.” We’ll watch as our very own “Magi” approach the altar at the 10:00 AM Mass bearing gifts. We’ll bless our homes with chalk so that all who enter them are also blessed. Maybe our “gifts of homage” this 2012 should be plain and simple gifts of “self.” Consider the gift of a smile to someone you pass in the aisle at Giant Eagle, or allowing a car to merge into your lane as you drive on the Parkway West. Perhaps think about spending a moment listening to someone repeat a story you may have heard many times before, or telling someone that you really do appreciate them. These are precious gifts that do not bear a price tag, are not found in any store, but would never be returned. These are gifts that make the Christ Child smile.