Dear Partners in Ministry,
As I write this, I'm knocking on every wooden object in my reach in the hopes that this post— well, posts. There's a little something here for all of you this week, so let's get to it!
Peace be with you,
Tony
Servers: Alb Measurements
Thanks to all the servers who have already checked in and gotten measured for the new albs we'll be purchasing this fall. If you haven't been measured yet, please stop by the sacristy this weekend so we can wrap this little project up. It should only take a minute, as we only need to know your height. Thanks!
EMHCs: An Important Message from Fr. Terry
An important message from Fr. Terry, which you likely received as an email too:
Thank you for exercising your ministry as an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion (EMHC) with, for, and beside your brothers and sisters at Saint Noel!
We, as a parish family, are excited to welcome eleven new ministers who will receive their commissioning at Masses throughout the weekend of Solemn Eucharistic Devotions, July 20-21. They are rightfully encouraged to exercise this ministry for the first time at the very Mass at which they are commissioned. Each of them is currently responding as to their Mass preference that weekend. I hope you can understand that this will mean an adjustment to the liturgical schedule. We will let you know in advance if you will be politely asked to excuse yourself from the schedule that weekend.
In an effort to welcome them, gather in prayer, offer clarification, and review logistics, I am asking that every Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion make every effort to join us in church on Wednesday, July 24 at 7 PM for an Evening of Recollection. Whether you minister at Mass or take Communion to the home bound or an institution, your presence is needed. I appreciate summer schedules and plans, so if it is impossible to attend, the staff and I will need to make plans and meet with you apart from the group.
May I ask that you offer the kind favor of a reply to let me know if you are able to be present that evening? Thank you!
As one who administers the Sacrament to the faithful, I hope everyone is considering committing to some time in Adoration the weekend of July 20-21.
Peace and prayers,
Fr. Terry
Lectors and Cantors: The "Down-Low" on our Ambo Mic
The perfectly understandable temptation I imagine many of you might have as lectors and cantors is to "lean in" to the ambo mic to help raise your speaking volume. In fact, I believe that was the general rule in years past, before we upgraded the mic and the sound system last year. I'm going to ask you not to do so going forward, and it has to do with how microphones generally pick up the human voice.
Getting really close to a podium mic does indeed make you louder, but not in a good way. The low frequencies present in everyone's voice need a little breathing room to play nicely with the mid and high frequencies we depend on for clarity in our speech. If your mouth is less than, say, six inches, from the mic, those low frequencies become unnaturally amplified; they then overpower the rest of your vocal frequencies and leave you sounding boomy, muddy, and pretty hard to understand, thereby undoing a fair bit of the good work you're doing trying to enunciate and project. This also opens the door for really harsh plosives (those explosions of air on "p" words).
Generally, the ideal distance for our purposes is between 12 and 20 inches from mouth to mic, depending on how loud of a speaker you are, your height relative to the ambo, etc. If you'd like to stop by and find your ideal placement, let me know and I'd be glad to help. And remember: no microphone makes you a better lector or cantor. All a microphone can do is amplify what you're already doing well... so keep up the good work (from a safe distance, of course).
Music Ministry Notes:
No Rehearsal July 25
As I was able to tell many of you last weekend, my son Eli was selected to play in the Lyndhurst Dads' Club All-Star Game, which will be played on Thursday, July 25. Dad duty prevails, so I will be there instead of here that evening. Stay tuned for more info on how we'll handle that cancellation.
40 Hours (Solemn Eucharistic Devotion)
As part of our parish celebration of the Solemn Eucharistic Devotions ("40 Hours") July 19–21, I'd like to include Music Ministry in the two celebrations of Evening Prayer (Fri, Jul 19 and Sat Jul 20, both at 7 pm) and our Solemn Closing (Sun, Jul 21, 3:00 pm).
THIS WEEK IN LITURGY
July 14 · Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Readings
- Read online at usscb.org
- Lectionary for Mass: 104
- Workbook: p. 218
- Breaking Bread 2024: p. 184
Music Selections
- Gathering: BB 764 · JS 30 · Ps 27: The Goodness of the Lord (Soper)
- Glory to God: BB 885 · 1.001 · Mass of Creation: Glory to God (Haugen)
- Responsorial Psalm: BB 792 · JS 62 · Ps 85: Let Us See Your Kindness (MacAller)
- Gospel Acclamation: BB 947 · JS 264 · Celtic Alleluia (O'Carroll/C. Walker)
- Preparation of the Gifts: BB 628 · 3.010 · Canticle of the Turning (Cooney)
- Eucharistic Acclamations: BB 885 · 1.001 · Mass of Creation (Haugen)
Holy · When We Eat This Bread · Amen - Lamb of God: BB 953 · JS 789 · Lamb of God (Kendzia)
- Communion: BB 504 · JS 725 · Unless a Grain of Wheat (Farrell)
- Sending Forth: BB 382 · JS 821 · Celtic Alleluia: Sending Forth (O’Carroll/C. Walker)
LOOKING AHEAD
July 21 · Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Readings
- Read online at usscb.org
- Lectionary for Mass: 107
- Workbook: p. 221
- Breaking Bread 2024: p. 186
Music Selections
- Gathering: BB 305 · JS 766 · Gather the People (Schutte)
- Glory to God: BB 885 · 1.001 · Mass of Creation: Glory to God (Haugen)
- Responsorial Psalm: WA · 2.017 · Psalm 23: Complete Setting (Ward)
- Gospel Acclamation: BB 947 · JS 264 · Celtic Alleluia (O'Carroll/C. Walker)
- Preparation of the Gifts: BB 442 · 3.058 · O God, You Search Me (Farrell)
- Eucharistic Acclamations: BB 885 · 1.001 · Mass of Creation (Haugen)
Holy · When We Eat This Bread · Amen - Lamb of God: BB 953 · JS 789 · Lamb of God (Kendzia)
- Communion: BB 356 · JS 776 · Ubi Caritas (Hurd)
- Sending Forth: BB 599 · JS 824 · Christ, Be Our Light (Farrell)
July 28 · Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Readings
- Read online at usscb.org
- Lectionary for Mass: 110
- Workbook: p. 224
- Breaking Bread 2024: p. 188
- This weekend marks the beginning of the "Bread of Life" Sundays, a five-week period in the Year B Lectionary cycle in which the Gospel readings take us through the sixth chapter of John. Beginning with the Feeding of the Multitudes, we'll
Music Selections
- Gathering: BB 312 · JS 761 · Table of Plenty (Schutte)
- Glory to God: BB 885 · 1.001 · Mass of Creation: Glory to God (Haugen)
- Responsorial Psalm: BB 818 · JS 115 · Ps 145: I Will Praise Your Name/The Hand of the Lord Feeds Us (Soper)
- Gospel Acclamation: BB 947 · JS 264 · Celtic Alleluia (O'Carroll/C. Walker)
- Preparation of the Gifts: WA · 3.047 · O Christ Our Life (Ward)
- Eucharistic Acclamations: BB 885 · 1.001 · Mass of Creation (Haugen)
Holy · When We Eat This Bread · Amen - Lamb of God: BB 953 · JS 789 · Lamb of God (Kendzia)
- Communion: BB 328 · 3.079 · Bread of Life (Farrell)
- Sending Forth: BB 301 · JS 771 · Our God Is Here (Muglia)
Aug 4 · Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Readings
- Read online at usscb.org
- Lectionary for Mass: 101
- Workbook: p. 215
- Breaking Bread 2024: p. 190
Music Selections
- Gathering: BB 309 · JS 777 · Here At This Table (Whitaker)
- Glory to God: BB 885 · 1.001 · Mass of Creation: Glory to God (Haugen)
- Responsorial Psalm: TEMP · Psalm 78: Bread from Heaven (Ward)
- Gospel Acclamation: BB 947 · JS 264 · Celtic Alleluia (O'Carroll/C. Walker)
- Preparation of the Gifts: WA · 3.066 · Bread for the World (Farrell)
- Eucharistic Acclamations: BB 885 · 1.001 · Mass of Creation (Haugen)
Holy · When We Eat This Bread · Amen - Lamb of God: BB 953 · JS 789 · Lamb of God (Kendzia)
- Communion: BB 342 · 3.045 · I Am the Bread of Life (Toolan)
- Sending Forth: BB 599 · JS 824 · Christ, Be Our Light (Farrell)
RESOURCES
MUSIC SELECTIONS: Ordinary Time II (Summer) · May 26–Aug 25, 2024
MUSIC SELECTIONS: Ordinary Time III (Fall) · Sep 1–Nov 24, 2024
September selections coming soon.