THE WEDNESDAY REPORT

March 2, 2022: It’s Lent. I shouldn’t be this happy.

Dear Partners in Ministry,

I’m writing this on Mardi Gras, enjoying the view of this beautiful campus from my office, looking at the melting snow and finding myself amused that nature can’t seem to settle on whether to be winter or spring today. There’s a lot of preparation happening for our Lenten Season—Ash Wednesday worship aids are printing, environment is being transitioned, the phone is ringing off the hook for Mass times. It’s the kind of buzz that I missed, along with so many other aspects of life in a parish… and now, I’ve found myself beginning my third week as a member of this extraordinary community, laughing through the work day with this wonderful staff, and feeling profoundly grateful for the family of faith you’ve already become to me.

So, as a kickoff to The Wednesday Reports, THANK YOU for your welcome, your kindness, your candor, your guidance, and your friendship. We’re off to a great start together, and I am really looking forward to celebrating this season and many more with you.

Down to business!

Yesterday, I sent all music ministers a brief survey about the singers’ resources we use, and I do hope you have a chance to add your voice to the mix! As this is only for music ministers, I won’t share the link here, but if you need it, please drop me a line.

Music for the Lenten Season

Our celebration of Lent this year was a bit chaotic in the planning, but has come together very well. In a way, this Lent is very much about regrowth; as our lives continue (we hope) to inch back to normal, we’ll see more and more familiar faces in our pews. Slowly, we’ll see our parish community rebuild from this long, forced absence, and every week will be an opportunity to welcome more voices back to worship.

We’ll introduce a different Mass of Renewal, this one by Spirit&Song composer Curtis Stephan. This will be a careful and gradual process, and we’ll use this new setting all the way through the Easter season. We’ll use the Lenten Gospel Acclamation, Holy, We Proclaim Your Death, and Amen during Lent; during Easter, we’ll phase in the Glory to God, Alleluia, and Lamb of God.

To hear the Mass of Renewal, visit its page on OCP’s website and click “View Songs.” https://www.ocp.org/en-us/collections/dg/24/mass-of-renewal

We’re also incorporating two little pieces of mine! The Kyrie will come from a Mass setting I wrote a few years ago called The Body of Christ. Our sung response to the Prayer of the Faithful will be the tiny refrain of “Hear Our Prayer,” which is just about to be released by GIA (We used it for the last GIFT session on February 23). Sadly, I’m not cool enough to have recordings, but we’ll pick both up easily at Thursday’s rehearsal.

Rehearsal Time Change Next Week

For the duration of our prep for the Triduum, we’ll extend rehearsals to 7:00-9:00 starting next Thursday, Mar 10. I don’t want to sing the entire time, so there will be a voice/bathroom/sanity break halfway through. 

Guitarists Wanted!

I would love to give up not having guitarists for Lent! We’re ready to incorporate guitars into any/all of our Sunday liturgies, and I’d really love to have guitarists for our Triduum celebrations. If you or someone you know would like to know more, please contact me!

This Week in Liturgy

MARCH 2: ASH WEDNESDAY

Please arrive 40 minutes prior to our 8:30 am and 7:00 pm Masses.

You’ll need:

• Choral Praise
• Psalm 51: Be Merciful, O Lord (Ward)
• Bless the Lord (Taizé) and Hear Our Prayer (Ward) on the back of the Ash Wed song sheet

MARCH 6: FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT

You’ll need:

• Choral Praise
• Kyrie from The Body of Christ (Ward)

Music Selections

• Lent and Holy Week (March 2–April 10)
• Triduum and Easter Season (April 14-June 5) coming soon!

Happy Lent!

Tony