More heaven

This is yet another song that my daughter has been practicing. She accompanies the junior church choir for Sunday Mass, and also when they compete in choral classes in the local music festival. It is for the latter that she is preparing this piece, although (I hope) the choir will also sing it during the Easter Triduum.

I love this song because of its inherent beauty, truth and holiness, but also because it was composed by a Canadian duo for World Youth Day 2002 in Toronto, Canada. I will never forget that event, even though I could not attend (having recently given birth, which sort of chartecterizes most years of my life between 1988 and 2004). I watched it on TV, and Pope (now Saint!) John Paul II was of course in his declining years (health-wise), and the Canadian state TV network (CBC, a leftist outlet) were all cynical and critical and "oh he's so frail, he has to exit the plane with an elevator, yadda yadda yadda" and then the Holy Father left the plane of his own accord and WALKED down the stairs and rendered the reporters speechless. It was so satisfying.

The music for the Masses of WYD 2002 was just wonderful. I still get teary-eyed thinking about it, and I still watch reruns on YouTube. It was a moment in history--wish I could have been there.

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Baptism of the Lord

S. Ioannes Paulus, ora pro nobis

Such a wonderful feast. And I'm at home with a sick child. But for what it's worth, I'm watching the Solemn Mass from the Vatican on EWTN (yes, I know it's not the same thing). On the upside, I get to hear the Missa de Angelis and the Litany of the Saints sung (in Latin), and when was the last time I heard that in a church in Canada? Oh yeah, NEVER. But let's not complain about liturgy today.

Twenty-six babies are being baptized at this Mass (a tradition started by --who else?-- St. John Paul the Great). It's very heart-warming to see so many beautiful babies and their equally beautiful young parents (some of them are crying as they come forward for the pope's blessing--the parents, not the babies!). Can you imagine how cool that would be to have your baby baptised by the pope? The commentator on EWTN just said how uncommon it is for the St. Peter's to be filled with strollers and baby toys. That shouldn't be the case. Every Catholic church, every Sunday should be filled with baby strollers and toys and crying babies.
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From our 'Bureaucracy is a Tool of the Devil" file

Cardinal Pell's reforms at the Vatican, and how the first round of resistance against him failed. (I hope he wears a Kevlar vest.)

But calumny, alas, is what happens when people who have long thought of the Church as their private property, and perhaps even their private piggy-bank, run into a determined and incorruptible reformer who understands that financial probity is essential to our being the “Church in permanent mission” to which Pope Francis has called us.

H/t Peter R on Facebook
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