The highlight of the evening, besides the 5th of Jack Daniels and two glasses from my brother, was when Father(in-law) Skibinski pulled out Snoopy vs. The Red Baron by the Royal Guardsmen (on original vinyl!) and played the entire thing -- a treasured album from my elementary school days that I had not heard in literally decades, but found myself knowing, and singing(!) every word by heart!
(Listen to "Snoopy's Christmas").
Midnight Mass was excellent as always, the choir ending with the 'Halleluah' chorus from Handel's Messiah -- and the priest's blessing a recently-refurbished tabernacle which they had discovered in the basement and installed in the center, directly behind the alter (motivated by the Holy Father's proclamation of "The Year of the Eucharist"). A move which definitely merits POD recognition.
Perhaps it is only in keeping with the spirit of the season, but for several Sundays in December our typical Eucharist hymn (which is drawn from modern fair and usually serves to bolster the premise of "Why Catholics Can't Sing") has been replaced by "Hidden God, Devoutly I Adore Thee," a translation of the famous hymn Adoro Te Devote by St. Thomas Aquinas.
I've read that there are twenty-five translations, and I'm not sure whether it's a modern or traditional musical rendering, but in any case, after being forced to sing (or sit through) the saccharine-sweet "One Bread, One Body", it's a welcome relief to sing so substantial a hymn, and to marvel at the meaning of the words -- allegedly written by the saint at the request of Pope Pius IV for the feast of Corpus Christi in 1264. I just hope it lasts, although I'm resigned to the possibility that come the transition to "normal time" we'll be returning to more contemporary works.
- Reflections on Eucharist in Light of 'Adoro Te Devote', 1st Advent Sermon of Pontifical Household Preacher, Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa.
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