From a reader:
Beginning on October 25,2009, weekly sung Traditional Latin Mass will be celebrated at 12 noon at St. Paul Church in South Philadelphia on Christian Street between 9th and 10th Streets. St. Paul Parish is forming a mixed choir and a men’s schola cantorum to perform under the direction of Dr. Robert Hall, music director for the traditional liturgy. Interested singers should demonstrate familiarity with musical notation and sight singing and the men of the schola should demonstrate familiarity with traditional chant notation. Weekly duties will include preparation of the chant "propers" from the Roman Gradual (men’s Schola) as well as music to be sung by the mixed choir including the Mass "ordinary", chants, motets, and appropriate hymns. Interested singers should contact Dr. Robert Hall directly … by e-mail at: headdoc50 {AT] aol {DoT} com for more information. Thank you.
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Father, and your readers, please say a prayer for my own campus community. We are middle of the road when it comes to liturgy, with some elements of true sacred beauty, but still a lot of growth is necessary on all fronts, and we still fall greatly short of the “say the black, do the red,” as well as our inclusion of traditional elements such as chant and the use of Latin. However, those paying attention will notice that the winds are shifting even here, and in our Augustinian community as a whole, albeit slowly. There are currently some very small corrections that are being made – the more egregious errors are beginning to be addressed, and some traditional elements are slowly being recognized for their beauty and appropriateness. Anyway, what I’m getting at is that, perhaps we’re not at the brick-by-brick stage yet, but maybe we’re at the mixing of the mortar stage, and I hope and pray and sincerely believe that with the increase in traditional young men entering the Order that perhaps my own Augustinians will one day be known for our beautiful liturgies, and the people whom we serve will be fed by the spiritual food of magnificent liturgies.
I mention this in this post because my university is in the same Archdiocese of Philadelphia as St. Paul’s, and the growth of the TLM in Philly gives me hope that the gravitational effect foreseen by the Holy Father might accelerate the move towards liturgical beauty and traditionalism here at Villanova and within the Order. So if your readers can take a moment, please pray for us. We are moving in the right direction, but there is still a long way to go.