“A journey to the cross of Jesus always involves the daring revelation to the world of who we truly are.”
The Passion, Part 1
February 24th, 2021
Today I’m beginning a six-part series on The Passion According To Saint John, the piece of music that I wrote for our choir many years ago and which we normally get to hear as part of our liturgy on Good Friday. We were unable to do this last year because of Covid and we will certainly not be able to do it this year. We will be able to interpolate parts of it into our Good Friday services, but we simply won’t get a chance to experience our amazing musicians during Holy Week in the way to which we are accustomed.
So, as I mentioned last week, I decided that for Lent this year I would do this series on The Passion, which is a piece I originally wrote in six movements. Each week I will send out a recording of one movement as our piece of music, and for the video I will pull apart a little bit of what’s happening musically (hopefully without getting too technical in my explanations) and also talk about what is happening in the story for each section.
On Palm Sunday and Good Friday when we hear these long passion readings, there is never really enough time to pull apart some of the smaller episodes in the story. When I originally broke this into six sections, it was to focus on different moments of the story in different ways. I want to give you a sense of the thought process that went into the creation of the music. It’s also my hope that as you understand, even a little, about how the music and text work together, that you will be able to hear these recordings with new ears. Finally, I hope that these recordings can be helpful and enjoyable as a Lenten meditation throughout the season.
This recording of the Passion was done in 2009 and features Tony Haas, Kayla (Parker) Jennissen, Edwina (Hebert) Lucero, Jennifer Stedron, Dan Feiten and me, along with our choir. It was all directed by Teresa Stone and I believe was only the second year we had performed this piece.
This recording of the Passion was done in 2009 and features Tony Haas, Kayla (Parker) Jennissen, Edwina (Hebert) Lucero, Jennifer Stedron, Dan Feiten and me, along with our choir. It was all directed by Teresa Stone and I believe was only the second year we had performed this piece.
I hope you enjoy this music and find in it some spiritual nurture.
God Bless,
Fr. Pat
It's not too late to join the MPB Lenten Book Club - 4 Wednesday evenings beginning March 3rd, from 7 - 8:30pm via ZOOM. Gather virtually to explore “Let Us Dream, The Path to a Better Future" by Pope Francis. On March 3rd, be prepared to discuss Prologue and Part One: A Time to See.
Register here: https://tinyurl.com/MPBClub2021. Zoom link will be provided prior to the meeting.
In lieu of gospel readings, for the remainder of Lent the "Passion According to John" will be attached so you may following along with the Reflection.
Passion According to John - "Arrest"
Faith Direct remains our approved partner so that parishioners can give electronically. You can securely register or update via this link. Thank you MPB for your continued generous support of the parish and our many ministries.
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