Archbishop Lucas- The Installation Part II

"All creatures of our God and King, Lift up your voice and with us sing: Alleluia!"

St. Cecilia Cathedral's eloquence in stone as well as the silvery words of Archbishop Lucas instilled in me (and surely all those assembled Wednesday) a renewed conviction of evangelical enthusiasm. This is not the intellectually bankrupt and trite excitement that characterizes some of the crazier Fundamentalist denominations but the broadest, richest, and most universal sense that is unique to Catholicism. The homily text may be found here: Lucas Homily. For the moment, one may watch the ceremony on-demand here: Lucas Installation.

St. Paul, the first Apostle to the Gentiles, seems a good place to start. Accordingly Archbishop Lucas began his homily reflecting upon the Epistle from 1 Corinthians 12:

St. Paul tells us very clearly that there will be different spiritual gifts, different charisms in the Church. Each gift is truly a manifestation of the One Holy Spirit. The gifts are ordered in their diversity to serve the one Lord Jesus Christ. We give thanks to God that these God-given gifts are so evident as we gather here in this Sacred Liturgy. We are the proof that St. Paul was right about the nature of the Church.

And evident they were! The very ambo from which he preached is carved of South American mahogany and flanked with sculptures of doctors of the church (Peter, Paul, Jerome, Ambrose, Augustine, Gregory the Great). The pulpit itself anticipates the richness of the Word. Czech-born sculptor Albin Polasek created this stunning piece of liturgical furniture as well as the moving crucifix and Stations of the Cross.

Continuing the theme of creativity: Brother William Woeger FSC, Archdiocesan Worship Director designed a Missal specifically for the Installation Mass, never to be used again. The Missal nearly covered the upper torso of the acolyte- it is about two feet tall. Constructed of heavy stock, it was stitched by the Art Department at the University of Nebraska Omaha. The cover is striking: white with a large variant of the Patriarchal Cross in gold with flecks of forest green emblazoned upon it. This is a symbol of the Byzantine Church in the East but also represents the office of Archbishop in the West. I created a horrible replica to give a sense of it. One may catch glimpses of it in the broadcast.

Archbishop Lucas expanded on this concept of diverse gifts as he worked his way through the homily, giving credit to the many people who contributed and attended. He departed from the script a little when he spoke of Music:

I'm just overwhelmed as I think we all are with the gifts of our choir and musicians. You help us long for the heavenly Liturgy as we lift our minds, hearts, and voices to God. You bring honor to St. Cecilia herself and to her Lord and our Lord.

Amen! Countless things about that space proclaim Music as a gateway to heaven. Need I mention the patroness, St. Cecilia in the rose window? First, the building itself sings. When empty the Cathedral has a superb undistorted reverberation of seven seconds which surprisingly helps song blossom and the organ to sing. Sound dances as much as light in this harmonious space. The post-renovation ceiling is full of warm, Mediterranean gold, deep red, and rich star-studded blue. The sun splashes its light as alive as the voice of the Church singing there.

Secondly, the windows. Designed by Charles Connick of Boston, the clerestory windows literally depict the great hymns of the Church: the Magnificat, Te Deum, Gloria, Stabat Mater, Victimae Paschali, Veni Sancte Spiritus, Dies Irae, and Pange Lingua. Thus, the very light which illuminates our worship passes through song!

Thirdly, literally. Text from the Antiphons for the feast of St. Cecilia scroll around the nave high in the entablature at the base of the barrel vaults. Translated it reads:

Alleluia, Alleluia! As dawn was breaking into day, Cecilia cried out saying, "courage, soldiers of Christ. Cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light!" While the instruments were playing, Cecilia sang unto the Lord saying, "Let my heart be undefiled that I be not ashamed." Alleluia, Alleluia!

I thought about this as I listened to the choir sing "Greater Love Hath No Man" at the Offertory. Archbishop Lucas emphasized that we did not come here today from nowhere- we come from the labors of those before us. People have been using their gifts since St. Paul. According to tradition, St. Cecilia sang to God as she died. Walking through subterranean Roman tombs in May, I could viscerally contemplate Cecilia and the early martyrs with their pioneer spirit.

These things are so far away in space and time yet they persist in one remarkable continuum. We unite our voices and sing: "Lord, hear our prayer. Deus exaudi nos. Señor escucha nos." When one comes together with a thousand and supplicates these words in song it puts identity and purpose in perspective. It brings us into awareness of the Communion of Saints, the Universal Church. Archbishop Lucas summarized:

Do we need any further evidence then that St. Paul is right? All of these different people whom I have mentioned manifest the actions of the One Holy Spirit. We don't form separate constituencies; We are not partisans. We are members of the body of Christ. It is the living Lord that is present in this Sacred Liturgy...Drinking freely of the One Spirit we come now to offer fitting praise, honor, and glory to our One Father.

Echoing his words from high above the organ, flanking the gallery, John Dryden's (1687) "Song for Saint Cecilia's Day" exclaims:

From Harmony, From Heav'nly Harmony
This Universal Frame Began:
From Harmony to Harmony,
Through all the Compass of Notes it Ran.
The Diapason Closing Full in Man.

But Oh! What Art Can Teach,
What Human Voice Can Reach
The Sacred Organ's Praise?
Notes Inspiring Holy Love,
Notes that Wing Their Heav'nly Ways
to Mend the Choirs Above.

But Bright Cecilia Rais'd the Wonder Higher:
When to Her Organ Vocal Breath Was Given,
An Angel Heard, and Straight Appear'd-
Mistaking Earth for Heaven.

And heavenly it was.

Archbishop Lucas- The Vespers

The last two days have been filled with local churchly celebrations of the highest order. Omaha has celebrated the coming of George J. Lucas, appointed Metropolitan Archbishop of Omaha by Pope Benedict XVI last month. As one staff member told me Monday, "the Cathedral is all abuzz."

Events began Tuesday evening July 21 at 7pm with Solemn Vespers in St. Cecilia Cathedral. I have mentioned it before, but I still intend to post copiously on this spectacular building. Constructed over several decades, it is a rare gem of pristine 20th century Spanish Renaissance Revival architecture perched high on a hill over mid-town Omaha. This cathedral, one of the nation's largest, received a thorough restoration for the Jubilee Year 2000. Many aspects of the architect's original design, henceforth unexecuted, were brought to fruition.

Tuesday's service hosted many of the archdiocesan permanent deacons and their families as well as civic authorities and leaders of the broader faith community including Orthodox, Protestant, Jewish, Muslim, and Hindu representatives.

I participated in the choir for Vespers. For having only two rehearsals things went remarkably well. Quite nearly the only snag arose from unavoidable environmental factors- the growing heat and humidity caused the organ's combination system to go a little 'haywire' and a couple reed stops only partially drew. The organist squelched the wheezy screech soon enough!

Obviously, as a musician, the balance of my focus was a little weighted- but I wasn't alone! Archbishop-designate Lucas made conspicuous mention of the choir and musicians in his homily. Indeed, for this event the time and place could not have been better. The reading for vespers of Tuesday, week IV, Colossians 3:16 reads: "Let the word of Christ, rich as it is, dwell in you. In wisdom made perfect, instruct and admonish one another. Sing gratefully to God from your hearts in psalms, hymns, and inspired songs." Lucas said that if Tuesday is representative he looks forward to realizing St. Paul's mandate in the future at the Cathedral.

St. Cecilia Cathedral has always given special attention to its music on account of its patroness. In 1985 the Cathedral Arts Project (CAP) was founded as a ministry to draw the whole creative person into the life of the Church. Through promoting and organizing visual art, musical programs, and cultural events the CAP seeks to emphasize the medieval spirit of cathedral as a place for all. http://www.cathedralartsproject.org/about.asp

In more recent years the St. Cecilia Schola Cantorum was founded under director Kevin Vogt (now working in Kansas City.) The Schola Cantorum is a rare organization in the Catholic United States and an invaluable asset to the Archdiocese. Today under the direction of Dr. Marie Rubis Bauer, its choirs provide music for cathedral parish and archdiocesan events. http://www.stceciliacathedral.org/music.htm

Furthermore, the Archdiocese operates the St. Cecilia Institute for Laity Formation on the Cathedral campus. The Institute offers classes and seminars on countless topics for people of all ages. http://www.archomaha.org/education/sci/index.html For the architecturally inclined there are wonderful opportunities- Brother William Woeger, FSC, Archdiocesan Director of Worship and renowned liturgical consultant offers excellent presentations. I speak from experience.

Back to Vespers...

There's nothing that underscores the sense of a living Church and vibrant liturgy like the creative act. For Tuesday's service the music included newly composed works as well as classics. Cathedral Music Director and Organist Marie Rubis Bauer wrote three new Psalm Antiphons which beautifully emphasize their texts yet maintain singability. (Organists have a knack for this!) The program has details: http://www.archomaha.org/newsevents/pdf/Installation%20vespers%20program%207-21-09.pdf

My favorite was the Magnificat Antiphon "Do great things for us, O Lord, for you are mighty, and holy is your name."Created to "sandwich" Kevin Vogt's "Magnificat on the Fifth Tone," Bauer's short duple meter setting made liberal use lively syncopations, silences, and augmented fourths. Vogt's similarly pungent "Magnificat" is equally memorable. Written for the 2003 dedication of the Noack Organ at St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul MN, the melodic line is written so well and engagedly that it's hard to notice the high 'f'! Everyone sang with gusto.



Embedded here is the choir of Visitation Church in Kansas City singing this piece. St. Cecilia's is a bigger space and we had a few more people so Dr. Bauer took a broader tempo. Nevertheless, this gives one an idea. Dr. Vogt's piece shows that it is possible to optimize our variables: to use traditional Catholic texts with new, yet singable lines. It's available from Morningstar.

We bookended vespers with "The Day You Gave Us, Lord, Is Ended" (ST CLEMENT) and "O God Our Help" (ST ANNE). The choir men sang Lloyd Pfautsch's "Seek to Serve" and the women did the chant Ave Maria as well as a Dvorak setting. The whole choir sang Hassler's Cantate Domino as well as the Palestrina Sicut Cervus. Dr. Bauer played the Adagio from Widor's Fifth and a Pachelbel An Wasserflüssen Babylon.

The only downer to the evening (and this happened to a lesser extent the next afternoon) was how loud people were during the preludes. Episcopalians would never make that much noise! Strangely enough, people hushed almost as soon as an Ave Maria began- both times! There must be something lodged deep within the Catholic psyche that begs silence for Marian piety- and little else. I was sad when we sang Sicut Cervus- no one could hear. If the Mona Lisa were a motet it would sound precious close to this.

It's not the musician in me so much that gripes but the minister: "The goal of all music ministry then, is not the comfort and entertainment of church goers, nor the decoration of rituals for asthetes, but the praise of God and the sanctification of all humanity, making it fit for the choir of heaven."- adapted from “An Apostolic Model of Music Ministry,” Kevin Vogt, DMA.

I also noticed that the Archdiocese seemed to roll out their new logo in conjunction with these events: a burnt orange silhouette of the cathedral over "Archdiocese of Omaha." The program itself was attractive as well. The interior front and back covers featured the same burnt orange with interlocking outlines of the cathedral's rose window.

All things considered, things were off to a most fitting start!