Grassroots Liturgist

When I was a boy, my mother wouldn’t allowed me to play with the other children on our street on two days of the year.   I knew that these days were important – after all, they had names: Good Friday and Holy Saturday.   I suspect that this was a cultural hand-me-down from her Irish Catholic heritage.   So often, these cultural traditions are rooted in good theory but, after some time, they become an unquestioned expectation of social norms. As such, I never received an explanation other than, “It’s Good Friday/Holy Saturday,” which, to my young mind, seemed a weak justification for curtailing my play time.   I do wish that she had been able to offer a fuller explanation because now, in the greying years of my life, I believe that she was on to something. It comes down to our attitude to the liturgical manifestations of our Faith. One of the oft-repeated phrases to come out of Vatican II is that we, the laity, should have a full, active and conscious partic...

  “ But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel .” (Lk 24:21) These are the words of the two disciples making their way from Jerusalem to Emmaus.   Their hearts were bereft and their minds clouded in confusion because of what had happened over the last few days. Let’s try to understand and enter their desolation. Jesus had been preaching and teaching for maybe three years.   But in that time, a great multitude had become his followers – his disciples.   They left their homes, the security of all they knew, to follow him – to sit at his feet and listen to his words. Ask yourself whether there is there anyone that you would do that for? And why it was that they did?   We get an idea from the Gospels… “ And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes .” (Mt 7:28-29 & Mk 1:22) It was no earthly authority that Jesus had – that’s...

As I read through the Triduum feedback forms, one sentence made me pause and caused my spirits to rise. Ever since the end of lockdown, when I was asked to lead the music and aspects of the liturgy for the Paschal Triduum, I have been giving these forms to those involved in the planning and ‘delivery’ of the liturgies as well as some members of the congregation. The planning group met in mid-January, though my own planning had been going on at a gentler pace for 12 months.  At that meeting, we discussed new, improved procedures, established who was responsible for what, and then went our separate ways to fulfil our roles.  There was a further meeting between myself, the Parish Priest and the Deacon for some of the finer details.  Meanwhile, we all kept in touch via a chat room. Our numbers and singing are such that we cannot entirely dispense with instrumentation between the two Glorias of Maundy Thursday and the Easter Vigil.  So, although we don’t use the or...