The Recovering Choir Director

We report, you decide. [Disregard completely all comments in brackets—it's spin, spin, spin.]

12:30 AM Silverthorn C.I. evening reflection
Opening song: “O Radiant Light” (JESU DULCIS MEMORIA)
Lord’s Prayer: English-language chant (Sacramentary)

8:30 AM S. Salvador do Mundo
Rehearsed:
- “Somebody’s singing, Lord, Kumbaya.” This song is featured on one of the official WYD videos.
- Alleluia (Missa Lumen Christi | OCP)

[I'm not a schismatic, but I don't believe Lefebvre was incorrect about his concern re: the Novus Ordo. I don't doubt its validity, but I wonder about its effectiveness, especially at a Rock Mass.]

8:51 AM S. Salvador do Mundo
Congregation sings “Christ, Be Our Light” (Bernadette Farrell | OCP)

I believe my expression has been caught by the cameraman for the Rochester (NY) Democrat and Chronicle. [It's not a pleasant one.]

[According to Genesis 4:16-17, Cain built a city and named it after his son, Henoch. I wonder if, musically, we're doing something similar with our youth. No wonder Catholics with some religious and musical sensibility don't sing at or go to Mass—it can be almost unbearably puerile.]

Overheard: “We try to set a different atmosphere for liturgy.” [Indeed. I wonder if reverence is part of the equation.]

List of music for the Mass, celebrated by Abp. Charles J. Chaput of Denver, Colo.:
Opening: “Christ, Be Our Light” (Bernadette Farrell | OCP)
Asperges: “Rain Down”
Gloria: spoken
Psalm: “Loving and Forgiving” [Did not remember to note composer's name.]
Alleluia: Missa Lumen Christi (OCP)
Offertory: “Song of the Body of Christ” (David Haas | GIA)
Sanctus, Anamnesis, Amen: Mass of Creation (Marty Haugen | GIA)
Agnus Dei: Missa Lumen Christi (OCP)
Communion Procession: “We Are the Light of the World”
Recessional: “We Are Marching / Siyahamba” (South African | Ultryck)

3:30 PM St. Michael’s Cathedral, Toronto
Apparently the St. Michael Choir School event at the cathedral was a misprint. [I am mildly annoyed. At the same time, Eucharistic adoration was quite an uplifting experience. Having brought my copy of the Collegeville Hymnal, I was able to mentally sing the Eucharistic hymns in front of Him.]

9:05 PM Byzantine Vespers
[This is how we worship our Creator! My soul and artistic sensibilities are nourished by the simple beauty of the service. The vestments, icons, chants, and postures all make a unified statement: We are worshiping someone who is greater than all of us. On chant: not everyone can sing Mozart's Ave verum corpus, but they can sing simple chants with minimal instruction. Chanting the readings adds a solemnity to the ritual. Ah, the reverence.]

12:00 AM Silverthorn C.I.
Melissa and I pray our nightly rosary. I attempt to subtly chant it. It is a different way of praying. If you’re new to it, you must pay attention to what you’re saying lest you mess up the words of the prayers, as I did numerous times.