Saint Perpetua

Saint Perpetua

Christopher Orczy

2008

The blessed Saturus related this his vision, which he himself committed to writing: — " We had suffered," says he, "and


We were gone forth from the flesh,
and we were beginning to be borne by four angels into the east;
and their hands touched us not.

And we floated not supine,
looking upwards,
but as if ascending a gentle slope.

And being set free,
we at length saw the first boundless light;
and I said,
'Perpetua, this is what the Lord promised to us;
we have received the promise.'

And while we are borne by those same four angels,
there appears to us a vast space which was like a pleasure-garden,
having rose-trees and every kind of flower.
And the height of the trees was after the measure of a cypress,
and their leaves were falling incessantly.
Moreover, there in the pleasure-garden four other angels appeared,
brighter than the previous ones.

And those four angels who bore us,
being greatly afraid,
put us down;
and we passed over on foot the space of a furlong in a broad path.

And we came near to place,
the walls of which were such as if they were built of light;
and before the gate of that place stood four angels,
who clothed those who entered with white robes.

And being clothed,
we entered and saw the boundless light,
and heard the united voice of some who said without ceasing,
‘Holy! Holy! Holy!'

And I said,
'Perpetua, you have what you wish.'
And she said to me,
'Thanks be to God,
that joyous as I was in the flesh,
I am now more joyous here.'

The Dearmer Society

Today I was inducted as a member of The Dearmer Society.

The website explains what it means very thoroughly:

Dearmer Groups are for ordinands currently in training who aspire to membership of the Society of Catholic Priests (SCP) and who are in sympathy with the principles of membership.

Those living under priestly orders experience both the joy and privilege of ordained ministry and also the sacrifice that ordination brings.

At a time of great change and stress within the national and world Church, many priests are both at risk of isolation and loneliness, and also find themselves challenged by the changing expectations of the church.

Membership of SCP offers collegiality, encouragement and support in the face of such conditions.

Aspirants are encouraged to adopt the rule of life of the Society, that is

Eucharistic centred spirituality

to say the Daily Office

to consult a Spiritual Director

to pray for their fellow members of Society

to use the sacrament of reconciliation

to offer confidential pastoral care to fellow members

to attend all meetings of their group unless prevented by good reason.

Any one who reads this blog will know that all that is fine with me. The fact that the group takes its name from my liturgical hero Percy Dearmer is a complete bonus.

Our Lady of Guadelupe

Rosary

The Presence

The Presence

A.E. Borthwick

(1932)

Music for Advent

Visitation

Christopher Orczy

2009

And Mary arose in these days and went into the hill country with haste,

into a city of Judah;

and entered into the house of Zacharias and saluted Elisabeth.

And it came to pass,

when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary,

the babe leaped in her womb;

and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost;

and she lifted up her voice with a loud cry,

and said,

Blessed art thou among women,

and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.

And whence is this to me,

that the mother of my Lord should come unto me?

For behold,

when the voice of thy salutation came into mine ears,

the babe leaped in my womb for joy.

And blessed is she that believed;

for there shall be a fulfillment of the things which have been spoken to her from the Lord.

And Mary said,

My soul doth magnify the Lord,

And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

For he hath looked upon the low estate of his handmaiden:

For behold,

from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

For he that is mighty hath done to me great things;

And holy is his name.

And his mercy is unto generations and generations on them that fear him.

He hath shewed strength with his arm;

He hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their heart.

He hath put down princes from their thrones,

And hath exalted them of low degree.

The hungry he hath filled with good things;

And the rich he hath sent empty away.

He hath holpen Israel his servant,

That he might remember mercy

(As he spake unto our fathers)

Toward Abraham and his seed for ever.

And Mary abode with her about three months,

and returned unto her house.

Luke 1:39-56 RV

I have just completed the final part of my Advent trilogy. The first part, Annunciation, was completed in 2007. You can read more about that here. The third part, Nativity, was completed in 2008. More about that here.

This last piece comes in between the two, as will be noticed by the above Gospel reading, concerns Mary's visit to Elizabeth, just after being informed about what is to occur.

Where in Annunciation, I wanted to treat the dialog between Gabriel and Mary, with Visitation I wanted to give two portraits of the two women involved. There are similar themes and sonorities between the two pieces, as both women are talking about the same thing: Christ.

I suppose this work may sound a bit gloomy, especially for a reading that is essentially joyous. While it may be a wondrous thing that has occurred, the shadow of the cross is looming.

Please forgive my take on this. It certainly isn't what I would preach on this passage. I do invite you to listen to the now complete Advent album. These pieces express my feelings of the Incarnation. The most wonderful thing to occur is also very difficult to understand. The immensity of the event is unfathomable.

These pieces also reflect my journey as a Christian. I experienced my conversion on Christmas Day 2006, and I knew at that point all future compositions would be devoted to the faith. I also knew I could no longer expect money for doing so.

You can download Advent for free here.

Enjoy these pieces, and have a very merry Christmass.

Music for Advent: Visitation

Visitation

Christopher Orczy

2009

And Mary arose in these days and went into the hill country with haste,

into a city of Judah;

and entered into the house of Zacharias and saluted Elisabeth.

And it came to pass,

when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary,

the babe leaped in her womb;

and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost;

and she lifted up her voice with a loud cry,

and said,

Blessed art thou among women,

and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.

And whence is this to me,

that the mother of my Lord should come unto me?

For behold,

when the voice of thy salutation came into mine ears,

the babe leaped in my womb for joy.

And blessed is she that believed;

for there shall be a fulfillment of the things which have been spoken to her from the Lord.

And Mary said,

My soul doth magnify the Lord,

And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

For he hath looked upon the low estate of his handmaiden:

For behold,

from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

For he that is mighty hath done to me great things;

And holy is his name.

And his mercy is unto generations and generations on them that fear him.

He hath shewed strength with his arm;

He hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their heart.

He hath put down princes from their thrones,

And hath exalted them of low degree.

The hungry he hath filled with good things;

And the rich he hath sent empty away.

He hath holpen Israel his servant,

That he might remember mercy

(As he spake unto our fathers)

Toward Abraham and his seed for ever.

And Mary abode with her about three months,

and returned unto her house.

Luke 1:39-56 RV

I have just completed the final part of my Advent trilogy. The first part, Annunciation, was completed in 2007. You can read more about that here. The third part, Nativity, was completed in 2008. More about that here.

This last piece comes in between the two, as will be noticed by the above Gospel reading, concerns Mary's visit to Elizabeth, just after being informed about what is to occur.

Where in Annunciation, I wanted to treat the dialog between Gabriel and Mary, with Visitation I wanted to give two portraits of the two women involved. There are similar themes and sonorities between the two pieces, as both women are talking about the same thing: Christ.

I suppose this work may sound a bit gloomy, especially for a reading that is essentially joyous. While it may be a wondrous thing that has occurred, the shadow of the cross is looming.

Please forgive my take on this. It certainly isn't what I would preach on this passage. I do invite you to listen to the now complete Advent album. These pieces express my feelings of the Incarnation. The most wonderful thing to occur is also very difficult to understand. The immensity of the event is unfathomable.

These pieces also reflect my journey as a Christian. I experienced my conversion on Christmas Day 2006, and I knew at that point all future compositions would be devoted to the faith. I also knew I could no longer expect money for doing so.

You can download Advent for free here.

Enjoy these pieces, and have a very merry Christmass.