The feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord on Thursday August 6, 2015, will be marked by a Solemn High Mass in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite at Holy Comforter-Saint Cyprian in Washington, D.C.
The Mass, at 7.30pm, will be celebrated by Father James Bradley, who will also preach. He will be assisted by Father Paul Scalia (Arlington) and Father Daniel Richards (Harrisburg). The Mass will be sung to the plainchant Propers and Ordinary. Further details are available here.
Last November, Third Practice, directed by Brian Bartoldus, performed Father Claudio Monteverdi’s 1610 Vespro della Beata Vergine in a liturgical celebration of Solemn Vespers and Benediction in Washington DC. Together with this work was a new composition by Baltimore-based composer, Joshua Bornfield, Beatis videamus, taking as its text the Litany of the Saints and as its musical inspiration the motifs found in the Monteverdi vespers. Third Practice were joined by members of Chorus Sine Nomine who provided the plainchant antiphons, and instrumentalists on period instruments.
As is well-known, the various parts of the Monteverdi Vespers do not themselves constitute Vespers of Our Lady in the Roman Rite. In fact, there is some ongoing discussion about the intended use of the settings. Were they intended to be sung together at all? Were they intended for another feast altogether? And so the celebration presented here had to draw also on the plainchant antiphons of the Roman office, and imaginatively position some of the Monteverdi movements around (and outside) the liturgical office to try to use as many of the musical movements as possible. This saw the Pulchra es sung before the office began, the beautiful Duo Seraphim as the altar was prepared for Benediction, and Audi cœlum as an offering to Our Lady after the conclusion of Benediction. It also meant that Monteverdi’s setting of Nigra sum (which in fact contains the texts of both the third and fourth antiphon for Vespers of Our Lady) was sung between the third and fourth psalm, without any break.
This celebration was the third performance of the Vespers by Third Practice, and the only liturgical performance. It was also the best-attended of all three, and attracted a large number of Catholic and non-Catholic faithful for what was a primarily liturgical act of worship, but also a opportunity for a cultural interchange. By presenting the cultural heritage of the Church in its proper context, the “congregation” and the “audience” (as different people saw their roles) were exposed to the full beauty and splendor of the Church’s ritual prayer. It was also an opportunity to include a fine new composition, which itself promotes the Church as a primary patron of the arts, not as an end itself but for the greater glory of Almighty God.
Below you can find a video of the whole liturgy, as well as some pictures (full album here).
A Solemn High Mass in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite will be celebrated for the feast of All Saints at Holy Comforter-Saint Cyprian, Washington, D.C.. The music, provided by Chorus Sine Nomine, will be the Mass for Four Voices and Propers from the 1605 Gradualia, both by William Byrd. The Celebrant and Homilist will be Fr James Bradley. Free parking is available at the Public Charter School, 1503 East Capitol Street S.E.
The Oratorian Community of St Philip Neri in Washington DC, a community-in-formation for the Oratory, is hosting a series of talks exploring the life and thought of Blessed John Henry Newman. Entitled 'Newman and his legacy', the series of talks will take place at 7.30pm on Monday evenings at St Thomas Apostle Parish Hall:
September 8
Newman and Mary
(Fr Carleton P Jones OP)
September 15
Newman and the Oratory
(Msgr Andrew Wadsworth)
September 22
Newman and Faber
(Fr Martin Edwards)
September 29
Newman and Pope Benedict XVI
(Fr James Bradley)
October 6
Newman and Liberalism
(Fr Stephen Fields SJ)
Mondays at 7.30pm
St Thomas Apostle Parish Hall
entrance on 27th St NW at Woodley Rd
Nearest Metro: Woodley Park (Red Line)
A High Mass (Missa Solemnis) in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite was celebrated at St Mary Moorfields yesterday in the City of London, on the feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.
The Mass was organised by Juventutem UK and was celebrated by Fr James Bradley, a Priest of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, assisted by Fr William Young (Deacon) and Canon Peter Newby (Subdeacon). The Schola sang the plainchant Propers for the feast and Mass IV.
The Homily for the Mass can be found on Fr Bradley's website. (Photos: Alex Robertson & Charles Cole)
