The Karolines at St. Joe's

November 24, 2024

As you may have heard from last Sunday’s pre-Mass announcements, a visiting Ugandan choir will be providing music for our 9:30 and 11:00 AM Masses this Sunday. They are called The Karolines, named after St. Karoli Lwanga, who is more commonly known to us as St. Charles Lwanga of the Ugandan martyrs. The Karolines are based in St. Mary Parish in Waltham, which is home to the Ugandan Catholic Community of Boston (UCCB). I first learned about The Karolines from Fr. Ssenfuma, who mentioned to me that there was a Ugandan choir that was interested in singing for one of the Masses at St. Joseph Parish. I’ve always wanted our liturgical music to represent a broader range of cultures, so naturally I was thrilled when Fr. Ssenfuma told me about the group. We figured it would be great to invite The Karolines to sing at St. Joe’s on a special Feast Day, and that day is this Sunday – the Solemnity of Christ the King.

This also means that our Youth Choir and Adult Choir will be off-duty on November 24^th. Our Worship Band will still be providing music at the 5:00 PM Mass, and we’re looking to share one of our favorite songs, Shout to the Lord, to celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King.

Finally, as a side note, I’ll share with you a little secret: I usually write these posts on the Friday right before the date indicated in the post. So right now, as I write this, it’s actually Friday, November 22^nd, which also happens to be the memorial of St. Cecilia, the patron saint of music. And in about two hours from the time of this writing, I’ll be accompanying the St. Joseph School’s Saints Society for the 5^th grade musical production of Xanadu Jr. My involvement with the school plays is one of my favorite parts of my work, and I’m happy to be doing this on this feast of St. Cecilia.

With my peace,
Carlo Serrano, Music Director

Whose Tower Then Becomes Higher?

November 10, 2024
32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them, “Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood.”

- Mark 12:43-44

 

This Sunday’s Gospel is one of my favorites – the one about the poor widow. Whenever the Gospel reading talks about humility and/or poverty, I’m always inclined to pick out one or more hymns that cite the Beatitudes, particularly the first one: “Blessed are the poor in spirit…” Did you know that there are four songs in our hymnal that directly cite the Beatitudes? These are: #601 We Are the Light of the World, #740 O How Blessed, #739 Lead Me, Lord, and #742 Blessed and Beloved/Bienaventurados. Depending on which Mass you go to, you may hear one or more of those Beatitudes-themed songs.

 

Speaking of being poor in spirit, I’ve found it to be somewhat of a pattern in my life that I’ve formed very close bonds with people who struggle with mental health. In the Philippines where I come from, there is much to be desired in the way of mental health awareness. Few understand that for a person who struggles with crippling anxiety, it may well take everything they have to simply get out of the house and carry out the daily tasks that most other people take for granted. As we live in a culture that primarily values results, it is tempting to overlook the effort demanded of one to achieve the same result as another to whom the task may come more easily. It has greatly impacted my life to have lived with people who carry this type of cross, these invisible and so often misunderstood crosses, and to have seen them persevere to the best of their ability, giving the entirety of their two small coins.

 

In his novel The Pearl, John Steinbeck writes, “For every man in the world functions to the best of his ability, and no one does less than his best, no matter what he may think about it.” When I first read those words, I was immediately skeptical. I thought, hmmm, does everyone really do their best all the time??? If that’s true, then it would mean that no one is ever truly lazy. But that seems contrary to our experience of witnessing people who really do appear to be lazy, and I imagine everyone has at some point procrastinated about something, however small – I can certainly think of many times when I felt I didn’t give my best. But if I can’t judge based on results, how then would I know if someone is giving their best, or only their bare minimum, or if perhaps they might be carrying an invisible cross that I don’t know about? I think it is simply impossible to know with absolute certainty, unless you possessed the omniscient mind of… God.

 

In my own work as music director, I must often remind myself that although I aim to set a consistent standard of musical quality, each of my choir members is differently equipped – different strengths, different areas for improvement, different level of proficiency, different amount of free time to practice outside of rehearsal, etc. I try to challenge each of my music ministers to give what I believe is their best based on my honest assessment, but every once in a while, I get the assessment wrong, because I too do not possess the omniscient mind of God. The good news is that while no human being has omniscience (with the obvious exception of Jesus), we all have the capacity to be kind. So… how exactly does one enforce a high standard of musical quality while also being kind and sensitive to the many varied circumstances of church musicians who are 100% volunteers? That, dear reader, is a question for another time! On that note, I’d like to share Kierkegaard’s own reflection on the poor widow:

 

Or consider someone who wants to do an act of mercy — can he do more than give all that he possesses-and did not the widow give infinitely more than the rich man gave out of his abundance! At times the circumstances can determine that a penny signifies little more than it usually signifies, but if someone wants to do something marvelous, he can make the one penny signify just as much as all the world’s gold put together if he gives it out of compassion and the penny is the only one he has. Indeed, someone who has an ear for judging how large the gift is detects the difference just by hearing the jingle of the coins, but compassion and the temple box understand it differently.

 

When someone who enjoys health and strength and who possesses the best gifts of the spirit enters the service of the good with all that he has, with the range of years that seem to stretch out before him, with expectancy’s every demand upon life, every claim expected and demanded only for the sake of the good — and when, on the other hand, someone who sadly sees his earthly frailty and the day of disintegration so close that he is tempted to speak of the time granted him as the pastor speaks of it, when in the hour of resolution a person like that promises with the pastor’s words “to dedicate these moments” to the service to the good — whose tower then becomes higher? Do they not both reach heaven? Or when one person, a stranger to internal enemies, aggressively directs his mind and thoughts toward humankind in the service of the good and wins thousands, and when another, retreating in internal battles, in the moment of resolution saves himself, whose tower then becomes higher?

- Søren Kierkegaard, Against Cowardliness, in Four Upbuilding Discourses, 1844

With my peace,

Carlo Serrano, Music Director

Hold On to Love (with a capital L)

November 3, 2024
31st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Those of you who know me know that I like to think in a very logical and somewhat mathematical way. So I was thinking about what it means to “love God” if we hold that “God is love,” as Scripture says, and that love is “to will the good of the other,” as St. Thomas Aquinas says. Bishop Robert Barron is explicit in clarifying that love is not just a thing that God does, but that it’s identical with God himself:

 

What is love? Love is to will the good of the other. Not a passing sentiment or feeling, but a foundational act of the will. To love is to will the good of the other. That's what God is, straight through. That's the essence of God. It's not something he does, not an attribute he has. It's what God is.

- Bishop Robert Barron, How to Lose Your Soul (And How to Save it)

 

So, if I were to interpret The Greatest Commandment mathematically, according to the transitive property of equality, that would look something like this:

 

IF love = to will the good of the other, and IF God = love,

THEN to love God = to will the good of to will the good of the other…

 

But wait… That just sounds weird! Surely there must be some brilliant theologian out there who must’ve also found it weird, and who must have thought about how to make sense of that. So I did some digging and I found this very instructive article from Word On Fire written by Dr. Tom Neal, a former Academic Dean and Professor of Systematic Theology at the Notre Dame Seminary in Louisiana. Dr. Neal writes:

 

I remember the day when I first heard love defined. It was in my moral theology class, and the professor said very matter-of-factly: “Of course, for Aquinas to love means to consistently will and choose the good of the other. To love neighbor as self means seeing their sharing in the good as constitutive of your own sharing in the good. To love God, whose good we cannot will strictly speaking — as He is purely actualized good itself — is to love what God loves, which, of course, is the neighbor’s good. So we come full circle.” I was ecstatic. It suddenly made sense of the interrelationship between the “two loves” and helped me see love’s link to the moral law, which specifies both what “the good” is and how one must choose in relation to the good in a manner that brings God-designed fulfillment.

- Tom Neal, To Will the Good of the Other, Article from Word on Fire

 

Since to love God means to love what God loves, some theologians express that as “a soul rightly ordered,” that is, a soul that is ordered to God… or transitively, a soul that is ordered to will the good of the other. According to Christian theology, our souls are designed precisely for that. My best friend Kathy says it in these words: “Loving is our factory setting.” In a previous post (which you may read by clicking here), I cited the words of various personalities in the arts, philosophy, and spirituality, all with different worldviews, all attesting to the primacy of love. Even Bertrand Russel, one of the most notorious atheists of the 20th century, writes: 

 

Although both love and knowledge are necessary, love is in a sense more fundamental, since it will lead intelligent people to seek knowledge, in order to find out how to benefit those whom they love.

- Bertrand Russel, What I Believe, Chapter 3: The Good Life

 

So yes, even an atheist’s soul can be ordered to will the good of the other and thus ordered to God, albeit without recognizing it as God. There is of course a substantial difference between love in the general sense and love in the Christian sense. While people all over the world believe in the primacy of love, what distinguishes Christians, I think, is the belief in an ultimate Love (a “Love with a capital L”), which is conscious, has agency, and acts upon the universe, willing all things toward the good. From the perspective of Catholic natural theology, the building blocks for organic life assembled from inorganic matter, organisms go through the process of evolution, parents feel drawn to love their children, humans develop empathy toward each other, trees grow and flowers bloom, etc., because there is a Cosmic Agent that wills these things – a Divine Love called God. As the Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore so beautifully wrote: “Silence my soul, these trees are prayers. I asked the tree, ‘Tell me about God,’ then it blossomed.” Thus, when Kathy feeds her children, takes her dogs for a walk, coaches her clients, and gives me consolation in my lowest moments, she is doing exactly what God made her for. Isn’t that just beautiful?

 

Well, here’s what’s more… By further applying the transitive property of equality, according to the Catholic doctrine of the Real Presence in the Eucharist: IF the consecrated host = Jesus, and IF Jesus = God, and IF God = Love with a capital L, THEN when you receive Communion, you are putting a literal piece of Love with a capital L (that Cosmic Agent that wills all things toward the good) into your body! Take a moment to internalize about how sacred that is…

 

Now, if you come to either the 9:30 AM or the 5:00 PM Mass this Sunday, I invite you to think about that as you join in singing our Communion Hymn: #496 Hold On to Love. If our musicians’ timing is right, you will have all received Communion by the time we start singing, that is, you will have all put a piece of Love with a capital L into your bodies. And if you open the hymnal to that song, you’ll notice that in the lyrics, “Love” is spelled with… you guessed it… a capital L!

 

With my peace,

Carlo Serrano, Music Director

The Goodness of God

October 27, 2024

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time

  

There are several instances in the Gospels where Jesus heals the blind. In this Sunday’s Gospel, it is Bartimaeus who receives the gift of sight. Now, I’ll tell you a little secret that you can use to predict how I’ll pick out music in the future: Whenever the Gospel reading deals with the healing of the blind, you can be sure that one of our hymns will be Amazing Grace, just because “…was bliiiiind, but nooooow, I seeeeeee!”

 

When I was a kid in Catholic school, my favorite parts in the Gospels were all the accounts of healing. If you’ve watched The Chosen, you may agree with me that the healing scenes are among the most emotional scenes to watch! For one thing, there’s the reaction of the person who was healed – they be like… “wait… can it be… after all these years…… oh my gosh I can walk!!!!!” and they’re all happy and also in tears, and everyone around is astonished, and if you pay close attention, there’s usually a very specific track of background music that plays whenever Jesus is about to heal someone – I sometimes call it “the miracle music.”

 

Well, in the St. Joe’s music ministry, there’s a particular song which I think of as “the goodness music.” It’s a song that I’ll often choose when the Scripture readings are about the assurance that God will do good things. It’s called Goodness of God, popularized by American gospel singer CeCe Winans. This Sunday, that song will be at all three of the sung Masses: the 9:30am, 11:00am, and 5:00pm. If you come to the 9:30, you’ll hear it sung by our Youth Choir’s Ainsley Moran, who is currently in 5th grade at the St. Joe’s School. At the two other Masses, it will be sung by Cassandra Desir, our very talented singer from Haiti, who will be joined by the Adult Choir at the 11am and the Worship Band vocalists at the 5pm.

With my peace,

Carlo Serrano, Music Director

I Have Been Anointed

This Sunday at the 5:00pm Mass, fifty-three teenagers will be anointed on the forehead with chrism by Bishop Robert Reed, marking their Confirmation into the Catholic faith.

 

Our Worship Band has been hard at work preparing the music for this Mass. Most of our hymn selections are songs that I believe are already familiar to the regular 5:00 congregation, with the exception of one new song which we’ve especially prepared for the Offertory – I Have Been Anointed by Steve Warner, which is hymn #500 in the current edition of our hymnal. If you’d like to familiarize yourself with the song to be able to participate more in singing with us, feel free to listen to it a few times via the video below. 

We’d love if you could sing with us during the refrains. Oh, here’s a thought: if your children are among the teenagers to be confirmed, we’d love it if THEY could sing with us!

 

The text of the refrain goes:

 

I have been anointed with the song of the Lord,

A song of love and compassion, a song to set me free.

God is my rock of salvation, a beacon for my soul.

Hallelujah! Amen! Hallelujah! Amen!

Praise to the rock and the wellspring, creator of my soul.

 

The verse will be sung by our Worship Band’s very own Emmeline Fritz, who is also set to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation this December at St. Mary’s in Dedham. We hope our music selections help you experience the movement of the Holy Spirit at this very special Mass.

 

With my peace,

Carlo Serrano, Music Director

Lead Me, Lord

October 13, 2024

28th Sunday in Ordinary Time

 

Green Card Fundraiser Status

 

Firstly, I’d like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the very generous parishioners who have contributed to my fundraiser. From here on, I’ll include a weekly update on the funds that have been raised thus far, in addition to my regular post in the Music Director’s Corner. As of the time of this writing, the funds raised amount to $13,324, with a goal of $27,000. I am moved by the overwhelming support I’ve seen from the community. Working at this church has been one of the most life-changing experiences for me, and I hope to stay on for much longer!

 

Lead Me, Lord

 

If you were to ask a musician, “Do you know Ave Maria?”, they’d most probably answer, “Which one?” If you’ve been around the music world enough, you’ve probably heard A LOT of Ave Maria’s. My favorite is one that may not be familiar to most – a Spanish setting of the Ave Maria by William Gomez. There’s a beautiful rendition of it by Latvian mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča. Search for it on YouTube if you have a free moment!

 

Likewise, there’s another Christian song title that may refer to many different songs: Lead Me, Lord. Those of us at St. Joe’s are likely most familiar with the version by John Becker, listed as #739 in the current edition of our hymnal. “Lead me, Lord. Lead me, Lord, by the light of truth, to seek and to find the narrow way…” – yup, that one! But of course, that isn’t the only Lead Me, Lord out there. As my very faithful friends might say, the Holy Spirit juuuust couldn’t keep Its inspiration to Itself, and It just haaaaad to go all over the world inspiring composers across different countries and continents to write more Lead Me, Lord’s!

 

This Sunday’s Gospel speaks about the challenge of following Christ especially when it may not align with what we want, so we’ve prepared songs that speak about following Jesus’ lead. Depending on which Mass you attend this Sunday, you may hear an entirely different Lead Me, Lord. Specifically, these are:

 

9:30 AM – Lead Me, Lord by Gary Valenciano

c/o Ainsley Moran

A poignant, ballad-like setting that asks the Lord to lead “even though at times I’d rather go along my way.” Gary Valenciano is Filipino singer-songwriter (more fondly known as “Gary V” where I come from) who has written some very moving popular Christian songs, with this one being among my favorites. At the Family Mass, it will be sung by Ainsley Moran, an exceptionally talented new addition to our Youth Choir this year. Ainsley is currently in 5th grade at the St. Joe’s school.

 

11:00 AM – Lead Me, Lord by S.S. Wesley

c/o St. Joseph Parish Adult Choir

A reverent, meditative anthem by 19th-century English composer and organist Samuel Sebastian Wesley. The text is beautifully short and sweet: “Lead me, Lord, lead me in Thy righteousness, make Thy way plain before my face. For it is Thou, Lord, only, that makest me dwell in safety.” Yes, you get to hear the word “makest!”

 

5:00 PM – Lead Me, Lord by Gary Valenciano and Lead Me, Lord by John Becker

c/o St. Joseph Parish Worship Band

If you miss the Ainsley version of Gary V’s Lead Me, Lord at the 9:30, you can still catch the Jacob & Carlo version at the 5! And we’ll be ending Mass with the John Becker version in our hymnal, which I think pretty much everyone knows.

 

Oh, here’s a thought… If you wanna hear ALL the Lead Me, Lord’s, you could technically come to all three of these Masses and get a triple fill of the Eucharist!

 

With my peace,

Carlo Serrano, Music Director

Perfect Love

October 6, 2024

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Green Card Fundraiser Status

 

As always, I’d like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the very generous parishioners who have contributed to my fundraiser. The first part of the Music Director’s Corner will include a weekly update on the funds that have been raised thus far, in addition to my regular post. As of the time of this writing, the funds raised amount to $12, 802, with a goal of $27,000.

 

As you may have seen in this week’s bulletin, after consulting with our immigration lawyer, we’ve learned that the application process will take a bit longer and cost more than originally estimated. The new target is $27,000 (previously $20,000) due to a backlog in applications, increased government filing fees, and a need to extend my H1-B visa (my temporary work authorization). A rough breakdown of the fees is as follows:

 

Government Filing Fees -  $9,000

Legal Fees - $15,000

Third party recruitment expense - $3,000 

Total cost - $27,000 

 

I am moved by the overwhelming support I’ve seen from the community. Working at this church has been one of the most life-changing experiences for me, and I hope to stay on for much longer!

 

Perfect Love

 

This Sunday’s Scripture readings deal with the sanctity of marriage. As a church musician, one of my favorite types of Masses to serve at are wedding Masses! I haven’t been to a lot of weddings here in the US, but back home in the Philippines, singing at weddings was a very common occurrence for the choirs I sang with. Well, a few months ago – August 24th to be exact – I finally got to direct music for a wedding right here at St. Joe’s! It was the wedding of two of our parishioners, Austin and Bruna, who usually come to the 11:00 AM Mass.

 

So, for this Sunday, I figured I’d have the Adult Choir give Austin and Bruna a bit of nostalgia by singing one of the songs from their wedding. It’s called Perfect Love, written by Kimberly Hill and arranged by Stacey Nordmeyer. This particular arrangement quotes an excerpt from another song, The Love of God, by Frederick M. Lehman. When the choir did this at Austin and Bruna’s wedding, we cut out some parts to shorten it, so that it would fit the length of the Offertory. This Sunday, we’ll be doing the entire song uncut. So if you’re a married couple and you decide to come to the 11:00 AM Mass, we hope this song fills you up with love that you can carry with you all the days of your married life – for better or worse, in sickness and health, in honeymoon days, in days of conflict, and yes, even the days of just lounging around in the house. 

 

With my peace,

Carlo Serrano, Music Director