Syria

Syria is the ancient home of one of the earliest Christian communities. After the death of Jesus, many of his followers moved north because of the persecution that was increasingly difficult in Jerusalem. The Apostle Paul traveled to Damascus and received his early formation as a Christian in the area of Syria. St. Peter is known to have served as the early leader of the church in Antioch. The Church of Antioch was one of the early centers of the Christian faith, even bearing the name of an early approach to understanding the person of Jesus starting with his humanity and moving to his divinity, the so-called Antioch school of Christology. Syria produced the great Deacon Saint Ephrem who was a writer of hymns.

Syria is in crisis. The shocking violence continues and the number of refugees is growing daily. A report from the PBS Newshour provides more information about the current dilemma faced by Christians in Syria, and sheds light on the complexity of this tragic conflict.

Founding Choir School Bishop Retires

On May 25, 1996, after months of a feasibility study and many meetings, then Salt Lake City Bishop George Niederauer approved the opening of a new school at the Cathedral of the Madeleine: The Madeleine Choir School. On Friday of last week, now Archbishop Niederauer, who was named the Eighth Archbishop of San Francisco in 2005, received word that his successor had been appointed and he was able to begin his much deserved retirement.

The Choristers met the Archbishop this last February when they traveled to the Bay Area on a performance tour and celebrated Mass in San Francisco's St. Mary's Cathedral. At age 75, he was looking forward to the appointment of his successor at that time! Archbishop Niederauer is remembered fondly for his imaginative preaching, his efforts to bring divided communities and factions together, and his call for more tolerance of one another despite our differences. One among many memorable lines: "Three words which are troubling in both the realms of prayer and dieting: I'll start tomorrow."

We are grateful for the many years of Archbishop Niederauer's service, both here in Salt Lake City and in San Francisco. We are especially grateful to him for his confidence and support in getting the Choir School started, and we hope that the years ahead will be both restful and rewarding.

The Sunday Readings - St. John Chapter 6

We will be celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council on October 11th of this year. One of the initiatives of the Second Vatican Council for the ongoing renewal of liturgical and church life has been the introduction of a three-year cycle of readings to be proclaimed at the Sunday Mass. Meant to expose the members of the church to a larger body of Sacred Scripture, the three year lectionary cycle allows for a yearly focus on one of the Synoptic Gospels – Matthew, Mark or Luke – with St. John’s Gospel interspersed throughout the cycle. This year we are in ‘Year B’ and so we have been hearing week after week from Mark’s account of the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth.

Today we begin a slight departure from Mark as for the next four Sundays we will read from the sixth chapter of St. John’s Gospel. John’s was the last of the four Gospels to be composed, and so it represents a further level of thinking and reflection on the life of Jesus, presenting Jesus’ teaching in the form of longer discourses. The sixth chapter from which we are about to hear is known as the Bread of Life discourse because it begins the teaching about the role of the Eucharist in the life of the follower of Jesus and his church.

We begin our four-week experience of the sixth chapter of St. John at today’s Sunday Mass with the miracle of the loaves and fishes as found in John 6:1 – 15. The Synoptic Gospels – Matthew, Mark and Luke – are remarkably similar in their record of teachings, healing and miracles. John presents the life of Jesus in a very different way. The miracle of the loaves and fishes and the feeding of the five thousand is the only miracle that is recorded in all four of the Gospel accounts. It is also found in Mark 6:31-34, Matthew 14:13-21 and Luke 9:10-17.

Mark is thought to be the first Gospel to be recorded in written form, probably written in the late 60’s or early 70’s in the city of Rome. Mark’s Gospel has long been understood as the primordial account from which both Matthew and Luke draw a great deal of their material. Clearly both Matthew and Luke have additional sources from which they draw for their accounts of the ministry of Jesus. Both Mark and Matthew have a second account of similar miracle with the crowd numbering 4,000 men with additional women and children.

Two questions: What is the purpose of the second similar miracle? Why is the second occurrence missing from Luke? Mark records the second occurrence as taking place in the Greek-speaking eastern coast of Sea of Galilee, largely a non-Jewish community. Perhaps this is an early reference to the universality of Jesus’ mission. Why missing from Luke? There is a remarkable anomaly in Luke’s Gospel in that, after a generally parallel account, everything in Mark’s gospel from 6:45 – 8:26 is missing in Luke’s gospel. Is this a deliberate omission, or did Luke have a copy of Mark’s gospel that was missing this section?

The incredible similarity between Mark’s account and what we have heard today in John’s account of this miracle has led many to conclude that John relied on Mark for his record of this event in the life of Jesus.

Feeding of the 5000 - John 6:1-15 - Mark 6:30-44
Walking on the Sea - John 6:16-24 - Mark 6:45-54
Request for a Sign - John 6:25-34 - Mark 8:11-13
Remarks on Bread - John 6:35-59 - Mark 8:14-21
Faith of St. Peter - John 6:60-69 - Mark 8:27-30
Prediction of Passion
and Betrayal - John 6:70-71 - Mark 8:31-33

More to come…

Congratulations Ms. Don!

Today is a big day for fourth grade teacher Sarah Don. Sarah will marry Mr. Shawn Lambert -- yes, a member of the infamous Lambert clan -- this afternoon at St. Thomas More Catholic Church. Fr. David Van Massenhove will be the celebrant for the Nuptial Mass. Ms. Don has been a tremendous addition to our faculty and staff, serving as the homeroom teacher for fourth grade and using her talents and skills in many other areas, particularly in the teaching of theology. Remarkably, Ms. Don was a participant in the Choir School when it began in the early 90's as a chorister in the after school program.

We send our best wishes to Sarah, Shawn and their families on this very important day, and look forward to her continued service among us at the Choir School.

The Choir School's First Vocation

Last night we celebrated Vespers for the final time at the 2012 Annual Summer Camp. We were very privileged to celebrate Vespers under the leadership of Choir School alumnus Christopher Gray (Class of 97) who joined us for the evening from his pastoral assignment this summer in St. George. Christopher is currently a student at the Pontifical North American College, the seminary in Rome for students from Dioceses in the United States. In June he completed his first round of studies at the Gregorian University in Rome. Christopher is scheduled to be ordained a Deacon on October 4th of this year in St. Peter's Basilica, and he will be ordained a Priest for the Diocese of Salt Lake City in our Cathedral sometime next spring.

Christopher spoke to the students about his own experience as a chorister, and reiterated the importance of the work they do in service to the liturgy. He talked with them about their wearing of the surplice -- the white outer garment that is part of their vesture -- as not being a 'costume' or 'prop' of any sort, but a symbol of their new and best self made possible by God's way of justice and truth.

He is the first Choir School student to pursue a vocation to the priesthood, and we have promised to uphold him in our prayers during this important year as he remembers the work of the school in his prayer. He continues his pastoral assignment at St. George Parish for the summer and will return to Rome in September. Congratulations Christopher!

Final Full Day at Choir Camp!

The week has flown by and we are almost at the end of the 2012 Summer Camp. Over 110 students, staff, alumni counselors and parents have worked hard and played hard throughout the entire week. We have accomplished a great deal musically in preparation for the coming season, and our recreational events and activities have left us all a little sleep deprived.

The students have been amazing in their dedication and hard work. They are busy preparing the Bach Magnificat for a performance at this year’s St. Cecilia Day Concert in November. They are also preparing a very challenging setting of the Requiem by French twentieth-century composer Alfred Desenclos.

It has been a real pleasure to work again with our alumni students who have volunteered their time for this entire week in support of the work of the camp: Martin Alcocer, Nic Compagni, Emily Graham, Ben Khan, Ryan Murphy, Nic Parcell, Annie Payne, Cadie Payne, CaiLi Pleshe, Andy Sagers and Joseph Stokes.

Particular thanks go to the volunteer parents who worked so hard with Mr. Allen and Mrs. Malinka to make the camp such a great experience for all of the children: Charo Alcocer, Amy Corroon, Michael Pendergrast, Amber Perrick, Celina Poppe, and Eric and Maricruz Stevens. Thank you parents for your generous service!

Tonight, Lady Luck visits the camp for our annual Casino Night, followed by – as if we were not exhausted enough -- a quick game of Capture the Flag.

El Camino de Santiago - The Way of James

Today the Church throughout the world celebrates the Feast of St. James, one of the original four disciples of Jesus who left their lucrative business of fishing on the Sea of Galilee to join this unusual teacher from Nazareth. The Gospels are all rather matter of fact about the call: Mark and Matthew only record Jesus’ invitation and the rapid response of Andrew, Simon Peter, James and John. The brothers James and John are noted as mending the nets in their boat with their father Zebedee: they immediately rise, leave their father and follow Jesus. Luke, as he is ever prone to do, provides more elaborate information, involving Jesus sending the fisherman back out after a completely unsuccessful fishing session only to find their nets overwhelmed with a catch at the instruction of Jesus.

James is one of these first four, and was also one of the few disciples to receive a nickname from Jesus: he and his brother were dubbed boanerges or “Sons of Thunder.” This is a pretty evocative nickname! And it seems to be an inherited trait. The gospel reading annually read on this July 25th feast records from Matthew’s gospel the request that came from the mother of James and John that they be seated directly beside Jesus in his kingdom, one on the left and the other on the right. Talk about the original power mother! Jesus very diplomatically defers to a higher authority and indicates that this is not a decision he can make: it must be left to his father in heaven.

Whew – dodged bullet. Jesus does point out the bad news that his followers will have to “drink the chalice that I am going to drink” indicating that the future of his earthly ministry was not going to end up as the triumphant 'Messiah Super Tour,' with wowed crowds in every city and village and the promise of fame and success at the side of this Master Teacher and Healer. No, Jesus knew that this would not be an answer to the challenges of human life and that a successful Messiah as they conceived success would not save the world.

St. James has suffered the centuries in much the way our own patroness has in that there is a great deal of legend and superstition that has accumulated over almost two millennia, making it a challenge for us today to intelligently consider what we can learn from this early follower. We know that he continued his apostolic work, and there are strong indications that he travelled to the very Western edge of the Roman Empire to work in what is modern day Spain. St. James is the inspiration for the very famous pilgrimage to his place of burial at Santiago de Compostela, and the pilgrimage route known as the Camino de Santiago. The pilgrimage route is included among UNESCO’s world heritage centers.

Perhaps two simple things can be learned from our remembrance of St. James. First, because we are a community of humans, there are bound to be difficulties in relationships. Power mothers or not, we can expect the ride to be a little bumpy at times. And let’s face it: there have been times when all of us have wanted special recognition or a seat at the right side of the fashionable, popular and powerful. Whether leaky butlers, factions of various kinds, or the overstepping of boundaries, these are all part of the human adventure and they will be present in the life of the church.

Secondly, when it comes to the following of Jesus, worldly success cannot be a primary criteria. This does not give us license to be sloppy or careless in our work in support of the many efforts that we make as a church throughout the world. However it is fair to say that the disciples are never happy throughout their three-year ministry with Jesus when Jesus points out that the ‘Messiah Super Tour’ is not going to have a happy ending. When Jesus lets them in on the secret of his impending suffering and death, Peter is so incensed that he takes Jesus aside to scold him for such negative and depressing talk.

As followers of Christ, we are called to be agents of his mercy. This will not generally mean fame, success, wealth and power. We have tried all of this, and it has not generally achieved much when it comes to solving the world’s difficult problems. As we remember one of the “Sons of Thunder” today, maybe we should consider this other way, the way of Jesus of Nazareth, which became the Camino de Santiago or way of our brother James.

First Full Day at Summer Camp!

It is our first full day at Choir Camp with 84 students from the Choir School participating in this annual opportunity for fun, recreation, socializing and preparation for the coming season of musical service.

Choristers are rushing to the morning session wherein Mrs. Malinka reviews vocal technique and brushes up the choral skills for the rehearsals ahead. While everyone is a little rusty after the summer hiatus, we made great progress this morning on music for the next concert and for the coming performance tour to Germany, the Czech Republic and Austria.

Here are a few of our great alumni who volunteer each year as counselors for the students. Nic Compagni, Ben Khan, Ryan Murphy, Joseph Stokes, and Andy Sagers: we could not do this without them! Under the able leadership of Mr. Allen, these hard-working high school alumni students and many dedicated parents all contribute their time this week to make the camp possible. More on our great volunteers to come...

Music Theory is not a favorite subject for all of the students and it is usually confined to within the walls of a classroom.

At camp, Mr. McAdams takes the music theory class outside as he leads the students through clef and note identification skills, and works to improve their facility with ledger lines.



Students are off to the infamous wave pool after lunch, and then an afternoon of water games to conclude the afternoon recreation. A little more rehearsal, dinner, a gathering of our community for Vespers and then we head to Helper for laser bowling. I'm not sure what that entails...I bet you all wish you were here! Stay tuned for more news from Choir Camp and a report on our Collegium students and their morning visit to a few Ghost Towns!

From the Cathedral to...

After a great celebration of our Patronal Feast, the choristers are now heading from their challenging service in the choir to...

The Wave Pool!

Over 80 students are traveling this morning to the College of Eastern Utah in Price for the Annual Choir School Summer Camp. The students will have time for some much needed recreation and fun while also getting a head start on the music to be presented in services and concerts for the coming year.

Stay tuned for more updates from Choir Camp!

A People of St. Mary Magdalene

Today is the Solemnity of St. Mary Magdalene, the patroness of our Cathedral Church, the Choir School and our Diocese. The first two thousand years of church history have been tough on Mary of Magdala. Confusion about who she is, her role in the life of the early church, the great devotion to her as a model penitent and the importance she holds for the Catholics in certain regions of France has led one author to despair at what is "a muddle of 'Marys'". And yet, if we return to the Biblical account of her life, clearing away the murky attributions of questionable history - even in modern times - we can draw very certain inspiration from this early friend and follower of Jesus of Nazareth.

The muddle begins on the 21st of September in 591 when Pope Gregory the Great preached a homily in the Church of St. Clement in Rome that solidifies growing confusion about Mary Magdalene. The text he is preaching on is Luke 7:36 – 50, the account of the unnamed female sinner, who, in the home of Simon the Pharisee, knelt at Jesus’ feet, washing them with her tears, and drying his feet with her hair, and anointing them with perfumed oils. Gregory proclaims “…We believe that this woman whom Luke calls a female sinner, whom John calls Mary, is the same Mary from whom Mark says seven demons were cast out.” In one fell swoop, Gregory collapses into one individual three distinct women encountered in the Gospels: 1)The unnamed female sinner, 2)Mary of Bethany, sister of Martha and Lazarus, and 3) Mary of Magdala, from whom seven demons were cast out according to this passage from St. Luke.

There is much more to the story! However, in clearing away the attritions of centuries we can focus on a few events in her life that serve as inspiration to us who are the people of St. Mary Magdalene.

First, we are called to perseverance at the Cross of Christ. We know without doubt that Mary Magdalene was present in those horrific hours of humiliation, unimaginable suffering and ultimate death. Many other followers of Jesus had left him in these final hours, consumed with fear, cowardice, and uncertainty about his abruptly ended years of ministry. Unlike the others, Mary Magdalene remained there, sharing in the disgrace, shame and pain. In the Apse of our cathedral, she is seen with outstretched arms beneath our crucified and suffering Lord.

Where then is the Cross that you and I are called to stand by with Mary Magdalene today? Certainly it is in the lives of family and friends who suffer in body, mind or spirit; powerfully it is found in the lives of the poor, the hungry, the thirsty and homeless, immigrants and strangers to our land, refugees, and prisoners; painfully it is present in the victims of war and injustice, especially the innocent who suffer in Afghanistan, Palestine and Syria this very day; regrettably it shamefully appears in the lives of the elderly who are lonely and discouraged, sometimes warehoused in awful places of care, and in the millions of orphans abandoned and alone in sub-Saharan Africa because of the scourge of AIDS.

As the people of St. Mary Magdalene, we of this parish community are called to stand by those who starkly encounter the Cross of Christ. The Good Samaritan Program, Catholic Community Services of Utah, and Catholic Relief Services are just a few ways we can stand by the Cross – there are many others. But we must leave today, having celebrated this feast, with a commitment to new action and change.

Secondly, we are called to be enthusiastic witnesses to the risen life of Christ. We can be absolutely certain that Mary Magdalene was granted the ‘paschal privilege’ of being the first to bring this incredible and earth-shattering news: Jesus Christ has triumphed over sin and death, and offers humanity its true hope, purpose and ultimate aspiration. The great Eastern Nave window of this Cathedral strikingly depicts this scene. From our patroness, the Apostle to the Apostles, you and I are invited to share with great zeal the triumph of life over death, and the gravely misunderstood truth that human life is not obtained by taking, consuming or possessing, but rather, human life is correctly lived in patterns of giving, offering, and surrendering.

This news is extremely counter to the constant message of our culture. We think we need the new expensive automobile, the extravagant home, the expensive clothing, and the massing of ‘things and toys’ in order to feel alive, and yet, Pope John Paul II rightly described this obsession as symptomatic of a ‘culture of death,’ and a road of vanity and self-absorption that is truly meaningless and inhuman.

Unlike one hundred years ago, the Catholic Church in the United States is now the largest, most well educated and wealthiest of any other Christian denomination. We have more members of Congress and Justices on the Supreme Court than any other religious group. But are we leading, and using the incredible gifts that God has given us for the advancement of his Kingdom? Like Mary Magdalene’s ‘paschal privilege,’ you and I have been giving a great privilege today. As advocates of the true purpose and meaning of this life, we in this community should witness to the power of the resurrection in our lives, leaving the cathedral today with greater resolve about our life of prayer and friendship with the Lord, our love for all others regardless of race, creed or situation in life, and a greater concern for God’s Kingdom rather than our own Kingdom.

We are blessed to be the People of St. Mary Magdalene, and our sister and patroness now calls us to be the faithful friends of Jesus in this hour, this place, and in the year ahead. By her prayers and the grace of God, may the people who worship and serve in this Cathedral Church be widely and extensively known for their perseverance by the Cross of our suffering Savior, and recognized in this community for their enthusiastic joy and commitment for the Kingdom of the risen and triumphant Lord.

A New Start

Outside of the house that I reside in on the Choir School campus there is a very large and old tree. I have asked many about the species of the tree: every year it produces spectacular blossoms that are very fragrant, and the resultant seed pods are long and slender resembling giant green beans. I'll admit that, every year, I have a small sense of panic as winter concludes that somehow this is the year that the tree will not make it. This small panic is exacerbated by the fact that it is one of the last trees on our campus to show any signs of life at the coming of spring.

Fortunately, as you can see from the photo taken several months ago, the first new buds indicated that tree again survived the ravages of our winter weather, and it is currently in full bloom providing greatly needed shade from the summer heat.

Tomorrow is the Solemnity of St. Mary Magdalene, the day on which we remember our patroness for both the Choir School and Cathedral. Probably no better day to awaken the blog from a period of dormancy, and inaugurate a new title: Vade et Dic, or "Go and tell." These are the words of Jesus of Nazareth to Mary of Magdala when she first encountered him after the resurrection. Mary Magdalene was the first human witness of the Risen Lord, and is traditionally described as "the Apostle to the Apostles" because she was the disciple chosen to bear the first news of Jesus risen from the dead.

It is not without irony that the last previous post announced the departure of Principal Tina McGill. The months that followed demanded extra effort on the part of so many of our staff and parents to ensure a successful transition, and now we are very fortunate to have Mrs. Jill Baillie serving as Principal of the Madeleine Choir School. In recent weeks Mr. Matt Kitterer has joined our team as the Director of Advancement, and so together with so many talented and dedicated members of our staff we are positioned for a great year ahead as we welcome the children back to school on Wednesday August 22nd.

The Choir School is here to serve our community. There is much that remains troubling and vexing about our human communities both on the local and global levels. As a Catholic School we are committed to bringing the best of all human endeavor, inquiry and intelligence to the challenges we face today, preparing our young people to engage the culture and positively impact the communities within which they live. In a particular way, we propose a logic for life taught and lived by Jesus of Nazareth, a logic that can seem counterintuitive and foolish in its pursuit of justice, mercy and peace.

Our learning community at the Choir School is invited to go and tell: to be agents of mercy, compassion, and a greater concern for the common good of all. It is my hope that the blog will serve as means to advance our mission, invite thoughtful reflection, and strengthen our resolve to be a place of hospitality, respect and concern for others.