STUPENDOUS!

Our high altar with candles and flowers

I was so blessed to be able to attend the Vigil and MidNight Mass at
Saint Benedict Parish here in Baltimore. It was STUPENDOUS. The
beautiful church was exquisitely decorated and with innumerable lights
(and the church lights weren't turned up until after the Eucharistic
Prayer -- but there was enough light to see the words of the Hymnal). 
What seemed like dozens of candles were lit after the Christmas Gloria. 
A beautiful atmosphere!

The music, too, was stupendous. Besides an excellent choir (with some
use of handbells), a terrific cantor (who entoned the wonderful
proclamation of the Nativity just at MidNight), there was a classical
guitarist and a brass ensemble as well. Add to this a good organ and
good organist and you can imagine how the music might have rang out.

Father Paschal preaching with angels overhead -- Sunday after Christmas

There was a real Vigil before Mass, based on the Vigil of Easter. There
were readings from Scripture, music in between, silent reflection,
prayer and carols. The last reading of the Vigil was a section of a
homily of Pope St Leo the Great which is just beautiful and so pertinent
for our own days, so many centuries later.

The pastor, Father Paschal, spares nothing when it comes to the Liturgy
of the Church! Clouds of incense filled the huge church with the sweet
aroma of Christ. The vestments used added to the visual feast! Fr
Paschal was able to salvage a good number of those gorgeous gold
dalmatics, etc. during the cleaning out days after Vatican II. And he
uses them to great advantage: the servers, of both sexes, are decked in
these stunning vestments! What color! What a festive "feel!"

Fr Paschal is "bi-ritual" and when he carries the Infant to the immense
Crib he wears his gold-crown like mitre (he's a mitred archimandrite).
This, too, glistens with light! (Saint Benedict's even has a lovely
Byzantine Chapel built inside the main church).

Our large Nativity Scene in side chapel

Adding to the prayerful atmosphere was the presence of a half dozen 
Missionaries of Charity in the beautiful white and blue sari of their 
habit from Mother Teresa of Calcutta. They radiate the love of 
Christ and warmed our church once again.

All in all, the overwhelming experience I had was a profound joy at the
sheer wonder of the Feast (and, for me, it was a bit special since for a
while I didn't expect to live to see yet another Christmas). I wept a
lot at this celebration: a real celebration of all the senses centered
in Christ the Savior born today.

And I am so grateful for parishes like St Benedict and dear Dom
Pasquale (Fr Paschal) and his wonderful assistants and helpers and its
marvelous outreaches to the poor as well as the extraordinary quality
of its liturgical life. A wonderful marriage of the vertical and the
horizontal. And a place of JOY!

Jared on the harp with soft carols before Mass

written by Gerard Serafin, webservant

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