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Views from the Choir Loft

Ephphetha

Fr. David Friel · September 14, 2012

I vividly remember the first Baptism I ever performed. I had been ordained a transitional deacon just a week or two earlier, and I was scheduled to baptize one child that day. It was at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church in Doylestown, the parish where I was raised, and the baby’s name was going to be “DYLAN.” Fortunately for me, I realized about three minutes before the Baptism began that DYLAN . . . was a girl!

I remember that Baptism so vividly because, to be honest, it was only the second Baptism I ever attended, other than my own. I’m the youngest of four children, my only niece so far was born just last year, and I didn’t grow up with any younger cousins. So, since I was really the youngest in the family, I never had any occasion to go to a Baptism.

One of the prayers in the Baptismal ritual that has struck me ever since that day is an option right at the end of the ceremony. The prayer says this: “The Lord Jesus made the deaf hear and the dumb speak. May He soon touch your ears to receive His Word, and your mouth to proclaim His faith, to the praise and glory of God the Father.” As the priest (or deacon) prays that prayer, he touches his thumb to the baby’s lips and ears. (I remember that vividly, too, because DYLAN tried to bite my thumb!) What a beautiful prayer this is, symbolically asking that the senses of the child might be open to receive the Gospel message.

Obviously, this prayer has its roots in the healing story of Mark, chapter 7, which we heard on Sunday. In fact, the prayer is even called the Ephphetha prayer, after the Hebrew word Jesus uttered to command the senses of the deaf-mute man to “be opened.” Is this an amazing miracle? Certainly. But the story is about much more than just the physical healing of one deaf-mute man. It is a story that concerns every one of us. But, “We’re not deaf and mute,” we might protest. Or are we?

For sure, there are times when we wish we were deaf. Every time I hear the song, Call Me Maybe, I wish I was deaf! But, are there times we actually are—really, truly—deaf?

We may be basically good, church-going people, but it’s probably true of all of us that we can sometimes be deaf to the needs of those around us.
• Are we as husbands and fathers sometimes deaf to our wives and children and their need for our strength & compassion?
• Are we as wives and mothers sometimes deaf to our husbands and children and their need for affirmation & affection?
• Are we as children sometimes deaf to the simple requests of our parents and teachers?
• Can all of us turn a deaf ear to the in-laws & crazy cousins & chatty neighbors who bother and frustrate us, rather than extending a listening ear?
• Perhaps we like to be deaf to the poor around us—the homeless folks we drive by, the immigrants we see on TV, and the aging parents we choose not to visit.

In addition to our deafness, I suspect there are ways we all allow ourselves to become mute.
• It can be as simple as the famous scene in the cafeteria, in this first week of school: do we extend an invitation to the loner to sit at our table?
• Are we quick to give compliments, or do we hold back our praise?
• We’ve learned so much this past year about the scandal and destruction that comes from being silent about abuse, rather than doing the right thing and speaking up.
• Do we have the courage to take a public stand against injustices like abortion and euthanasia and same-sex partnerships?
• Maybe someone in our family struggles with addiction, but we just can’t get up the gumption to confront them, and instead we become a mute enabler.

Our Blessed Lord wants us to know that to be physically deaf or physically mute is not some arch-evil. I’ve known several people who are deaf or mute or blind, and I know they would testify that they live very happy and fulfilling lives. The far greater tragedy is when we allow our hearts to be deaf and our consciences to be muted.

As the minister prayed over us on the day of our own Baptism: May the Lord Jesus touch our ears to receive His Word and our mouths to proclaim His faith, to the praise and glory of God the Father!

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel is a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and serves as Director of Liturgy at Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Bugnini’s Statement (6 November 1966)
    With each passing day, more is revealed about how the enemies of the liturgy accomplished their goals. For instance, Hannibal Bugnini deeply resented the way Vatican II said Gregorian Chant “must be given first place in liturgical services.” On 6 November 1966, his cadre wrote a letter attempting to justify the elimination of Gregorian Chant with this brazen statement: “What really gives a Mass its tone is not so much the songs as it is the prayers and readings.” Bugnini’s cadre then attacked the very heart of Gregorian Chant (viz. the Proprium Missae), bemoaning how the Proprium Missae “is completely new each Sunday and feast day.” There is much more to be said about this topic. Stay tuned.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Urgent! • We Desperately Need Funds!
    A few days ago, the president of Corpus Christi Watershed posted this urgent appeal for funds. Please help us make sure we’re never forced to place our content behind a paywall. We feel it’s crucial that 100% of our content remains free to everyone. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity, entirely dependent upon the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment and no major donors. We run no advertisements and have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $4.00 per month. Thank you!
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

Let us ponder the incontrovertible fact that Eucharistic Adoration in the Ordinary Form (“Novus Ordo”) is always and everywhere celebrated “ad orientem.” Why, then, is there such opposition to Mass being celebrated in that way, which is actually stipulated by the 1970 Missal rubrics?

— A Benedictine Monk (2013)

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