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Views from the Choir Loft

Being Amazed

Fr. David Friel · March 16, 2014

ANY CHANGES were ushered in with the Third Edition of the Roman Missal in English. Among them, one of my favorites is the inclusion of a unique “Prayer over the People” with the orations for each day of Lent. These prayers are optional, but I like to use them because of the richness of their theology and because they contribute to the sense that Lent is a sacred time unlike the rest of the year.

The “Prayer over the People” appointed for today, the Second Sunday of Lent, is striking. Drawing upon the Gospel of the Transfiguration, it addresses the subject of beauty. The text of the prayer is as follows:

Bless your faithful, we pray, O Lord, with a blessing that endures for ever, and keep them faithful to the Gospel of your Only Begotten Son, so that they may always desire and at last attain that glory whose beauty he showed in his own Body, to the amazement of his Apostles. Through Christ our Lord.

The fullness of Beauty, we are to understand, was on display atop Mt. Tabor in the Body of our Lord. What must that experience have been like? Every artist has experienced moments in which his or her breath was taken away by beauty. It can happen while standing in front of a Rembrandt, or while listening to the string section of an orchestra, or while standing at the conductor’s podium before a polyphonic choir; it can happen while picking flowers, or while watching sunrise, or while meeting a stranger. But, none of these beauties are the fullness of Beauty.

What was the reaction of the chosen three who witnessed the Transfiguration? We are told that their reaction was “amazement.” How long has it been since you were truly “amazed” by the beauty of something or someone?

This could be a great Lenten discipline. What if we set out to be amazed at least once a week, in a truly profound manner? It would require exceptional sensitivity, developed interiority, and adequate silence on our part. Attempting to be “amazed” at this level might be too difficult to accomplish once a day, but perhaps once a week would be an approachable goal.

To be amazed in the same way that Peter, James, and John were amazed would, indeed, be a blessing on all people!

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Beauty, Roman Missal Third Edition Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel served as Parochial Vicar at Saint Anselm Church in Northeast Philly before earning a doctorate in liturgical theology at The Catholic University of America. He presently serves as Vocation Director for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and teaches liturgy at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

    26 January 2023 • FEEDBACK
    “Jeff, I wanted to personally thank you for your spiritual witness at the Symposium & often blogs that you write too. Praying that prayer in the mornings My God, my Father and my all (by Cardinal Merry Del Val), mentioning saints’ stories of Brébeuf, Jogues, John Vianney, monks who fought in WWII, their hard work in spite of terrible conditions, their relentless zeal for the faith, their genuine love for the laypeople they served, etc. Overall though—more than anything concrete I can point to that you did or said—it was your demeanor at the Symposium. I could tell you really absolutely love and believe the Catholic Faith. You don’t get that everywhere, even in Church circles. And your humility is what then makes that shine even brighter. It is super inspiring! God is working through you probably way more than you know.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Symposium Draft Schedule Released!
    Those who head over to the Symposium Website will notice the tentative schedule for 2023 has been released. This is all very exciting! Very soon, we will begin accepting applications, so please make sure you have subscribed to our mailing list. If you are subscribed, that means you'll hear announcements before anyone else. (It’s incredibly easy to subscribe to our mailing list; just scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.)
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Good Friday Polyphony by L. Senfl
    The editor of the Sacred Music Magazine recently made available to the public this splendid article by our own Charles Weaver. It includes an edition of polyphony for the GOOD FRIDAY “Reproaches.” Renaissance composers often set the various offices of Holy Week; e.g. readers will probably be familiar with the beautiful TENEBRAE setting by Father Tomás Luis de Victoria (d. 1611). From what I can tell, Ludwig Senfl (d. 1543) was originally a Catholic priest, but eventually was seduced by Luther and ended up abandoning the sacred priesthood.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

Amid all these old liturgical books, I find that I am happy and at ease; I feel at home.

— Dom André Mocquereau (1884)

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