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Views from the Choir Loft

A Good Reading

Aurelio Porfiri · September 9, 2014

HAVE OFTEN MENTIONED the name of Divo Barsotti. Divo Barsotti—who died at the age of 92 on February 15, 2006, at his hermitage of Saint Sergius in Settignano, north of Florence—was a priest, a theologian, the founder of the Community of the Children of God, and an extraordinary mystic and spiritual master.

When I discovered his works, in 2005, he was already very old and sick. So I came to know him indirectly through contact with Fr. Serafino Tognetti, the successor of Divo Barsotti as superior of the “Comunita’ dei Figli di Dio,” the congregation Fr. Barsotti had created. From that first contact, I started to study the books of Father Barsotti, reading book after book (he was a hugely prolific writer) and discovering the deepness of this man, a man that was also struggling with the Church at his time, as it has happened for many holy men. As I have mentioned, he was a Christian of extraordinary deepness, presenting a sort of new understanding of our relationship with God.

His works were not progressive, but always respectful and devoted to religious superiors and Catholic hierarchy. But still, having a very strong personality and the gift of parrhesia (the art of speaking clearly and without hypocrisy), sometimes he may have attracted some problems, that he always accepted as a message that God was sending him.

I HAVE RECENTLY FINISHED READING the biography written by Fr. Tognetti, published in Italy by Edizioni San Paolo with the name “Divo Barsotti. Il sacerdote, il mistico, il padre.” It is also available in English from Saint Paul Publications, with the title: “Divo Barsotti. Priest, Mystic, Father.” I am very happy that a work like this is now available for the English speaking world. Divo Barsotti was a lover of the Mass, of Gregorian chant, of Catholic tradition. I was able to see a video on YouTube of Father Barsotti saying the Mass, in which he interrupts himself many times, because of tears streaming incessantly when he was pronouncing the words of the consecration. He was a man immersed in God and his books about liturgy give us an idea of the deepness of what the Mass is and should be and the consciousness of Catholics.

The thoughts of Fr. Barsotti are not devotional or pious, but essential. He is a sort of artist of the word, trying to look for the naked idea more than constructing very pious statements with the help of a well-researched rhetoric. I cannot deny that his ideas have a deep influence on my own personal reflection. This is why I dedicated two books to him drawing on topics that use his teachings.


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Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Rev Divo Barsotti Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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Aurelio Porfiri

About Aurelio Porfiri

Renowned as composer, conductor, theorist, author, pedagogue, and organist, Aurelio Porfiri has served the Church on multiple continents at the highest levels. Born and raised in Italy, he currently serves as Director of Choral Activities and Composer in Residence for Santa Rosa de Lima School (Macao, China).

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Quick Thoughts

19 January 2021 • Confusion over feasts

For several months, we have discussed the complicated history of the various Christmas feasts: the Baptism of the Lord, the feast of the Holy Family, the Epiphany, and so forth. During a discussion, someone questioned my assertion that in some places Christmas had been part of the Epiphany. As time went on, of course, the Epiphany came to represent only three “manifestations” (Magi, Cana, Baptism), but this is not something rigid. For example, if you look at this “Capital E” from the feast of the Epiphany circa 1350AD, you can see it portrays not three mysteries but four—including PHAGIPHANIA when Our Lord fed the 5,000. In any event, anyone who wants proof the Epiphany used to include Christmas can read this passage from Dom Prosper Guéranger.

—Jeff Ostrowski
6 January 2021 • Anglicans on Plainsong

A book published by Anglicans in 1965 has this to say about Abbat Pothier’s Editio Vaticana, the musical edition reproduced by books such as the LIBER USUALIS (Solesmes Abbey): “No performing edition of the music of the Eucharistic Psalmody can afford to ignore the evidence of the current official edition of the Latin Graduale, which is no mere reproduction of a local or partial tradition, but a CENTO resulting from an extended study and comparison of a host of manuscripts gathered from many places. Thus the musical text of the Graduale possesses a measure of authority which cannot lightly be disregarded.” They are absolutely correct.

—Jeff Ostrowski
2 January 2021 • Temptation

When I see idiotic statements made on the internet, I go nuts. When I see heretics promoted by people who should know better, I get angry. Learning to ignore such items is difficult—very difficult. I try to remember the words of Fr. Valentine Young: “Do what God places in front of you each day.” When I am honest, I don’t believe God wants me to dwell on errors and idiocy; there’s nothing I can do about that. During 2021, I will strive to do a better job following the advice of Fr. Valentine.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“The Pope is not an absolute monarch whose thoughts and desires are law. On the contrary: the Pope’s ministry is a guarantee of obedience to Christ and to his Word. He must not proclaim his own ideas, but rather constantly bind himself and the Church to obedience to God’s Word, in the face of every attempt to adapt it or water it down, and every form of opportunism.”

— ‘His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI (11 May 2005)’

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