HEODORE MARIER insisted that three things are necessary for a successful parish music program: (1) support from the pastor; (2) support from the pastor; (3) support from the pastor. To his excellent list, I would only add one item: (4) dignified repertoire that challenges your choir members without exceeding their capability. The following hymn—which is provided in English and Latin—is an example of such repertoire. The melody itself is taken from the Gaufestre melody in the Brébeuf Hymnal. The arrangement is for two voices: all females on the top line, all males on the bottom line. The odd verses can be sung SATB (unaccompanied), or they can be sung in unison with the organ accompaniment provided:
* PDF Download • JERUSALEM LUMINOSA (English + Latin)
—“Jerúsalem Luminósa” • 2-Voice Arrangement of with optional SATB sections.
Sadness • Rehearsal videos for each individual voice have been provided at that link (22493), but most readers won’t bother to click on it—and that fills me with sadness.
Sunday Gets Replaced • This year, the Sunday on 9 November 2025 will be replaced by the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome. In a nutshell, that feast is supposed to remind us that a Catholic church is unlike any other place because of what takes place there. A major ‘theme’ on that feast is the heavenly Jerusalem—so the above arrangement is particularly fitting on that day.
What can one say about the magnificent English translation by Monsignor Ronald Knox? Its language is utterly gorgeous, its internal rhymes truly a tour de force. Although written many years ago, the words of Dr. Herbert Patrick Reginald Finberg (Alcuin Press) come to mind: “No living writer possesses a greater command over the English language than Monsignor Knox.”
