This is the week, my friends! And how wonderful we can celebrate this most wonderful week together in person again. I think Holy Week has the best liturgies of the entire year. These liturgies are at the core of our Christian faith. And, I’d say this week has the best music of the year, too. The music of Holy Week and Easter, particularly of our Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Vigil services, are not only stirring, but works of sheer and simple beauty that bring us deeply into the mysteries of our faith.
The simple beauty of this music is directly tied to the bold liturgical action it accompanies, and because of this, the music is even more powerful and moving. From the anthems sung during the washing of the feet to the chanting of Psalm 22 as the altar is stripped on Maundy Thursday, to the Passion Gospel and anthems sung on Good Friday and the four-part singing of O sacred head now wounded, to the ancient Exultet chant, psalms, and first Easter hymn at the Vigil – together this music and liturgy bring us fully into the salvation story and make it alive within us. It ushers in the numinous – that which is holy, the presence of divine beauty – and allows us to encounter in a more complete way the mysteries of God’s love for us and the world.
And then, there is Easter Day, the culmination of our salvation story. What a joyous celebration we will have, complete with all our finery! Again, our music is directly tied to our liturgy, with much of our music featuring rising figures that represent Christ rising from the dead. We sing the great hymns of Easter in celebration, just as other Christians around the world do on this day.
We have all been given a special and profound gift in our Holy Week & Easter liturgies and its music. It is a gift that will change us. It is a gift that will help us to know God’s love more fully and spread that love throughout the world. I hope you and your loved ones will take advantage of this gift – all of it – so that we might give thanks to our God and allow ourselves to truly experience the profound love that is made present in our time of worship together during this incredible, beautiful, and most holy week.
See you in church!
Soli deo Gloria!
Ben Keseley, Minister of Music