Letter from the Pastor
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November 17, 2024Where were you last Sunday at 3:00 PM? If you weren’t in Church you missed an extraordinary, beautiful experience. You missed an hour and 20 minutes of music that took you from this world and brought you to a higher place. The 9 voices of the chorus, along with the strings and the organ became a tribute to the higher faculties of the human person. That is what good music does. When words fail to express a reality or an emotion, music supplies the answer. There is something mystical about hearing live instruments; especially the human voice. You just want to close your eyes and go to some place other than where you sit.
In the play, “The Idiot” by the Russian writer Dostoevsky, he has a character say the mysterious remark: “Beauty will save the world.” Beauty is what inspires the best in us, our aspirations for what is good and true, and what connects us to each other. Beauty is the earthly reflection of God in His infinite beauty. Beauty lifts the mind and heart. This is why beauty instills a sense of wonder and reverence.
The Church has always championed the arts. It was the Church, borne out of faith, which produced the world’s masterpieces in visual art and music. It started with the Irish monks copying beautiful gilded manuscripts and books while saving civilization to the Benedictine monks preserving music and religious art. Countries such as Spain, Germany, France, England and Ireland were transformed from barbaric and hostile peoples to centers of learning, conversion, high culture, and architectural development of abbeys, cathedrals, churches and religious artwork. It was developed and financed by the laity who took pride in the intellectual and cultural development of their cities and towns especially in Genoa, Verona, Bologna, Venice, Padua, Paris and Rome.
The fine arts exist to elevate us, to cultivate virtue, to move us towards salvation and to reject sin or evil. Hence, the cultivation of beauty is paramount to aid the development of the human person and reflects the spiritual health of a culture. That is why it is so important to have art and music classes in schools.
In spite of the modern scene devoid of inspiration and real beauty, there is hope. Currently, there is a slow renaissance in art, architecture, poetry, and literature in this country. Beautiful classical churches are being designed and built again. Young people are studying the classical arts of building, sculpture, and painting. Poets are writing in verse again. Composers are writing symphonic music of great beauty that appeals to general working-class audiences, not just the cultural elite. Elementary and high schools are offering Latin and Greek once again and teaching courses on the classics of Western literature, music and visual art. For if there is truly to be a renaissance, we need individual patrons who will take the responsibility of supporting artists seriously. It’s also crucial that Catholics support the education of artists. Artists determine the culture.
Patron Saint of Artists
Please consider becoming a patron of the arts here at St. Margaret’s.If interested, please call the Parish Center.The Antioch Concert Series continues with the following concerts:
Save the Dates:
• Sunday, December 15th at 3:00 PM for our Annual Lessons and Christmas Carols.
• Sunday, February 16th at 3:00 PM, in honor of St. Valentine, Sacred Choral Love Songs.
• Sunday, May 4th at 3:00 PM, in Toner Hall, A Cabaret Night with timeless musical favorites.
All Concerts are followed by Light Food and Wine in Toner Hall.
