Any Good News?
  • bhcordovabhcordova
    Posts: 1,167
    With all the bad news going around, does anyone have any good news to share? (I'm sure we could all use some)
    Thanked by 1Elmar
  • Liam
    Posts: 5,116
    Christ is risen!
    Thanked by 8Elmar bhcordova CatherineS Carol Chrism PaxMelodious RPBurke cmb
  • Liam
    Posts: 5,116
    Two of the most important words in a confession of faith are recorded in John 11:22, on the lips of St Martha of Bethany:

    "καὶ νῦν" - "Even now"
    Thanked by 3Elmar bhcordova Carol
  • tomjaw
    Posts: 2,789
    We had an underground sung Mass, and some other groups have been celebrating Sung Masses, for select members of the faithful...
    We have also restarted singing Sunday Vespers and Compline with a few members of our choir.
    Thanked by 2Carol francis
  • Elmar
    Posts: 506
    Starting on Corpus Christi we'll have again masses open to the public - daily!

    We are working on a lot of stuff, including a seating plan. After three months of spiritual communion, we are about to rediscover that human nature combines body and soul.

    We'll have 2x2 ft. of 'body space' per person, mutually interconnected (not separated!) by 5 ft. of 'soul space'. This should result in a good balance of physical and spiritual health.

    In some other churches the seating geometry merely consists of 5 ft. spacings - but as our pastor put it: people aren't dots.
    Thanked by 3bhcordova tomjaw Carol
  • mmeladirectress
    Posts: 1,103
    I took this as good news: m_r_taylor's post on another thread

    https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2020/5-june/news/uk/singing-might-not-be-so-great-a-risk-after-all?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR2oC5WtelwFXfY9DttpBttUU3meT5yHjJXOeZlH59_3SdASL8BxEYAJdxE#Echobox=1591279590
    Thanked by 4tomjaw Elmar Carol cesarfranck
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,424
    Masses begin at Walsingham this weekend, Trinity Sunday.
    People will sit two feet apart on every other pew.

    Other good news -
    there is always Hope -
    and now is a good time to listen to, and sing along with, Spem in alium nunquam hadui.
    Thanked by 4tomjaw Elmar Carol cesarfranck
  • CharlesW
    Posts: 11,986
    We started masses again last Sunday, regular schedule. The church was 50% full with social distance spacing. I had one cantor which is all I am allowed for now.
    Thanked by 3Elmar Carol cesarfranck
  • Elmar
    Posts: 506
    People will sit two feet apart on every other pew.
    The church was 50% full with social distance spacing.
    Apart from children sitting on their parent's lap or so, we never had such a close packing in our church since I've been living in this parish.
    You should warn people not to hit their elbow into their neighbor's rib at the sign of the cross.
    (btw. With our seating plan as described above, we get 98 seats in the pews out of 642.)
    Thanked by 1tomjaw
  • tomjaw
    Posts: 2,789
    @Elmar
    We will be fine with any silly 6 foot rules, I have 8 children, my brother has 7, another two families have 5, etc. Oh and several have Grandparents living in the same house. So full bench then empty bench etc.
    Thanked by 2Carol Elmar
  • Elmar
    Posts: 506
    In our church we need two empty benches so you can kneel behind (e.g. elderly) people who cannot, without the risk of sneezing into their neck from 2 ft. distance.
    On the other hand, with families like yours we would get two full benches, two empty benches, two full benches ...

    Btw. we saw reported a few covid-19 outbreaks (more than 100 infected in one) in churches who re-opened without the "silly" spacing rules.
    I'll try to find out - if this kind of boring news ever reaches the media - how many people got infected by a pastor who tested positive this week, and who had three or four masses on Pentecost in different churches who did apply the spacing.
    Thanked by 1tomjaw
  • JaredOstermann
    Posts: 488
    We've been open for three weeks with spacing (fitting 150-200 in a church that seats 700). Congregational singing from the beginning. No choirs. Very little angst. Communion in the hand during Mass. Communion on the tongue after Mass at the Mary altar. Masks recommended.

    To my knowledge there is not a single case in our clergy, congregation, staff, etc. (furiously knocking on wood).

    The following charts may explain why things are more relaxed here (our state never officially shut down, but Sioux Falls certainly did):
    https://covid19.healthdata.org/united-states-of-america/south-dakota

    The testing and hospital capacity charts are especially telling.
    Thanked by 2tomjaw Elmar
  • CatherineS
    Posts: 690
    My good news is only selfish, in that I was surprised by an opportunity for Confession and Communion, which I hadn't had access to since March. That was a huge joy, and I'm very grateful. Trinity Sunday is also the anniversary of my Marian Consecration (a la St. Monfort) which I treasure. So though the messy, unpleasant externals of "Will these Lenten Plot Twists never cease?" seem likely to continue, there are some lovely cheerful bits, too.
    Thanked by 2Elmar tomjaw
  • NihilNominisNihilNominis
    Posts: 1,025
    Yeah, in our state there was just like a state funeral with thousands of people and all of our government officials attending. So I'm assuming that everything will be normal soon. Is that good news?
    Thanked by 2tomjaw CCooze
  • Chris Garton-Zavesky
    Posts: 6,902
    We can resume public (parking lot) Mass on June 15th, here in the maw of the beast.

    My grand daughter is being baptised this coming weekend, and I get to attend.


    Thanked by 7CHGiffen Elmar tomjaw bhcordova Carol Patricia Cecilia CCooze
  • Elmar
    Posts: 506
    So I'm assuming that everything will be normal soon
    I'm afraid this will turn out to be an illusion even sooner.
  • tomjaw
    Posts: 2,789
    I'm afraid this will turn out to be an illusion even sooner.

    Well they do have quite a few reasons to get back to the old ways sooner rather than later. This social distancing and closing businesses is not affordable, the lock down has almost destroyed the public transport system in London, it remains to be seen if it can recover.

    We too have had massed events, illegal of course but the police have done nothing except protect a few public buildings. The really interesting thing is will the numbers of cases pick up. Covid is almost extinct in London at the moment and at least 20% have the antibodies.

    The French have announced that even if cases pick up they will not have another lockdown, they say it is too costly and they cannot afford another. The rest of Europe want to have a holiday season, mainly as 10% of the economy is tourism. They cannot afford not to have a holiday season!
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,424
    Tomjaw -

    The assessments of lock downs which you reference just above remind me of the lieutenant governor of Texas, who said several weeks ago that 'there are more important things than living. We need to revive the economy and get back to work and let all the old people die for the sake of the young.' That was the gist of what he said. (Yes, he actually did say it.) I and many others were appalled. As if the lives of our elders were expendable. As if the 'young' would not grieve for the loss of their grandparents. As if we weren't putting a monetary value on certain people's lives. As if this wouldn't be a calculated human sacrifice. The lieutenant governor is a depraved philistine with no moral compass who values money more than life itself. My thought is, good, let him be the first to die.

    Sorry.
    This wasn't 'good news'; but the good news is even more good in the light of people like this.
    Thanked by 3tomjaw CHGiffen Elmar
  • Elmar
    Posts: 506
    The usual prevention paradox: if you spend a lot of money & work on preventing a big evil and you succeed, it will look like a big waste of resources afterwards.

    We'll never see any trade-off of our parish efforts to make our masses 'corona-proof' - except that we might see (with some 0.x% chance per parish) the effects of not having done enough. The death toll won't show up in national statistics anyway.

    Our meeting will be next Tuesday - prayers please (including all Dutch bischops and priests).
    Thanked by 4Liam a_f_hawkins M. Jackson Osborn PaxMelodious
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,424
    .
  • NihilNominisNihilNominis
    Posts: 1,025
    I mean, something like 5/6 of the smallish number of official deaths in our state were in long-term care facilities, which locked down a good month before anything else and are still locked down.
  • Chris Garton-Zavesky
    Posts: 6,902
    The Diocese of Madison got the lockdown mitigated.
  • Carol
    Posts: 856
    We will begin daily Mass tomorrow! Downside- there will not be Sunday Mass for another weekend yet. Second downside only 25% capacity and I am not supposed to attend Mass as I am above the recommended age to stay home. How weird that all of this is going on just as I have reached the "too old" stage! People say I look younger than my age so I may just take it upon myself to go and I will be careful.

    I don't think there will be any call to sing at Mass for a long time. Our pastor is a bit of a scared-y-cat.
    Thanked by 1cesarfranck
  • a_f_hawkins
    Posts: 3,478
    The Good :- Isle of Man Chief Minister today
    And thirdly, a point of clarification on churches and other places of worship. The Council of Ministers has agreed some time ago that we would no longer dictate how they went about their business. It is for each religious institution to decide for themselves when and how they open.

    Downside :- All I have seen from the Catholic Church so far is a reposting of a piece by Paul Inwood - Don’t let’s start again too quickly! :-(
    Thanked by 3tomjaw CatherineS Elmar
  • m_r_taylor
    Posts: 328
    Our diocese finally opened up today, with max 10 ppl.
    Thanked by 2Elmar CHGiffen
  • Carol
    Posts: 856
    Just found out our parish will celebrate Sunday Mass with a maximum of 87 people (25% of capacity) and only organist will be in choir loft for this weekend. This is, overall, good news!
    Thanked by 3Elmar CharlesW CHGiffen
  • Casavant Organist
    Posts: 807
    We open on June 16th! Thanks be to God! Saturday the 20th we will have a little (socially distanced) quartet at my church at the 5pm Mass! Tallis If Ye Love Me, Byrd Ave Verum, Missa Pange Lingua Gloria.
    Thanked by 5Elmar bhcordova CharlesW CHGiffen Carol
  • tandrews
    Posts: 175
    We've moved communion to after Mass, so the now the Judas Shufflers have to listen to announcements and sing a closing hymn before they get Jesus. :)

    Also, ordination weekend was beautiful and the first Mass for one of said priests was thrown together by Nihil with a small schola and the St. Anne fugue to boot. For me it was my Triduum in terms of busyness, which I've been missing since Laetare Sunday.
    Thanked by 5CHGiffen CharlesW tomjaw NihilNominis Elmar
  • JaredOstermann
    Posts: 488
    To pile on to the good news - we had a men's schola chanting and doing some polyphony for both diaconate and priesthood ordination at the end of May. Then three of us chanted the propers, pentecost sequence, and ordinary for an EF Mass of thanksgiving for one of the new priests. Very enjoyable!
    Thanked by 3CHGiffen tomjaw CharlesW
  • NihilNominisNihilNominis
    Posts: 1,025
    thrown together by Nihil


    Complete accuracy re. the process, potentially misleading about the quality of the result, which was lovely.

    Trio Sonata mvt (tandrews)
    Full I, O, C (Latin)
    Psalm in directum
    Simple Alleluia chant
    Mass VIII
    O God Almighty Father, ATTB
    Jesu Dulcis (chant)
    Jesu Rex Admirabilis, Palestrina
    St Anne Fugue (tandrews)
    Thanked by 2tandrews CHGiffen
  • francis
    Posts: 10,848
    Back into playing the organ again. Some may know that everything is early music in my rep, (big fan of liber organi) although I like Barber and have created a very accurate transcription of his Adagio. Also Faure and Debussy, but for preludes only.
    Thanked by 2CHGiffen cesarfranck
  • StimsonInRehabStimsonInRehab
    Posts: 1,934
    I'm back to directing music at the Chicago parish. I finally found an organ teacher. I fixed my bike. I go fishing with my nephew twice a week now. I planted a vegetable garden and started raising rabbits [pictures below] for meat in my backyard - autonomy just around the corner, right?

    More than likely, I'll be going to seminary in the Fall. Until then, I have gainful employment . . . at a liquor store. Providential.
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    Thanked by 10CHGiffen mattebery tomjaw bhcordova janetgorbitz francis Casavant Organist Paul F. Ford CCooze cesarfranck
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,424
    You are breeding rabbits for meat?
    I had rabbit once - in Montreal.
    It was awful - that is to say... the meat was alright but it was mostly bones and very difficult to get at whatever meat there was.
    Thanked by 1StimsonInRehab
  • StimsonInRehabStimsonInRehab
    Posts: 1,934
    It all depends of the breed of rabbit. I was told to mate my Flemish Giant, Jerome Hines, with another breed which didn't have such a prominent bone structure, so that their progeny would have more meat. Hence, my attempts to introduce him to my Silver Fox, Barbara Hendricks. [Jerome is the last rabbit pictured, Barbara is the first]. Wish me luck though - every time I put Jerry in Babs's cage, she starts singing the mad scene from Lucia de Lammermoor.
    Thanked by 2M. Jackson Osborn Paul F. Ford
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,424
    Well -
    good luck with your animal husbandry.
    I do hope that you have meaty results.
    Thanked by 1StimsonInRehab
  • Richard MixRichard Mix
    Posts: 2,815
    How Rodger and Me of you! A rabbit stew I cooked in Paris is the most memorable meal I've ever had, but that was well before I became a pet owner.
    Thanked by 1StimsonInRehab
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,424
    How could you bear to, um, slaughter these charming little creatures?
    Especially after endowing them with such charming little names?!
    It seems to me that there is something macabre at work here.
    Thanked by 1StimsonInRehab
  • CharlesW
    Posts: 11,986
    I am so glad I am a vegetarian. Good luck with the seminary. Somehow, going from Catholic music to the priesthood sounds like moving up a level in Hell, but more power to you.
    Thanked by 1StimsonInRehab
  • StimsonInRehabStimsonInRehab
    Posts: 1,934
    @Richard - I'll have to name one of my next rabbits Bob Eubanks, in commemoration!

    @Chickson - I've been told I do have a rather dark sense of humor. No doubt, they are charming, and I give them the best possible life they can hope for, but one gains an appreciation for meat once one is familiar with its source, and not as something coming in tube or patty shape.

    @Charles - I'm tempted to quote Milton's Lucifer here, but it seems my purple button as broken. ;)
    Thanked by 3CharlesW tomjaw Carol
  • Liam
    Posts: 5,116
    Rabbit liver is the finest liver. Finer than calf or lamb liver. And surprisingly large given its source.
    Thanked by 4StimsonInRehab tomjaw CHGiffen Jeffrey Quick
  • Carol
    Posts: 856
    We once had a rabbit that my mother named Hasenpfeffer. It took me a long time to get the joke.
    Thanked by 4WGS tomjaw Andrew_Malton bhcordova
  • Jeffrey Quick
    Posts: 2,092
    My vegetable garden is in better shape than in previous years, as I've been able to give it more attention. I just finished (but am puttering with) a commission. I have enough people committed for a flash mob band for the 4th of July (since my regular band has no rehearsal space nor venue because of COVID) and have until then to find euphonium face.
  • m_r_taylor
    Posts: 328
    Finally playing organ again this next weekend. Deo gratias.
    Thanked by 1CharlesW
  • tomjaw
    Posts: 2,789
    Our churches in the England are officially allowed to open (for private prayer) from today. Our church is one of the 20% to open in the first wave. I spent most of the morning stewarding the 40 odd people that came in the 2 hours we were open.
    Thanked by 2chonak Elmar
  • Chris Garton-Zavesky
    Posts: 6,902
    Paganism lost a member this weekend, because my grand daughter was baptized.
    I got to attend a Mass inside a church building, and didn’t Ned to leave my contact information.
    Thanked by 2mmeladirectress CCooze
  • tomjaw
    Posts: 2,789
    @Chris Garton-Zavesky

    If anyone asks me for my contact details, I will be Mr Donald Mallard, 1313 S. Harbor Blvd., Anaheim, CA 92802. My wife will be Margaret, and three of my boys will Hugh, David, and Louis.
    Thanked by 2Carol StimsonInRehab
  • a_f_hawkins
    Posts: 3,478
    If we carry on as we are, by Thursday there will have been no new cases of Covid-19 in this country for a month, and the pubs will be open, with no 'social distancing' laws. Restrictions only on the hospitals, and some delay while they sort out swimming pools and gyms. And crucially, the borders are sealed to people (except for medical treatment).
    HOWEVER I have seen or heard nothing about opening our parish church.
    Thanked by 2tomjaw Carol
  • BruceL
    Posts: 1,072
    We've been very fortunate here in Birmingham to keep the staff singers singing (at least once public worship resumed on Easter VI). Ascension to now has been all polyphonic ordinaries, with a First Communion thrown in for another one! We've also done the entire Gregorian proper every week. It's been a ton of work but is very rejuvenating, and is a constant reminder of why I'm a full-time church musician.

    Oh, and the weather has been in the LOW 60'S in the morning here this week. That's almost impossible for Alabama in June!
    Thanked by 4Elmar tomjaw Carol mattebery
  • Chris Garton-Zavesky
    Posts: 6,902
    Bruce,

    Wow.
  • CCoozeCCooze
    Posts: 1,259
    Yes, these mornings and evenings have been surprisingly cool, for June in the South.

    Though I was unable to be at Mass on Sunday, my niece and the children of many good friends received their First Holy Communion at our now-weekly TLM.
    Though our bishop continues to staunchly refuse to listen to anything that goes against "everyone wear masks" and "Communion on the tongue is dangerous" (and therefore our Sunday Masses have had Communion after Mass, instead), the little ones were allowed to receive during Mass, on the tongue, and I am so happy for them.
    Thanked by 4Elmar tomjaw Carol CHGiffen
  • Elmar
    Posts: 506
    our bishop continues to staunchly refuse to listen to anything that goes against [...] "Communion on the tongue is dangerous" (and therefore our Sunday Masses have had Communion after Mass, instead)
    Without delving into the question of the possible risk of communion on the tongue: can anyone explain the logic behind this? Does this mean that the bishop prohibits communion on the tongue explicitly "during" mass? (???)
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