We’re back! Hallelujah, we’re back!
While I did not actually utter those happy words last summer, they certainly expressed what I was feeling when our choir resumed singing at the 10 a.m. Mass at St. Joseph’s in Port Moody.
Pandemic precautions had of course relegated my fellow choristers and me to, at first, home-viewing of livestreamed Masses and, later, to non-singing attendance in the pews.
After three decades of singing in a choir whose core composition has gone largely unchanged over that period, I felt a special loss when in-person Masses were shut down, forcing me to leave my Choral Praise (Second Edition) and Catholic Book of Worship II hymnals in my carry bag for months on end.
What did I miss? In one word, “joy.” And, my goodness, it’s wonderful to re-embrace that joy now that we are back together.
It is the joy of fellowship, teamwork, and accomplishment that we experience when we meet for our short rehearsals and then head into church to lead the congregation in song during the Mass.
It is the joy we feel in the very act of singing, itself – blending in four-part harmony, finding just the right rhythm, texture, and volume. It’s hard to describe, but a special kind of warmth envelopes you when you sing in a choir.
And it is certainly the joy of bringing to life St. Augustine’s enduring observation that “he who sings prays twice.” The health benefits of singing are well documented, and the spiritual benefits are surely just as powerful.
Indeed, there are several special hymns, such as Were You There?, Come to the Water, and How Great Thou Art that I have sung scores if not hundreds of times and that continue to evoke in me a powerful emotional and spiritual response.
Yes, it’s wonderful to be back singing, with our ever-patient director Jeff Cabralda leading the way. Our pastor, Father Mark McGuckin, is obviously pleased, as he often thanks us at the end of Mass. And we love listening as the congregation joins us, and then hearing from them later about how much they appreciate our singing. I don’t think they realize that we get much more than we give.
Some things have changed, though. We are all wearing masks now, of course, and that’s no fun, especially for deep-breathing basses like me who are apt to fog their glasses when hitting and holding the low notes. (Thankfully, I was able to buy a very effective anti-fog spray that I apply to my glasses every Sunday morning. But there’s nothing that I can purchase that will make breathing through several layers of fabric any easier.)
On a sadder note, two choir members in the photo accompanying this column passed away during our pandemic recess. We miss them dearly and constantly keep them in our prayers. As well, another of those pictured is now seriously ill. We hold her close to our hearts.
I will surely be missing all our departed members as we proceed through Advent and Christmas, seasons when our hymns are particularly rich and moving.
But I will also be buoyed by the knowledge that those who have gone before us have joined the proverbial celestial choir, their souls singing in praise, proclaiming the greatness of God.
Once a chorister, always a chorister.