In case you haven’t noticed, Monsignor Carroll’s confessional has been dismantled. No, he hasn’t ended his wonderful ministry of hearing confessions; you will notice that his name now hangs on the confessional across from his old one. This dismantling is simply the first visible sign in our church of the great project we’ve begun: replacing our current pipe organ – which was never intended for church use and has been in poor repair for many years – with a new pipe organ built specifically for our church. You may recall from the brochure that you received several weeks ago in the mail as we introduced our Keys to the Kingdom Capital Campaign to the parish that we are going to have two organ consoles, one in the choir loft and the other where Msgr. Carroll’s confessional had been. This will make it much easier for the musicians who accompany us at Sunday Mass. Now, they won’t have to run back and forth from the choir loft to play on the organ and the piano. It will also make it much easier on our choirs when they practice for pieces that are to be accompanied by an organ. The choir directors will be able to practice with them from the organ bench that will be located in the old confessional. And, it will allow us to use the organ for the funerals and weddings that are celebrated in our Daily Mass chapel. This additional console will serve us well, I’m sure! And, of course, the organ console in the choir loft will be used for weddings, funerals and all other celebrations when the organ is the sole instrument used on those occasions.
I’m really looking forward to finally having a fully functional organ here in our church. From ancient times, God has called us to worship him and music has always been an important part of our worship. The organ has been the instrument of choice in church for a very long time – ever since Charlemagne had one installed in his chapel in 812AD – because it provides such a wide range of musical voices, from the deep 32’ resultant – that you feel more than you hear – to the twitter of the tiny 6” piccolo, along with ranks that imitate trumpets and oboes and harps that lead the congregation to praise and worship that is pleasing to God.
As I’ve mentioned before, our current organ was never intended for church use. It was originally constructed for an organ teachers’ convention that was held in Philadelphia in 1965. It was then installed in our “new” church – which was being built at that time – the donation of a generous parishioner who recognized the importance of organ music at Mass and realized that funds weren’t available for a new one at that time. Ever since 1995, previous pastors have been exploring the possibility of replacing it; now, we’re finally doing so!
Of course, you will recall from the brochure that the new pipe organ is still being built in Padua, Italy, by Fratelli Ruffatti; it won’t be installed until fall of 2020. In the meantime, we have to dismantle the current pipe organ and prepare the choir loft for the new one. So that we will still have an organ for Mass, Cunningham Piano, the USA representative for Fratelli Ruffatti, has graciously offered to lend us a new digital organ with the stipulation that they may demonstrate this organ to potential customers. I was happy to make this accommodation because, as I’m sure you realize, some of our liturgical music is composed for piano and other music is composed for the organ. We’re very fortunate to have musicians who are accomplished in both instruments and, knowing that some parishioners prefer the organ while others prefer the piano, we try to maintain a balance between the two instruments during our liturgical celebrations.
Speaking of the piano, our new Bösendorfer piano is scheduled to arrive this fall; this will begin the exciting transition in musical excellence here! As I have noted before, our current piano is good; our new one will be spectacular, and will surely enhance our worship of God. The current piano will be moved to the parish center where it will be used for school and parish functions throughout the year.
Let me take this opportunity to thank those of you who have already contributed to this project; to date, 84 families have pledged $644,000 and have already contributed $263,000. The total cost of this project is $1.2 million so I encourage those who haven’t yet gotten involved to do so; the campaign will run until December 2021. You will find brochures on the doors at all the church entrances. Take one home and prayerfully consider how you and your family can contribute to this important project.