Last Thursday the Catholic Artists Society sponsored an evening of recollection at St Vincent de Paul Church, West 23rd Street. Fr. Gerald Murray, the pastor of St Vincent de Paul, delivered a an inspiring meditation on the role of the artist, referencing the writing of Romano Guardini and Pope Benedict. A reception followed in the Church hall. The Society is gaining traction.  Attendance was good – I encountered one well-known (non-Catholic) painter. It was announced that the Society had obtained its tax exemption and Cardinal Burke had agreed to become its patron!

I regret to say Fr. Murray’s insightful comments concerning the need of the artist to orient himself to the beautiful contrasted greatly with the scandalous neglect of this splendid church by the New York Archdiocese. The condition of the interior is much worse than even two years ago: both side aisles have been cordoned off for water damage, the six large candles behind the altar are all awry and the lower sections of the glorious stained glass windows have been partially knocked out. We would hope that the government of France – if nobody else- could be induced to provide support for the restoration of this glorious monument to the French presence in New York.

Fr. Gerald Murray

The splendid tabernacle and monstrance – but note the candlesticks on what once was the main altar.

1) There will be a Lenten evening of recollection on Wednesday, February 29, 2012, at Holy Innocents Church  after the 6:00 p.m. Solemn High Mass.  Holy Innocents is on West 37th St. between Broadway and 7th Avenue. The evening is being sponsored by the Agnus Dei and Regina Coeli Councils of the Knights of Columbus. Fr. John Perricone will be the celebrant for the Mass and conduct the evening’s events. There will be two reflections, exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, the rosary, confessions and closing Benediction.  .

 2) On Thursday, March 1, 2012, at 7:00 p.m. there will be an evening of recollection at St. Vincent de Paul Church, 123 W. 23rd St., between 6th Ave. and 7th Ave,  sponsored by the Catholic Artists Society. Fr. Gerald Murray will offer a reflection on themes related to the work of the artist and the spiritual life.   If you plan on going, please respond by February 28th to catholicartistssociety@gmail.com

Medieval English Alabaster Sculpture from the Victoria and Albert Museum

Visitors have until February 12 to view an extraordinary exhibit at the Princeton University Art Museum. From around 1350 to 1530 workshops in England produced a vast amount of sculpture in alabaster for both domestic sale and for export all over Europe. It is a remarkable legacy of pre-Reformation English art that has survived the mass destruction of the Catholic images which commenced with the dissolution of the monasteries (and shrines ) in the 1530’s. The pieces in the exhibit are carved stone panels of small to medium size. Some are painted; most have lost any original coloration they once  may have had. The pieces range from large sets of images suitable for the altar of a church or chapel to small objects of private household devotion.

It is an extraordinary opportunity to observe this kind of sculpture. For in no way can a photographic image do them justice. The white,soft, semi translucent alabaster – painted or not – positively glows under the astutely disposed and focused lighting of this exhibit.  The fine details of the carving and painting are revealed. What would be the appearance of these objects in the “living” light of candles?

The art of the English “alabastermen” may seem strange to us. It is generally expressionistic and remote from the spirit of naturalist observation as found either in the contemporary Renaissance or even in the earlier High Gothic!  For example, the risen Christ emerges from the tomb in a veritable explosion with a dramatic outstretched arm and a foot set on a fallen guard. Complex narratives or theological programs are compressed within the boundaries of a single small panel. Scholars at times detect the influence of contemporary passion plays. Certain sculptures, however, show that notions of form derived from Flanders or even the Italian Renaissance were already making their presence felt before production ceased.

The English alabaster workshops did make sophisticated objects for wealthy patrons or for churches. Yet much of their vast output was the production of standardized images for much more modest purchasers. As a founder of the study of these images pointed out, the English alabaster sculptures represent an authentic, popular religious art. In a number of respects this art is the equivalent of that of the icon-painters of the East. If we view it as such, its achievements compare very favorably with the products of that tradition.  Moreover, these surviving fragments of a great tradition also give us an idea of the scale of the artistic heritage destroyed in England between 1534 and 1660

There is a fine catalogue obtainable from Amazon(see above). The exhibit itself provides ample commentary  – different from that of the catalogue and here and there also more  noticeably PC.

An evening of recollection, with benediction and the opportunity of confession sponsored by the Catholic Artists Society – all in the magnificent surroundings of Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral (now a basilica). It was followed by a most pleasant reception in the rectory of the church – in the very room where Archbishop McCloskey received his cardinal’s hat – he was the first American Cardinal.

An inspiring meditation, specifically addressed to the artistic community, was given by Fr.Jonathan Morris. He referred to Pope Benedict’s comments on the special role of the artist. Through the “production” of art the artist in a sense shares in the ministry of the church; he leads people to the same goal as the clergy seek to do. Second, the artist’s experience of beauty contributes to the spiritual development of the artist himself. His talent is not separate from his spiritual life but is a means by which the Holy Spirit seeks to lead him to salvation. The experience of beauty does not remove us from reality but deepens our encounter with it. This is why the artist often has a higher “velocity” of spiritual life. The temptation to mediocrity, however, is a threat to us all but expecially to the artist. For the devil wants nothing more than that a man should be only a “good guy.”

Many thanks to the pastor of St. Patrick’s, Monsignor Donald Sakano, for hosting this special evening.

This Hallowe’en – Monday, October 31st – The Catholic Artists Society will host its second major event for artists, patrons and friends of the Society, celebrating All Hallows Eve with sung vespers, a lecture and reception at the Dominican parish of St. Vincent Ferrer in Manhattan.

The evening begins at 6.30pm in the church of St. Vincent Ferrer. Internationally renowned author and speaker Father Uwe Michael Lang, from London’s Brompton Oratory, will preside at the ancient and beautiful liturgy of First Vespers for All Saints. Fr. Lang is the director of the masters program in Sacred Art, Architecture and Liturgy atthe Regina Apostolorum in Rome, and a consultor to the office for papal liturgy.  Fr.Bruno Shah, OP from St. Vincent Ferrer, and Fr. Michael Barone (archdiocese of Newark) will assist in the liturgical celebration, which will conclude with benediction. Gregorian chant and polyphonic settings for vespers will be provided by a schola of professional singers led by David J. Hughes, head of music at St. Mary’s Church in Norwalk, CT.

Following vespers, Father Lang will give a presentation entitled Art, Beauty and the Sacred in the parish hall. A reception with refreshments will follow. Donations are welcome to cover the costs of the event.

Inspired by Pope Benedict XVI’s call to artists to be “custodians of Beauty” and “heralds and witnesses of Hope to humanity”, the Catholic Artists Society is an association of arts, entertainment and media professionals dedicated to working for the greater glory of God and the common good. In keeping with the aims of the New Evangelization, the Society seeks to reach out to allartists, as well as to patrons and audiences, to promote a public discourse on the meaning of Beauty, and to cultivate a greater understanding of Christianity’s contribution to the shaping of our cultural heritage and civilization.

Date: Monday, October 31st , 2011

Time: Vespers at 6.30 PM; lecture and reception immediately following.

Location: Church of St.Vincent Ferrer, 869 Lexington Avenue (@ E. 66th Street), NYC.

Please direct queries to: catholicartistssociety@gmail.com

Ealing Abbey Choir of Men and Boys, London makes their debut in New York City at the Church of  Saint Agnes on Wednesday, October 26th in an hour long program beginning at 6:15. 

Addresss of St Agnes: 143 East 43rd Street, New York. For further information contact James Wetzel at jwetzel@stagneschurchnyc.org or call 412-951-7441.

Vespers on Friday Evening.

“For the whole Church…” This weekend we enjoyed a special opportunity to get to know the extraordinary variety  of the Traditionalist movement across the world. We  in America  encountered leading intellectuals who have become, each in a different capacity, spokesmen for Tradition. For the visitors from Europe, it was a chance to experience the flourishing  life of a post-Summorum Pontificum community in a diocesan parish.  The liturgical aspects of the weekend were also ” extraordinary” in a number of respects. We at the Society of St. Hugh of Cluny seem to be forming our own tradition of scheduling “events”  on days with (a) unfavorable weather and (b) unusually demanding liturgical requirements. For who could forget the Friday Evening Vespers and then the Solemn Mass for Ember Saturday with the chanting of the five lessons from the Old Testament, culminating in the song of the three youths in the fire? Our thanks to the clergy (Fr. Greg Markey, pastor; Deacon Steve Genovese and Fr. Richard Cipolla) and the masters of ceremony and servers of St Marys’ parish,   and also to the schola of the parish under the direction of Mr. David Hughes.  Our thanks also to  women of the parish who labored devotedly for long hours over the weekend to assure the uniformly high quality of the parish hall facilities, the food and the refreshments throughout the conference. 

Fr. Cipolla, in the conference’s first presentation Friday evening, spoke of what is happening at St Mary’s parish as a result of Summorum Pontificum and Universae Ecclesiae. The profound effects are felt on both the spiritual and physical planes. A major repainting and restoration of the interior of the church, for example, is continuing subsequent to the restoration of the extraordinary form liturgy.

The chanting of the lessons on Ember Saturday.

Flectamus Genua….levate.

Prof. Luc Perrin (left) gave us a whirlwind tour of the history of French Traditionalism, its status and future. His report on the current state of ‘Frenchchurch” is understandably bleak. Objectively speaking, the number of Traditionalists is small and the hostility of the episcopate overwhelming.  But I think that the nation which upheld the cause of Tradition for so many years still has many sprititual gifts to offer to the world.  Dr. Lorenz Jaeger (right) offered a series of philosophical and scriptural reflections on liturgy, faith and modernity.  The liturgy of the morning, in which the readings reached back to the detailed provisons of Leviticus served as an (unintentionally) appropriate background for Dr. Jaeger’s presention.  For the exacting liturgical requirements of the Old Testament and the heavenly liturgy set forth in book of Revelation in the New lead us to a philosophy of the liturgy in which Traditomnalism is a natural consequence.

Monsignor Ignacio Barreiro provided a detailed legal analysis of Universae Ecclesiae and its significance for the Traditonalist movement. First, he situated this document – and Summorum Pontificum as well – in the context of the writings of Pope Benedict- both as cardinal and supreme pontiff – on the liturgy. Then, Monsignor Barreiro demonstrated how the new Instruction confirms the liberating effect of Summorum Pontificum against those who wanted to redefine it as merely another variant of an “indult.”

The conference concluded with a lively dialogue among the speakers and with the audience. I should add that there was opportunity during and after the conference for all of us to get to know each other better. That, after all, was one of the Society’s main aims in organizing this event. In his presentation, Prof. Perrin spoke of the preexisting “networks” in France that enabled the survival of the Traditional liturgy in that country. Going forward, we at the Society of St. Hugh of Cluny hope to facilitate the establishment of such networks in this part of the country through further events as time and resources permit.