BISHOP OLMSTED

St. Augustine recounts in his autobiography “Confessions” an experience he had during the singing of the Mass.

In the first part of this series on sacred music, I described the meaning of sacred music, the music of the Church’s sacred liturgy, as distinct from “religious music.”

In the first part of this series on sacred music, I described the meaning of sacred music, and the difference between the music of the Church’s sacred liturgy and “religious music” (Dec. 15, 2011). The second part explored, from a historical perspective, the Church’s role in preserving and fostering authentic sacred music for more fruitful participation in the Sacred Mysteries (Jan. 19). In this third part, we now look at the role of sacred music in evangelizing culture.

Amistad con Jesús no comienza con la iniciativa humana. Comienza con Él. “Antes de formarte en el vientre materno, yo te conocía”, nos dice (Jeremías 1:5), “antes de que salieras del seno, yo te había consagrado”.

Friendship with Jesus does not begin with our human initiative. It begins with Him. “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you,” He tells us (Cf. Jer 1:5), “before you were born I dedicated you.”

Crecí en una granja en el noreste de Kansas, donde montar a caballo a nuestra escuela de un sola salón, cuidando de los cerdos y el ganado, trabajando en los campos, y pasar tiempo con la familia vino tan naturalmente como respirar.

It was not, of course, an ideal environment for growing in the faith, and it was probably a different environment than most of you face, but, whatever the circumstances, God provides what we need, if we make good use of what He has made available.

Caminamos rodeados de ángeles. No estamos solos, mientras transitamos por la vida; estos espíritus, creados por Dios, nos rodean en todo momento, aunque no podemos verlos porque son espíritus puros sin cuerpo.

We walk surrounded by angels. We are not alone, as we journey through life; these spirits, created by God, surround us at all times, even though we cannot see them because they are pure spirits without a body.

Throughout the course of human history, wars have been waged and their outcomes have shaped the identity of many nations. But, there is another war, although generally unseen by human eyes, that “is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens” (Eph 6:12).