Dear Parishioners and Friends,
You wouldn’t think that a simple trip to the beach for a week would result in having a “bucket list” moment, but it did. Allow me to explain.
Did you know that Atlantic City is home to the world’s largest pipe organ? It is a monumental musical instrument built in the Auditorium of the Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, between 1929 and 1932 at the height of the Great Depression. Designed by New Jersey State Senator Emerson L. Richards, this extraordinary instrument has 449 ranks and more than 33,000 pipes. Its eight chambers of pipes are arranged in a “surround-sound” configuration inside one of the largest interior spaces ever created.
For organists and lovers of the pipe organ, Atlantic City and its gigantic musical monument are something of a pilgrimage destination. I’ve known about the organ for years; I have a very detailed and technical 500-page book about it. I’ve seen plenty of YouTube videos about it, but I’ve never seen or heard it in person. Until Wednesday, August 9th.
I reserved a spot in the Curator’s Tour of the organ, which guides visitors through two of the largest pipe chambers ever built, as well as an in-house pipe organ shop which has been in use since the organ was first constructed. During the two-hour tour we saw pipes three feet wide and over 30 feet tall. Some are even double that height, and they make a very loud racket, indeed! At the end of the tour, a daily half-hour recital was played.
The organ might be the largest in the world, but it has suffered a great deal during its lifetime – from hurricanes and floods to clumsy construction workers and neglect. But it is currently being restored to its former glory when it once accompanied 41,000 audience members in singalongs and the National Anthem.
In this photo, the two pipe chambers can be seen to the left and right of the stage. There are several more pipe chambers on the left and right sides of the auditorium as well as in the ceiling. The console (keyboards) of the organ can be seen (barely) on the right side of the stage. Here is a selfie of yours truly in front of the mammoth console with its hundreds of stop tablets and seven keyboards.
No, I didn’t get to play the organ, and I would have been terrified to even try! The organ represents a time and place when music was at the heart of civic life, when the only music one could listen to was performed live, and audiences didn’t just sit passively and listen; they took part in the music-making experience.
On another note, a parishioner asked me recently about when the people are to stand when the presider says “Pray, brothers and sisters…” at the end of the preparation of the gifts during Mass. The Roman Missal says, “The people rise and reply: ‘May the Lord accept the sacrifice…’” So, the proper time is when the response begins; however, I often gesture the assembly to stand as I say “Pray, brothers and sisters.” The point is that when we pray as a community we should be standing, not sitting. We could also see this moment as a longer form of “Let us pray,” with the usual custom of standing. I realize that this might take some getting used to, but in the meantime we will do the best we can!
Blessings on your week ahead!
Fr. Tim Shreenan, O.F.M.Pastor
2nd Collection on August 19/20, 2023
Mission Co-Op: Little Sisters of Mary Immaculate of Gulu
Who we are: The Little Sisters of Mary Immaculate of Gulu (LSMIG) is an indigenous Congregation of Catholic Sisters founded in 1936 in the Archdiocese of Gulu in Northern Uganda( East Africa).
Our Mission: The mission of the LSMIG is to witness the love of Jesus Christ to the most vulnerable, especially women, children, youth and the aged. The LSMIG live their mission through: Catholic education, health, pastoral and social services to the poor and the most vulnerable in the society.
Our Strategy: to break the cycle of pregnancy among youth. As Catholic Sisters, we have devised two strategies to break the cycle of sexual violence, early marriage and child motherhood in the refugee & internally displaced peoples camps and the host community:
1. Catholic community sensitization against sexual violence, early marriage through safe home visits, local radio station programs and youth mobilization.
2. A stigma free Catholic education environment that empowers the child mothers to gain self confidence and to fight for their right to a violence free society.
We kindly invite you through your Pastor and Parish to kindly consider :
• financial support for the mission of the Little Sisters of Mary Immaculate of Gulu towards child mothers in the refugee and the internally displaced peoples camps in northern Uganda. You can make your gift in cash or check to your Parish for the LSMIG.
• Keeping the LSMIG and the mission to the child mothers and the refugees in your prayers.