St. John Neumann
Catholic Church

The ancient wisdom of the Catholic Church is absolutely true. When we sing the hymns of God, we are praying twice, once with the intention of the words proclaimed and again, with the sound of the human voice. Singing in praise of God is such a joy!
    
Have you ever been in an audience or a church congregation, where everyone was singing together? Over the 4th of July weekend, when SJN sang America, the beauty and power of the sound shook the roof of our new church. Please God, we need to find a way to sing with that beauty and power at Mass. The Divine Liturgy of the Lord. We want to offer the Lord our hearts, our attentiveness, our worship. We want to pray with all of our heart and soul and mind and strength. We desire to give the Lord all whole self at Mass. How might we praise God in song, with the fervor of our hearts?

The choirs at SJN offer us that leadership. We have four great choirs in the SJN family. I am writing this column for those of you that might consider joining one of the four groups that lead us in song. Mary Lou Schwaner and the musicians and singers that have joined her, offer us strong leadership at the 9:00 morning Mass. If you might want to join this contemporary ensemble, please contact Mary Lou ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ). Luz Forero offers the same kind of leadership with the Hispanic ensemble that offers praise and worship at our 1:00 pm Mass, in Spanish. Please contact Luz if you might want to join in joy of their ministry ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ). At the evening Mass on the Lord's Day, Greg Koerner and the Life Teen band bring a style of music and song to the liturgy that seeks to connect our teens to the Lord of love. Let Greg know if you have a desire to assist the band in their unique ministry ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ).

Dr. Thomas Van Soelen and I were chatting the other day, after our 11:00 am Mass, and he mentioned that with all we have in the new worship space, he would love to have some additional members join the Adult Choir (11:00 am). Thomas mentioned that he and the members of the adult choir have experienced a strengthening of their spiritual life, in the gift they offer us and the Lord. As the members of the choir sing, the living liturgies of Word and Sacrament are experienced with a deeper sense of his presence...  as instrumentation and the unified voices of the choir probe the mystery of God's intimate love for us.

That Adult Choir rehearses on Thursdays, from 7:30 to 9:00 pm. In the fall, the infant to 4-year-old nursery is available during that time period. Why not try out a Thursday night, beginning August 12, in the new music room downstairs, and see what you think. You could also contact Thomas ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , 404-592-7151), and ask him about the 11:00 am choir. All voices have a place in praise of God. All voices have a part to play in the celebration of the Lord. If you, or family and friends, attend another of our liturgies on Sunday and you want to join in the leadership of music, please contact Mary Lou or Luz or Greg.

We need the beauty of liturgical prayer. We hunger and thirst for a renewed spirit. The Lord God takes our music and inspires our hearts. If you enjoy music and want to learn how to take this joy and join it with others... for the greater glory of God... and for our joy... consider joining one of the choirs of SJN.

AMDG

Msgr. David Talley