Pope Benedict's Christmas Album

O Sacred Heart! O Love Divine!

14 O Sacred Heart, O Love Divine.mp3 -

O Sacred Heart! O Love Divine!
Do keep us near to Thee;
And make our love so like to Thine
That we may holy be.

Heart of Jesus hear!
O heart of Love Divine!
Listen to our Prayer;
Make us alway Thine.

O Temple pure! O House of gold!
Our heaven here below
What sweet delight, what wealth untold,
From Thee do ever flow.

Heart of Jesus hear!
O heart of Love Divine!
Listen to our Prayer;
Make us alway Thine.

O Wounded Heart, O Font of tears!
O Throne of grief and pain!
Whereon for the eternal years,
Thy love for man does reign.

Heart of Jesus hear!
O heart of Love Divine!
Listen to our Prayer;
Make us alway Thine.

Ungrateful hearts, forgetful hearts,
The hearts of man have been,
To wound Thy side with cruel darts
Which they have made by sin.

Heart of Jesus hear!
O heart of Love Divine!
Listen to our Prayer;
Make us alway Thine.

To love Mary through the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Lord, let your servant go in peace

I heard this song first time when I accompanied a choir on a Sunday Mass in Cathedral back home last December.. and since then, this beautiful and peaceful tune, and this beautiful prayer by Simeon keep humming in my mind.. It feels very peaceful, hopeful, and, yes, Lord! Let your servant go in peace...



Here is the lyric used on this particular arrangement

Lord, let Your servant go in peace
For Your Word has been fulfilled.

A Child shall be born to the Virgin,
And His Name shall be called, "Emmanuel."

My own eyes have seen Your salvation
Which You have prepared for all men.

A Light shall reveal to the nations
And the glory of Your people, Israel.

Ave Maria (Bach)

When we made our resolutions during the retreat, I wandered over to the church. The choir was practicing and after some time, the pianist played this wonderful piece.

Gaudete!

Latin	English
Gaudete, gaudete! Christus est natus Ex Maria virgine, gaudete!	Rejoice, rejoice! Christ is born Of the Virgin Mary, rejoice!
Tempus adest gratiæ Hoc quod optabamus, Carmina lætitiæ Devote reddamus.	The time of grace has come That we have desired; Let us devoutly return Joyful verses.
Deus homo factus est Natura mirante, Mundus renovatus est A Christo regnante.	God has become man, And nature marvels; The world has been renewed By Christ who is King.
Ezechielis porta Clausa pertransitur, Unde lux est orta Salus invenitur.	The closed gate of Ezechiel Has been passed through; Whence the light is born, Salvation is found.
Ergo nostra cantio, Psallat iam in lustro; Benedicat Domino: Salus Regi nostro.	Therefore let our song Now be sung in brightness Let it give praise to the Lord: Greeting to our King.

Musica Sacra: Impossible?

Via St John's Valdosta

The Priests: Ave Maria and Pie Jesu

Marvelous!

All Things Bright and Beautiful

The Priests

Chant: Music for the Soul

Some relaxing Gregorian chant from the Cistercian monks of Stift Heiligenkreuz
You can buy their popular CD (tens of thousands sold) at the Holy Cross bookshop.

"It's a pretty safe bet that very few of Universal Music's recent signings count Pope Benedict XVI among their fans. But the pontiff is a definite admirer of the latest boys in the hood(s) to sign globally to Universal Classics"

Here's a nice newspaper article on the monks :)

A sense of timelessness is part of the attraction of the chants, which are sung in Latin and, unlike most music, don't have a fixed rhythm and are sung in unison. They are composed in eight "modes", with the words taken from the Bible, usually psalms.

Another monk, Edmund, explained that the origins of the chant lay in pre-Christian Jewish liturgy, but they were assembled and collected by Pope Gregory in the 7th century, and began to be written down in the 11th century. "The monks sing back to God the words he has given us. They are not written by any monk in particular, but developed over the centuries."

The success of the record doesn't seem to have affected the monks' lives too much - the monastery is already a well-known tourist attraction, attracting more than 100,000 visitors a year and the church is packed at feast days and Christmas. "We do find that more people come to hear us sing at vespers," said brother Edmund. The abbot has decreed that they will not perform in any shows, or on television but that people who want to hear the music live can visit the monastery.

"What we are doing is not an artistic performance but continuous prayer," said Johannes Paul. "That is one reason people love the music so much - art and the sacred have become separated in the modern world."

Do not stand at my grave and weep

Ave Maria

Ah...I told you to be patient with me. I'm about to bombard you again with angelic voices. haha. Here are the two beautiful versions of Ave Maria from Libera:

Abide with me

         Please humor me. I just wanted to share this video of one of my favorite songs, sung by my  favorite boy choir, Libera.

Such angelic voices. They have a lot of beautiful songs. You can go look them up on YouTube. Sanctus, Agnus Dei, Far Away, Going Home, Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep, Ave Maria (two beautiful versions) and lots more.haha. You should really check them out.