Over the years, we have written, performed and published 4 albums of Christian music. Most of the pieces on these albums were designed for use in Catholic liturgies; they will fit, however, in most Christian worship settings. As these albums were all first published towards the end of the vinyl-record period, that is the only medium in which all 4 albums are available at this time. Two albums, Remember Me and Living Water, are also available on cassettes. The other two are Sweet Wine and Here Am I. Song books -- with guitar chords -- are available for all 4 albums. Email: themonks@stbenedictsfarm.org.
Sent Ahead Into Egypt
St. Benedict's Farm began in the time when Pope Pius XII was head of the Church. In those days, few could have foreseen the great changes that would be ushered in with the advent of the second Vatican Council. When the push came following the Council to restore the Scriptures to their rightful place in Catholic spirituality, we felt just like Joseph. God sent Joseph into Egypt ahead of his brothers, so that he could help supply their hunger years later. So too, we felt a burden to share our newfound love for Scriptures with our brethren. This we endeavored to do, in our teaching... and in our music. More about this a little later.
Album Contents Described
Remember Me (1975) includes: Songs For Breaking Bread, (parts of Mass): Lord, Have Mercy; Glory to God; Holy, Holy, Holy, Our Father, the Lamb of God. Remember Me, the title piece based on the prayer of the Good Thief, is a favorite in Passiontide and at funerals; Come Alive & Sing, Christians, Sing, are rousing Easter songs, the latter with a catchy chorus; also, The Lord Is Here -- a 6-verse devotional song; The Lord Is My Light and The Canticle of Mary, a meditation on Luke 1:46-56; in The Man Next Door, Jesus' neighbors -- who couldn't see him as anything more than a show-off carpenter -- speak their piece.
Sweet Wine (1976): The title piece, the story of water changed to wine at Cana, makes a beautiful, challenging duet; Safe Under His Wing and If I Wanted To Hide are psalm-based; Yesterday begs us to forget & go forward; The Name of Jesus celebrates Bernard's famous sermon; Sparrows is a lyrical call to trust; Bid Me Come, the brave call of Peter to walk on water; Samson and O My Achin' Rib are humorous pieces, for a youth campfire; I Do Believe resonates with the prayer of a man who had to believe to receive a cure for his son; He Cried is what happened when the rich young man couldn't follow Jesus; Yo Te Amo is a Spanish folk song in the public domain.
Here I Am (1977): No Room and A Child Is Born are Christmas songs; Simeon's Song, the prophecy of an old man; How Beautiful praises the preacher; Consider the Lilies urges us with Christ not to worry; Come to Me is for all who labor; Chosen People, a favorite for Palm Sunday; How Can I Thank Him makes an excellent Communion song; How Long, 0 Lord? and If it Be Possible reflect on the Passion; Tongues of Fire is a must at Pentecost, and Here Am I, the title piece, echoes Isaiah's YES to God's call.
Living Water (1983): You Will Be My People is from Ezekiel 36:25-28; Who Will Roll Away the Stone? asks the spice-bearers' question; Emmaus is the story of recognizing Jesus in the breaking of the Bread; Living Water, the title piece, is inspired by Isaiah 55; Night Song, the Prince of Peace and Angels Sing Glory are Christmas songs; the Hail Mary, recalls how Jesus came to be; two more parts of the Mass are sung, the Memorial Acclamation & the Amen; As The Deer Longs for Water is from the psalms, as is Mica-El, (Who Is Like the Lord?); Sweet Spices is inspired by the Song of Songs.
HOW IS YOUR MUSIC PROGRAM DOING?
The following is from the forward from our Sweet Wine songbook: We are going on 40 years now since Vatican Council II charted a course for renewal of the Sunday liturgy. Things have changed for the better, no doubt, and many churches now have excellent music programs. Nevertheless, in many communities, "getting the congregation to sing" is still a big hurdle... an uphill fight. The reasons for this are many, a main one being a lack of trained leaders. Old-fashioned lethargy -- a hold-over from centuries of silent congregations -- is another. Finally, every program needs good, solid, singable music. In keeping with our spirituality, we have produced 4 albums of Christian music with strong, scriptural lyrics & easy melodies, suitable for the Sunday liturgy. One of our songs, Chosen People, has long been a missalette standard. We began writing shortly after the close of Vatican Council II (1965), and all of our music has been "tested" at our tiny, rural mission of St. Patrick's in Waelder, Texas. After singing them in a few larger parishes we began publishing our 4 albums, first on the "ancient" vinyl LP's, then on 8-track tapes, and lastly on cassette. Songbooks for each are available too. One thing we have found: Our music appeals to all age groups, old as well as young, convincing us it is mainstream.
If your music program is at zero, you may need to begin with a wonder-working "icebreaker," such as Sing Christians, Sing, where the leader (or small choir) carries the verses and the people make short, easy responses . . or echoed responses, as in The Lord Is Here. This lets the congregation hear themselves actually singing, and singing heartily: your toughest hurdle is past! Songs like Remember Me, Safe Under His Wing, Bid Me Come, are easy to learn, and easier to pray. And they are not patronizing sermons that tell you what to think and what to do. If I Wanted To Hide and The Lord Is My Light are upbeat numbers that lend excitement without irreverence. Songs like Sampson, 0 My Achin' Rib, and The Man Next Door, are more than just fun. They teach and build rapport at the same time, and are very useful in "campfire" singing or informal gatherings. Yesterday is a beginner's song for advanced Christians. Sweet Wine is a challenge to any congregation or choir . . . meeting it will make them feel their oats, and their wine will be all the sweeter. "Sing a new song unto the Lord."
Bilingual (Sp/Eng) Music
In progress are lyrics and melodies for several Spanish-English liturgical songs, written and currently being sung at the Sunday liturgy, but as yet, unpublished.