About ten days ago I went to a performance of Handel’s Messiah by the University Musical Society at the University of Michigan. I do this almost every year. A week later I was in New York for a funeral. On Saturday my daughter and I spent the afternoon together, and I did something I hadn’t [...]
{ 0 comments }
“Silent Night” is said to be the most popular Christmas carol of all. Its main rival is “White Christmas,” which is a secular song for a religious feast. It is said that Franz Gruber composed it for guitar accompaniment because the organ in his Austrian church was broken. That’s the way the Ignatian Schola of [...]
{ 0 comments }
I’ll bet that you already know and love this week’s Ignatian song, but tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day. There’s no better time to listen to Louis Armstrong sing “What a Wonderful World” again. It celebrates finding God in all things. Hat tip to Rick Malloy, SJ, for the suggestion.
{ 1 comment }
Our Ignatian song this week is U2′s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.” It’s a song of deep spiritual yearning. You broke the bonds And you loosed the chains Carried the cross Of my shame Oh my shame You know I believe it But I still haven’t found what I’m looking for Every [...]
{ 1 comment }
The Ignatian song this week is a ditty called “Give Me Love” by the Beatle George Harrison. It’s a simple song. The words are not especially deep, but I like the twangy guitar and the upbeat cheer Give me love–a very Ignatian prayer. It makes me smile. Here’s a live performance by Harrison.
{ 1 comment }
This week’s Ignatian song is the lovely ballad “Heavenly Day,” written by the eclectic folk-county-rock artist Patty Griffin. I ran across it about the time I was reading an article on the Daily Examen. The Examen is a review of the day that begins with praise and thanksgiving. This song expresses that spirit perfectly. Lyrics [...]
{ 0 comments }
Ignatian spirituality calls us to join Christ’s work in the world–now, today. It looks eagerly for the coming of the Kingdom. A song that captures this mood of expectant faith is “People Get Ready” by Curtis Mayfield. Mayfield wrote it in the midst of the social unrest of the 1960s. He was inspired by Martin [...]
{ 1 comment }
In his autobiography, St. Ignatius Loyola wrote of himself in the third person as “the pilgrim.” As David Fleming, SJ, writes in What Is Ignatian Spirituality?, “Ignatius looked at his entire life as a pilgrimage. His journey seemed for a time to be a meandering one. For many years he pursued a goal indistinctly seen [...]
{ 0 comments }
You may have already seen this week’s Ignatian song on YouTube. More than 14 million people have. It’s an inventive version of “Stand By Me,” sung by musicians all over the world. It’s a creation of the Playing for Change Project which promotes global solidarity through music. It certainly has the Ignatian spirit–open, fresh, and [...]
{ 1 comment }
One of the loveliest pieces of sacred music that I know is Andrew Lloyd Webber’s rendition of “Pie Jesu.” “Pie Jesu” means “Kind Jesus,” and the Latin text calls on “the Lamb of God” to show mercy to his people. It’s here because mercy is at the heart of Ignatian spirituality. The text has an [...]
{ 0 comments }
Sign up for dotMagis updates in an RSS reader
Sign up for dotMagis updates by e-mail