The latest TLM developments in Metro Detroit

Tridentine Community News (February 14, 2010):

Gregorian Chant Workshop Scheduled

A day-long class in Gregorian Chant will be held on Saturday, March 20 from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM at Detroit’s St. Joseph Church. (St. Josaphat is unavailable that day.) Assumption-Windsor and St. Josaphat Tridentine Mass Music Director Wassim Sarweh will lead the class, which will cover music theory as well as practice. Topics will include:

• The Eight Modes of Gregorian Chant
• Understanding rhythms
• A brief history of chant
  
• Singing and conducting chant
• Understanding the many methods of chant

A sung Tridentine Mass will be held at 2:00 PM in St. Joseph Church; participants will serve as the choir for that Mass. The class will be held in the Social Hall of St. Joseph Church, and lunch will be served. Registration costs $30 per adult; students $15 each; seminarians, priests, and religious are free.

To register, please e-mail info@stjosaphatchurch.org or call (248) 250-2740. Registration fees must be paid in advance to St. Joseph Church and may be mailed to the St. Joseph Parish Office, 4440 Russell St., Detroit, MI 48207. You may also drop a clearly designated check into the Tridentine Mass collection baskets at Assumption-Windsor, St. Josaphat, or St. Joseph Churches.

St. Theresa Thursday Mass Now Held Every Week

Thanks to a strong turnout during the trial period, Fr. John Johnson has decided to hold the Thursday 7:00 PM Extraordinary Form Mass at Windsor’s St. Theresa Church every Thursday from now on. As with St. Josaphat’s Monday evening Mass, this will usually be a Low Mass, with High Masses scheduled for major feast days. St. Theresa is located at 1991 Norman Road, near Tecumseh and Pillette Roads on the east side of Windsor, approximately six miles from the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel.

Assumption Church Restoration Project Meeting

On Sunday, February 28 at 3:30 PM, there will be a reception in the basement Social Hall at Assumption Church. We will have a guest speaker: John LaFramboise, the President of Assumption Heritage Trust, the diocesan-appointed entity which is heading the design of and fundraising for the restoration of Assumption Church. Refreshments will be served.

In order to gain more widespread civic and community support, the Assumption restoration project has been expanded to include the creation of an improved campus surrounding the church. As Ontario’s oldest parish and Southwestern Ontario’s oldest church building, Assumption has historical significance beyond its role as a Catholic church.

Because the Extraordinary Form Mass Community has a vested interest in Assumption’s future, including the preservation of its historic architectural features, this meeting will provide an opportunity to learn more about the plans for the church, and to express any questions or concerns about how the restoration project will affect the Latin Mass. Certain items we care about, such as the Communion Rail doors, need particular attention.

The fundraising campaign is targeting major donors to meet the majority of the project cost, as the parish cannot raise the approximately $10,000,000 required on its own. Some significant contributions have already been pledged, including $250,000 from the City of Windsor. As users of Assumption Church’s historic features, the Latin Mass Community may be able to assist the campaign in unique ways, and we will learn what those may be.

[Comments? Please e-mail tridnews@stjosaphatchurch.org. Previous columns are available at www.stjosaphatchurch.org. This edition of Tridentine Community News, with minor editions, is from the St. Josaphat bulletin insert for February 14, 2010. Hat tip to A.B.]