Readers: Can You Help Some Teen Musicians Make Joyful Noises?

I have written before about the wonderful chamber music orchestra that our older son is privileged to be part of. This eclectic group of musicians, called Stretto Youth Chamber Orchestra, is gathered together by the amazing Sherri Anderson, a joy-filled Christian whose life's mission is to bring music to everyone. Her musicians come from an extraordinary  range of settings - from boarding schools to homeless shelters and foster homes.

I don't think I've ever asked my readers to consider making a tax-deductible contribution to a worthy cause, but I am asking you now.

Thanks to My Truly Secret Santa

Call me a Grinch: I have never participated in Secret Santa; I don't want to spend the time shopping for small gifts for someone I barely know and I really don't need any more clutter in my house. But this year, Santa found me anyway.

The Joy of Ecclesia Domestica and A Question for Readers

I wrote this post a year ago. But it still rings true!

Something remarkable has happened. Our home has become a gathering spot for neighbors and friends. The ability of my husband and me to welcome them and the joy our visitors bring to us are gifts from the Holy Spirit and signs of Christ's welcoming grace. (The picture here is of our neighborhood's annual block party)

I last remember folks stopping by like this when our two boys were toddlers. Generally the visitors were stay-at-home moms or dads who would drop by for a play date, adult conversation or a simple meal.

That was a decade ago; both our boys now are adolescents. The people dropping by now are my sons' preteen or teen friends, as well as young adults in their twenties who I have met through church or CL. They are older neighbors looking for companionship and young mothers whose children like our puggle.

Nothing on the surface is special about our home. It is one of the smallest in our neighborhood. Our glassed-in front porch has a table with chairs that I bought on clearance. Our younger son plays cards at the table with his friends. Our family room has two large sofas and an enormous TV that friends gave us when they moved to Maine. Our former dining room is now a music room for my son's basses (one upright and one electric) as well as the family computer. Our kitchen table is tiny, with just three stools.

Little is particularly Catholic about the way our home looks. Yes, every room has at least one cross or crucifix. But we don't have a holy water font by the front door, or a cellar of blessed salt, or a family altar.

Still, our home is the heart of our family: we pray here, we cook meals together, we welcome friends of all faiths and no faith, we bicker with one another and we try to forgive one another before the sun sets. We deal with the "concreteness of (our) daily existence."

Recognizing the centrality of family life to spiritual life, our Church calls our homes "ecclesia domestica," or domestic churches. John Paul the Great understood their value. "The family finds in the plan of God the Creator and Redeemer not only its identity, what it is, but also its mission." And yet, I always am looking for ways to make our home more welcoming, more reflective of the grace we are blessed with. 

Can you share with me what you do or experience to make your home more of an ecclesia domestica?

Facing a Charism At a Teen Birthday Party

Last night, when I walked into a house with our teen in the Bay Ridge section of Brooklyn, I saw something I've never witnessed: a living room with 30, no maybe 40 happy teenagers, playing guitars and singing.

This was a 17th birthday party for a young man in GS (Gioventù Studentesca), the youth group of CL (Communion and Liberation. ) The happy birthday boy was at the electric piano, with his father by his side on the guitar. Where does all this beauty come from? To me, it is a sign of the Holy Spirit moving among us.

Make a Joyful Noise Cum Sancto Spiritu

This afternoon I discovered that portions of the May chamber-music concert in which my son played now are posted on YouTube. I am thrilled to be able to share this music with you. Vivaldi's Cum Sancto Spiritu, a piece within his Gloria, seemed especially good to post on Pentecost Sunday.

My son's group is called the Stretto Youth Orchestra. They practice in Princeton, NJ and hold their concerts in the Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Trenton, the state capital.