In many churches, this Sunday (or a day near it) is set aside to honor Mary, the mother of Jesus. While keeping the usual lectionary readings for this Sunday, I have nonetheless added in some music from the rich tradition of celebrating Mary. Enjoy.
- Opening Acclamation: from Psalm 51
- First Reading: Proverbs 9:1-6.
- Anthem: Pascale Colasse (1649-1709), “Beata Es Maria”, uploaded to YouTube by “L Jeanne”, used in accordance with Creative Commons license.
- Psalm 34:9-14, King James Version.
- Gloria Patri: Excerpted from Puer Natus Est, sung at the Abbey of St. Martin of Ligugé, uploaded to YouTube by “Musique Sacree”, used in accordance with Creative Commons license.
- Second Reading: Ephesians 5:15-20, World English Bible.
- Hymn: Anthem: William Byrd (1540-1623), “Ave Virgo Sanctissima”, sung by Ars Mvsica. In the public domain, at Archive.org. Translation: “Hail, Holy Virgin, most blessed Mother of God, bright star of the sea. Hail, ever glorious, precious pearl, lovely as the lily, beautiful and perfumed as the rose.”
- Gospel: John 6:51-58, World English Bible.
- Lord’s Prayer (latin): Sung by the Tudor Consort. Public domain.
- Blessing: 2 Corinthians 13.
- Postlude: Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) “Art of Fugue Contrapunctus 1”. Performed by Benjamin Alard on the organ of l’église d’Arques-la-Bataille; Used in accordance with Creative Commons license.
The Bible passages were recorded by Librivox, and are in the public domain. Readings correspond to the Revised Common Lectionary.