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Pope Francis laicizes North Dakota priest after sexual assault guilty plea

null / Credit: Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Mar 12, 2024 / 13:30 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis has ordered the laicization of a North Dakota priest who pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a woman in that state. 

Diocese of Fargo Bishop John Folda said in a statement this month that former priest Neil Pfeifer “received a dispensation from the clerical state (laicization) from Pope Francis” effective March 8.

Pfeifer himself “sought the dispensation after adult women came forward with allegations of sexual misconduct,” Folda said in his statement. 

“Mr. Pfeifer pleaded guilty on July 13, 2023, to a misdemeanor charge of sexual assault in Stutsman County,” the bishop said.

Laicization is the term for when a priest has been dismissed from the clerical state. An individual who is confirmed as a priest will always remain one, but laicization takes away his ability to licitly execute the functions of the priesthood, except in the extreme situation of encountering someone who is in immediate danger of death.

Someone who has lost the clerical state also no longer has the canonical right to be financially supported by the Church.

Often, a man who is laicized is also dispensed from the obligation of celibacy and permitted to marry, though this is not always the case, especially when someone has been involuntarily removed from the clerical state.

Folda in his statement noted that the decision to laicize a priest “is not made by the local diocese or bishop but is determined by the Holy See.” 

“Laicization means that Mr. Pfeifer has been returned to the lay state and may no longer exercise priestly ministry,” the bishop said. “As a result, in accord with canon law, he may no longer celebrate Mass, hear confessions, or administer other sacraments.” 

“Laicization does not invalidate sacraments that he previously administered,” the prelate added. 

“When members of the clergy or others representing the Church abuse someone, they violate a sacred trust,” Folda said in his statement. 

The diocese announced in 2021 that Pfiefer had been appointed the pastor of St. James Basilica in Jamestown, St. Margaret Mary in Buchanan, and St. Mathias in Windsor.

Pfeifer’s term at those parishes was to last for six years, until 2027.

Judge blocks Texas efforts to close Catholic nonprofit accused of ‘human smuggling’

El Paso, Texas. / Credit: cht725/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Mar 12, 2024 / 11:12 am (CNA).

A Texas judge has temporarily blocked the state attorney general’s efforts to close an El Paso-based Catholic nonprofit accused of facilitating human smuggling.

El Paso County District Court Judge Francisco Dominguez ruled on Monday that Attorney General Ken Paxton could not revoke Annunciation House’s license to operate for now or force it to immediately turn over documents. This allows the nonprofit to continue operations as normal for the time being.

In his ruling, obtained by CNA on Monday, Dominguez accused Paxton of running “roughshod” over Annunciation House “without regard to due process or fair play.”

“There is a real and credible concern that the attempt to prevent Annunciation House from conducting business in Texas was predetermined,” Dominguez wrote in his ruling.

“The attorney general’s efforts to run roughshod over Annunciation House, without regard to due process or fair play, call into question the true motivation for the attorney general’s attempt to prevent Annunciation House from providing the humanitarian and social services that it provides.”

Located just a few minutes from the U.S.-Mexico border, the El Paso-based Annunciation House offers migrants temporary shelter, food and clothing, and advocates on their behalf. 

The attorney general’s office first approached Annunciation House on Feb. 7 with concerns that it may be facilitating illegal immigration. Paxton’s office ordered the nonprofit to immediately turn over various documents and records to examine whether it is engaged in illegal activities. 

Annunciation House’s lawyers requested 30 days to respond, but the attorney general’s office refused. Rather, Paxton’s office informed the organization that if it did not provide the requested documents by Feb. 8, which was the following day, that it would “be in noncompliance.”

On Feb. 20 Paxton filed a lawsuit against Annunciation House, accusing the nonprofit of being “engaged in the operation of an illegal stash house by potentially allowing others to use its real estate to engage in human smuggling.” 

The lawsuit asked the District Court of El Paso County to revoke the organization’s nonprofit registration, which would prohibit it from continuing to operate in Texas.

In response to the lawsuit, Annunciation House issued a statement that called Paxton’s actions “illegal, immoral, and anti-faith” and his allegations “unfounded.” 

Jerome Wesevich, an attorney representing Annunciation House, celebrated the ruling in a statement released Monday.  

“We’re very pleased with the court’s ruling regarding Annunciation House. The court demands that standard civil procedures be followed, which will mean a fair and orderly process for determining what documents the law allows the attorney general to see,” Wesevich said.

“Annunciation House needs to collect sensitive information, including health information, concerning its guests, and it is imperative for the safety and well-being of the community that the releasing of this sensitive information be handled with care and the law in mind,” Wesevich said.

The Texas attorney general’s office did not immediately respond to CNA’s request for comment.

Social conservatives celebrate solid victory in Irish constitutional referendum

Votes are counted in Dublin, Ireland, on March 9, 2024, after voters in the country went to the polls March 8 to decide on a pair of referendums proposing wording changes to the Irish constitution aimed at reflecting secular values. / Credit: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images

Dublin, Ireland, Mar 12, 2024 / 10:00 am (CNA).

Voters defeated two measures that would have deleted an existing mention of mothers in the Irish Constitution and widened the definition of the family.

How the early Christians lived their lives: 5 ways to be a witness today

The healing of a bleeding woman, Rome, Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter. / Credit: Wikimedia Commons

ACI Prensa Staff, Mar 12, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).

The example set by the early followers of Jesus of Nazareth has inspired and resonated with Catholics of all times, including today.

‘The Chosen’ actress Elizabeth Tabish talks Season Four and her own personal faith journey

Elizabeth Tabish as Mary Magdalene in Season Four of "The Chosen." / The Chosen / Mike Kubeisy

CNA Staff, Mar 12, 2024 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers about Season Four of “The Chosen.” 

Season Four of the hit series “The Chosen” has officially made its debut in theaters. The season focuses on the time leading up to Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem and includes important biblical moments such as the raising of Lazarus and the healing of the Roman Centurion’s servant.

In a beautiful moment between Mary Magdalene and Jesus, she turns to him and expresses the sadness she is feeling. Jesus replies: “That’s because you’ve been listening.” This follows the many warnings Jesus has been giving his disciples about what is to come and what he is going to endure. While a majority of the disciples do not quite understand what Jesus is referring to, Mary Magdalene does.

Elizabeth Tabish, the actress who portrays Mary Magdalene in “The Chosen,” recently spoke to CNA about what Mary is going through in Season Four, how she has grown over the past several seasons, and how being a part of the show has rekindled in the actress a love for the Gospels. 

“There are a few characters that are following him that are aware that things are going a certain direction,” Tabish explained. 

“I think because Mary has so much experience with grief and has processed so much in the past and is not unfamiliar with this process that she has a very unique perspective,” she said. “And that she knows that we don’t always get to understand why things happen the way they do, but she also knows that there is light now because of Jesus.”

The actress pointed out that because Mary Magdalene has been “directly healed” by Jesus, she believes that “there’s a trust there and a patience there. And then as everyone’s trying to sort of struggle to make sense of it all, I think there’s a patience within her and she’s becoming this observer, this witness.”

Over the past four seasons, viewers have seen Mary Magdalene at her lowest point — possessed by demons and suicidal — to then being saved by Jesus, falling again in Season Two, and then experiencing Jesus’ mercy and forgiveness. 

Tabish called Mary Magdalene’s character arc a “very realistic portrayal of growth, which is so often two steps forward, one step back.”

She added: “I think in Season Four we really see that version of her — where she feels confident in being in this group and she feels comfortable sharing her opinions and her thoughts on things and those thoughts are sometimes what is needed and what is helpful for others to process their own grieving.”

Mary Magdalene’s growth throughout the show has also given Tabish “permission to grow,” she shared. 

“We see her keep trying to get better and be a better follower and student and observer and listener, and for me that’s been beautiful to get to play that and also get to apply it to my own life,” Tabish said.

“We are allowed to change, we are allowed to grow, and that’s such a beautiful gift because that’s the whole point of life — to keep growing and keep trying to be a better person, and that means caring for others, that means focusing less on yourself and your own pain and your own past and more on others. And I think that is the goal that Mary really represents to me, and that’s the goal of what our lives should be, too.”

The 37-year-old actress has spoken openly about being on the verge of quitting acting right before she booked her job on “The Chosen.” She told CNA that she was only booking jobs for commercials and wasn’t earning enough money to make a living.

“Creatively I was just so frustrated and I just couldn’t see the path forward,” she expressed. “I just couldn’t imagine what was next, and that can lead to some feelings of despair and sort of a sense of being lost in the world.”

When she booked the job to play Mary Magdalene, she explained that she had such a “direct connection and emotional relationship” with the character that it was “uncanny.”

“It was immediately this sort of wake-up. It shook me out of a mental fog I think, or maybe a spiritual fog,” Tabish said.

She shared that she was “very cynical” before joining the show.

“I only saw the bad in religion and churches and the hypocrisy and the abuse and I was very disappointed in some church experiences and some interactions with very devout church-going people,” she expressed. “And so I kind of just threw the baby out with the bathwater. I thought ‘this is hypocritical and this isn’t the Jesus that I grew up with.’”

However, after being a part of “The Chosen” and seeing the way Jesus has been portrayed in the show, she was reminded of the Gospel stories she loved in childhood.

“It has reminded me who Jesus is,” she shared. “The show is not Jesus, but it reminds us of who Jesus was and is. And that has made me go back to the Gospels and reread these things that I did in childhood, that I loved in childhood.”

“The show just brings up so many beautiful points that should not be lost just because someone from church was mean to you one time in the sixth grade,” she added. “Let go of all of that because these stories are way more important than our personal opinions about specific churches or denominations.” 

“Ultimately your actual direct and personal relationship with God and with Jesus is the thing — that’s the most important part of this,” she shared.

Season Four does not currently have a scheduled date for release on streaming services or on “The Chosen” app. Dallas Jenkins, creator, director, and co-writer of “The Chosen,” announced on March 10 in a video that due to legal matters the company is facing, the release of the current season will be delayed.

Vatican's top diplomat says Russia and Ukraine must negotiate

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis was not asking Ukraine to consider surrendering to Russia when he called for negotiations to end the war, but he was calling for both Russia and Ukraine to cease hostilities and engage in peace talks, the Vatican's top diplomat said.

It's "obvious" that creating the conditions for a diplomatic resolution to the war in Ukraine "is not only up to one side, but to both sides," Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, said in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera published March 12. The first step toward reaching peace, he added, is "to put an end to the aggression."

The responsibility for ceasing hostilities in Ukraine falls "first and foremost to the aggressor," he said without explicitly naming Russia. Only then, he said, can negotiations begin.

"The Holy Father explains that to negotiate is not weakness, but strength. It is not surrender, but courage," he said.

The cardinal's comments came after the release March 9 of portion of an interview in which Pope Francis said that the warring sides in Ukraine must have "the courage of the white flag" -- a term typically associated with surrender but which the Vatican said was intended to mean an openness to negotiations.

People hold up a Ukrainian flag at the pope's general audience.
People hold up a Ukrainian flag after Pope Francis solicits prayers for peace in the country during his weekly general audience in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican in this Aug. 23, 2023, file photo. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)

Ukrainian civil and church leaders spoke out in response to the pope's comments. Without directly mentioning Pope Francis, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address March 10 praised church leaders who were on the frontline supporting Ukraine's defense and "not two and a half thousand kilometers away somewhere virtually mediating between someone who wants to live and someone who wants to destroy you."

In a March 10 post on X, Ukraine's foreign minister said the pope's call for negotiations appeared to put good and evil "on the same footing," and the bishops of the Permanent Synod of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church released a statement in which they said that "with Putin there will be no negotiations."

The Ukrainian Embassy to the Holy See said on X March 11 that the Vatican nuncio to Ukraine, Archbishop Visvaldas Kulbokas, had been called to the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs following the pope's comments, which had "disappointed" Ukraine.

Instead of appeals appearing to legalize "the right of the strongest and encouraging him to neglect the norms of the international law," the foreign ministry said in its statement, the pope should be encouraging the international community to unite "to ensure the victory of good over evil."

The ministry also said the pope should be addressing his appeals "to the aggressor, not to the victim."

While noting that the risk of the use of nuclear weapons is real -- and something Russian officials have threatened more than once -- Cardinal Parolin said that the Holy See is more fundamentally concerned about the warring sides becoming "increasingly closed in on their own interests (and) not doing what they can to reach a just and stable peace."

March for Life in Spain takes the mask off culture of death

"Abortion is a crime disguised as a solution" and "The size of your body doesn't take away your rights" are among the signs held high by pro-life marchers in Madrid, Spain, on Sunday, March 10, 2024. / Credit: Nicolás de Cárdenas/ACI Prensa

ACI Prensa Staff, Mar 11, 2024 / 17:00 pm (CNA).

“It’s time to unmask the lies, horrors, businesses, and ideologies that sustain the culture of death,” said the organizers of Spain’s 2024 March for Life.

What to expect at the 2024 Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis

An estimated 24,000 people participated in Eucharistic adoration at the SEEK24 conference in St. Louis on Jan. 3, 2024. / Credit: FOCUS

CNA Staff, Mar 11, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).

The 2024 National Eucharistic Congress, taking place July 17–21 in Indianapolis, is expected to draw tens of thousands of people for Masses, worship, talks, workshops, and more to celebrate Christ’s true presence in the Eucharist. 

The congress, the first such event to be held in the U.S. in over 80 years, is the culmination of a multiyear “Eucharistic Revival” initiative of the U.S. Catholic bishops, which aims to inspire deeper belief in and devotion to the holy Eucharist, the body and blood of Jesus. 

Registration for the congress is now open, and the full schedule is available. The congress will have five masters of ceremonies, including Montse Alvarado, president and chief operating officer of CNA’s parent company, EWTN News, Inc.; Sister Miriam James Heidland, SOLT, host of the “Abiding Together” podcast; Father Josh Johnson, host of the podcast “Ask Father Josh”; and Dave and Lauren Moore, Catholic musicians from Texas. 

Here’s a breakdown of what to expect at the once-in-a-lifetime event.

Day 1: “From the Four Corners” (Wednesday)

The main event Wednesday is the opening procession and the large-scale “Revival Session,” taking place from 7 to 10 p.m. in Lucas Oil Stadium, the massive indoor arena of the Indianapolis Colts. The Revival Sessions, the capstone of each day of the congress, will feature dynamic speakers as well as praise and worship. 

The opening procession will see the culmination of the four National Eucharistic Pilgrimages, which are set to kick off in May. Starting from four different spots — San Francisco, northern Minnesota, southern Texas, and Connecticut — pilgrims will process the Eucharist thousands of miles to Indianapolis, with Catholics invited to join in and walk small segments along the way. 

The keynote speakers for the opening Revival Session are Bishop Andrew Cozzens of Crookston, Minnesota, who spearheaded the U.S. bishops’ initiative of Eucharistic Revival; Cardinal Christophe Pierre, Pope Francis’ apostolic nuncio to the United States; and Sister Bethany Madonna, who accompanies vulnerable pregnant women and ministers to young college students as a Sister of Life. 

Day 2: “The Greatest Love Story” (Thursday)

On Thursday, a “Family Rosary Across America” will be prayed from 8 to 8:30 a.m. Opening liturgies — offered in various languages and various Catholic rites — begin at 8:30 a.m., followed by morning “Impact Sessions” from 10:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. 

The Impact Sessions will consist of talks and workshops “organized with various themes and intended audiences” that attendees can choose from. Organizers of the congress have explained that the event will offer special sessions geared toward different Catholics in attendance to best suit their needs. (The congress website includes detailed information about each session on its “Schedule” page.)

For example, “Cultivate” sessions are geared toward families; “Empower” sessions are for people working as missionaries; “Renewal” sessions are for ministry leaders; “Abide” sessions are specifically for priests; and the “Awaken” sessions are specifically for youth. There will also be “Encuentro” sessions for Spanish-speaking Catholics in attendance. 

From noon to 6:30 p.m., attendees are encouraged to visit the congress’ expo hall, which will feature numerous Catholic apostolates, ministries, religious orders, and vendors. 

The afternoons will include “Breakout Sessions” (also detailed on the “Schedule” page) and Event Experiences from 2 to 4 p.m. Following that, from 4 to 5:15 p.m., are the Afternoon Liturgies. 

Thursday Breakout Session topics include a discussion on ensuring access to the Eucharist for people with disabilities; apologetic defenses of the Eucharist against fundamentalist arguments; a biblical walk through the Mass; and a talk titled “Sex, Gender, and a Sacramental Worldview.”

After a dinner break, the evening’s main event, the Revival Session, begins at 7 p.m. and will feature keynote talks and praise and worship, going into the 10 p.m. hour.

Thursday’s speakers include Father Mike Schmitz, host of the “Bible in a Year” and “Catechism in a Year” podcasts; and Mother Olga of the Sacred Heart, founder and servant mother of the Daughters of Mary of Nazareth in the Archdiocese of Boston. 

Day 3: “Into Gethsemane” (Friday)

Friday’s schedule will be very similar to Thursday’s, with the timing of the morning liturgies, Impact Sessions, lunch and expo hall schedules, and afternoon Breakout Sessions all being the same (but with different Breakout Session topic options available for attendees). 

Breakout sessions this day include a discussion about parish vocation ministries, Catholic health care, and the Eucharist as a source of healing after abortion. 

For the evening Revival Session, the speakers will be Sister Josephine Garrett, a child and adolescent counselor from Texas; and Father Boniface Hicks, a sought-after retreat master and spiritual director.

Day 4: “This is My Body” (Saturday)

After a similar schedule to the previous two days from 8 a.m. until 2:45 p.m., one of the highlights of Saturday will be a mile-long Eucharistic procession around downtown Indianapolis, beginning at 3 p.m. and going until 5 p.m. 

For the evening Revival Session, the speakers will be Bishop Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, founder of Word on Fire Catholic Ministries; and Gloria Purvis, an author, commentator, and the host of “The Gloria Purvis Podcast.” 

Matt Maher, a Canadian musician best known for his contemporary worship hits such as “Lord I Need You” and “Your Grace Is Enough,” will lead a massive worship session in Lucas Oil Stadium in the evening. 

Day 5: “To the Ends of the Earth” (Sunday)

The congress will wrap up with a final Revival Session from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m., followed by a final Family Rosary Across America and then a closing Mass at 10 a.m. celebrated by a papal delegate with music by the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra.

The final two speakers of the congress will be Mother Adela Galindo, a Nicaraguan religious sister; and Chris Stefanick, host of “Real Life Catholic” on EWTN. 

The end of the congress will not mark the end of the multiyear Eucharistic Revival. The third and final year, following the congress, will be dedicated to the Church “going out on mission” to renew the world. 

Jesus wants all people to be saved, pope says at Angelus

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Christians should pray for the grace to look at others with the same mercy and care with which Jesus looks at them, Pope Francis said.

"No one is perfect. We are all sinners, we all make mistakes, and if the Lord were to use his knowledge of our weaknesses to condemn us, no one could be saved," the pope said March 10 before reciting the Angelus prayer with visitors gathered in St. Peter's Square.

Commenting on the day's Gospel reading, Jn 3:14-21, Pope Francis focused on the line: "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him."

When Jesus encounters people in the Gospel, the pope said, he sees all that they are. "There are no secrets before him. He reads their hearts."

Then and now, Jesus sees the whole person, not "to point the finger at us, but to embrace our life, to free us from sins and to save us," he said. "Jesus is not interested in putting us on trial or subjecting us to judgment. He wants none of us to be lost."

Pope leads recitation of the Angelus
Pope Francis leads the recitation of the Angelus prayer from the window of his studio overlooking St. Peter's Square at the Vatican March 10, 2024. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

"The Lord's gaze upon every one of us is not a blinding beacon that dazzles us and puts us in difficulty," he said, "but rather the gentle glimmer of a friendly lamp that helps us to see the good in ourselves and to be aware of the evil so that we may be converted and healed with the support of his grace."

However, Pope Francis said, people often do not treat others with the same kind of care.

Think about how "very often we condemn others," he said. "Many times, we like to speak badly, to go in search of gossip against others. Let us ask the Lord to give us, all of us, this merciful gaze, to look at others as he looks at us."

After reciting the Angelus, Pope Francis mentioned the March 8 celebration of International Women's Day.

"I would like to address a thought and to express my closeness to all women, especially those whose dignity is not respected," he said. "There is still a lot of work that each one of us must do for the equal dignity of women to be genuinely recognized. Institutions, social and political, have the fundamental duty to protect and promote the dignity of every human being, offering to women, the bearers of life, the necessary conditions to be able to welcome the gift of life and assure their children of a worthy existence."

Pope Francis also called attention to "the grave crisis afflicting Haiti," with kidnappings, looting and violence.

"I am close to the church and to the dear Haitian population, which has been plagued by many sufferings for years," he said, asking people to pray that through the intercession of Our Lady of Perpetual Help "every sort of violence may cease and that everyone may offer their contribution to the growth of peace and reconciliation in the country with the renewed support of the international community."

 

Pope: Jesus wants to heal, not condemn

Pope: Jesus wants to heal, not condemn

Pope Francis asked people to pray for the strength to look at others the way Jesus does.

Historic ‘Requiem for the Forgotten’ Mass to premiere in Miami 

Richard Carrillo, director of “Requiem for the Forgotten,” conducts a choir. Carrillo is finishing his doctorate in choral conducting at the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami. / Credit: Kevin White

CNA Staff, Mar 10, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).

A Miami parish will host the world premiere of a new sacred choral composition, Frank La Rocca’s “Requiem for the Forgotten,” during a Mass in memory of those who have died without a proper funeral.  

Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, who will preside at the Mass, commissioned the piece “for the repose of the souls of people on the margins: the homeless, the refugee escaping war and political or religious persecution, the martyrs of totalitarianism in all its forms,” La Rocca explained. 

La Rocca is a prize-winning composer-in-residence at the Benedict XVI Institute for Sacred Music and Divine Liturgy, an organization founded by Cordileone. La Rocca studied at Yale and the University of California-Berkeley. 

Richard Carrillo will conduct the professional choir of 20 singers and the chamber orchestra.

Carrillo, who is finishing his doctorate in choral conducting at the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami, noted that La Rocca is unique in the contemporary era. Besides one composer in the 1980s, Maurice Duruflé, “Frank is the new person, and first person, to do this.”

“He wrote these [for Masses], which is something that’s not been done in music history for centuries,” he said. 

The “Requiem for the Forgotten” includes a new hymn, “Offertory for Ukraine,” written by poet James Matthew Wilson to honor Catholic martyrs persecuted under Soviet communism. 

A poster for composer Frank La Rocca’s “Requiem for the Forgotten.”. Credit: Courtesy of Frank La Rocca
A poster for composer Frank La Rocca’s “Requiem for the Forgotten.”. Credit: Courtesy of Frank La Rocca

“Remembering the heroic witness of our 20th- and 21st-century martyrs is important in itself and also a key to breaking through the mythmaking around various forms of communism,” Cordileone told CNA.

The hymn honors Blessed Andrei Aschak, a Ukrainian priest who was killed by the Bolsheviks in the Soviet era, and asks for his intercession in light of “the disruption” of the recent war.

Carrillo noted that the Requiem is more than just music or a hymn: “It’s a plea, for an actual prayer, for this martyr, this saint in heaven, to continue to pray for the current situation.”

As a conductor, Carrillo said he tries to convey “the true power of music within the Mass” to his fellow musicians — not all of whom are Catholic.

“I want to create a prayerful experience that not only moves the musicians but can be made so that everyone who attends the Mass can be drawn deeper into prayer,” he continued.  

In light of the Eucharistic revival, he hopes the music will bring “greater attention to the Eucharist” and “give it the honor.”

“[The composition] requires a high level of musicianship, musical abilities, technical abilities, to sing well, but it’s not meant for the concert stage — it’s meant for the context of the Mass, which is really the highest form of worship that we have,” he said. 

Conveying the transcendent

La Rocca told CNA that his period of contemplation for this work was “far more challenging” than with any of his previous work, so he kept “a kind of diary.” 

As he composed, La Rocca sought for his music to reflect “how God sees [the forgotten].”

“The deepest need of the forgotten, like the rest of us, is not simply shelter but a home — and that ultimate home is the Church,” he reflected, quoting a note from his diary. 

Composer Frank La Rocca. Credit: Photo courtesy of Frank La Rocca
Composer Frank La Rocca. Credit: Photo courtesy of Frank La Rocca

When asked how his Catholic faith impacts his work, La Rocca noted that “we are all seeking an encounter with the transcendent — with truth and beauty and goodness.” 

“We can get a glimpse of that through the arts and — for some reason — especially music,” he continued. 

History of the ‘musical Mass’

In the context of music history a “musical Mass” can be traced over time, going back to the medieval era with Gregorian chant.

“And so all of the major composers throughout music history have done their own versions of Masses and Requiems,” Carrillo explained.

But these compositions “began to shift away” from churches and moved “more into the concert stage” around the 1700s-1800s, Carrillo explained, adding that La Rocca is doing something new with this Requiem Mass that hasn’t been experienced for centuries. 

“The fact that it’s not just a concert, but we’re doing that in the context of a Mass; that’s, I think, what truly makes it unique and special,” he said. 

“That’s part of what will give this credence when music historians look back in our era,” he reflected. “They will look to this, because it is something that is returning back to the original function of this musical genre.”

Visit here to register for the free in-person event at Epiphany Catholic Church in South Miami on March 15 at 7:30 p.m. or to attend the livestream.