CATHOLICS AND THE EUCHARIST

 

As the Catholic Church in the U.S. is embarking on a National Eucharistic Revival in an effort to foster a greater understanding and appreciation that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist Congress (the first in 83 years) in Indianapolis from July 17–21, there is good news. Perhaps the Holy Spirit at work?

A new study has found that 69% of Mass-going Catholics believe in the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist.  In 2019 Pew Research Center  did a survey which found that only a third of Catholics believe in the true Presence. A most shocking result but the Catholic firm, Vinea Research, conducted a new survey in late 2022, using language different from Pew’s, produced a figure that more accurately represents how Catholics understand the Eucharist.

Of Catholics who “seldom” attend Mass, only 51% expressed belief in the Real Presence. 81% of Catholics who attend weekly and 92% who attend more than weekly said they believe. Even among Catholics who only attend a few times a year, nearly two-thirds said they believe in the Real Presence.(If they truly believe why do they not receive more often? I ued to tell  the teens, if someone offered you $1,000 every Sunday, you would be there is a flash.  So why not your God?)

Universal prayer for the Eucharistic Revival:

Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Thank You for Your great love for us. Help us to know, love and serve You above all other things. Fill our hearts and minds with a deep knowledge and love of the Real Presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

Art: Kallan Stout St. Mary of the Lake Catholic Church, Lake Charles, Louisianna

Acknowledging how so many people doubt or fail to recognize the True Presence in the Eucharist, Kallan said she wanted this piece of art to illustrate the work of His Presence beyond the bread. 

“Endless graces are waiting for us in each Mass and each visit to Adoration. What a gift we have in the Eucharist!” 

A CONDUCTOR'S FIGHT FOR HER COUNTRY

A Ukrainian female conductor that I discovered when doing the previous Blog on Illia Ovcharenko  (Photo to left) is OKSANA YAROSLAVIVNA LYNIV. Known for her exceptional combination of precision and artistic temperament in conducting, Oksana is a prominent figure on the international stage and ranks among the leading conductors of this generation.

Even a few years ago, female conductors were rare, but recently, more and more successful female conductors are emerging in the international stage and Oksana is nurturing female assistant conductors to support female conductors.

 The first Ukrainian conductor to step onto the Metropolitan Opera stage in 141 years, Oksana is working hard to make the plight of her country kown to the world, especially the importance of US aid to her homeland.

She was born in 1978 in Brody. She is the daughter of two musicians and the granddaughter of a choral conductor. Her father is also a choral conductor.

In her youth, she studied piano, flute, violin and singing. From 1992 to 1996, she studied flute and conducting at the Stanislav Liudkevych Music School in Lviv. She first conducted an orchestra at age 16, which aroused her interest in conducting.

 From 1996 to 2003, she was a conducting student at the Lysenko music academy in Lviv, and during her studies, Oksana became an assistant conductor at Lviv Opera to Myron Yusypovych. She founded the Youth Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine in 2016. She became principal guest conductor of the Leopolis Chamber Symphony Orchestra in 2003.

She conducted the 2021  opening of the Bayreuth Festival, a new production of Der fliegende Holländer, as the first female conductor at the festival.  Oksana has been the Music Director of Teatro Comunale di Bologna since 2022, making her the first female chief conductor of an Italian opera house.

She has been very vocal on the effects of the crises in her country. “War injures everyone and every day a state of moral and physical exhaustion also breeds a feeling of powerlessness, aggression and anger. It is very important for all of us, in Ukraine and abroad, to be able to gather, consolidate all efforts to fight the enemy and communicate with the world about Ukraine as a state.” 

She has shared the horrifying situation which members of the Ukraine Youth Orchestra she founded face. Some of their family members have died and some face daily danger from the war. Under these circumstances, she couldn’t help but alter her perspective on music.

“Friends died, buildings crumbled, and, experiencing death every day, I wanted to stop it. I couldn't understand how people could try to eliminate each other, how one country could bomb another. It became a personal issue for me. Now, music is no longer abstract. It has become directly relevant to me," she said, adding that when she performs Verdi's "Requiem" now, it's not just because it's a famous masterpiece. "It makes me naturally think of the victims.”

“Art is not just mere entertainment. It is a process of asking questions and seeking answers to understand what is happening in the world, and it is an act of healing the soul,” she emphasized.

 In 2022, after the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, Oksana became a co-initiator of the cooperation project "Music for the Future," an evacuation music camp for young Ukrainian musicians in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Oksana Lyniv emerged as a dedicated cultural ambassador of her country. She passionately advocates for the performance of Ukrainian composers on international stages.

"One of the God's greatest gifts to people is the gift of choice. And it is this question of choice that is relevant to me every day. Every evening I ask myself what I lived today for? The most important thing for me is to be a co-creator of my life, the life of our (and my) country and so that of our entire civilization."

PAINTING FLOWERS - FOR THE FIRST DAY OF SUMMER

 

“I know I can’t paint a flower.
I cannot paint the sun on a bright summer morning,
but maybe in terms of paint color
I can convey to you my experience of the flower
or the experience that makes the flower significant to me.”

Georgia O'Keeffe, 1930

A HEART OF GOLD

We are already looking forward to our annual Orcas Chamber music Festival.  The new program is filled with new musicians- for us anyway.  One of interest for this Blogger, as I have been of late focusing on Ukrainian artists, is the young pianist ILLIA OVCHARENKO.

“I used to always be nervous right before I stepped on stage. Now I think of my family and friends who remained in Ukraine. Having to live with the knowledge that a bomb could drop at any moment puts the term ‘stress’ into perspective…”

He, like other Ukrainian musicians living and working outside the homeland, try to showcase the music of their country, which is not well known in the Western world.

The year his country was attacked by Russia, was also the year of his musical break- thru. At the age of 21, he had already won numerous piano competitions, but then won the prestigious Honens International Competition  in Calgary, Canada, whicht seeks to identify the “Complete Artist” ie. someone who demonstrates technical mastery, perseverance against adversity, and an understanding of musical text that is both intellectual and emotional. Soon after he made his debut at Carnegie Hall.

“Of course, all of it has been life-changing, and I truly believe the tragedy and the successes are inextricably linked”, he has said.

In an interview in Brussels (La Monnaie Symphony) he said: Everything I have achieved in the past few months, I dedicate to my friends and my family members who are still in Ukraine. In the beginning, right after the war broke out, it was just too difficult getting back out on stage again. But when you feel how your family back home supports you – even in this situation – and how proud they are of what you’re doing, then you can't help but draw strength and inspiration from that….  concert and interview requests are hard to keep up with, but they allow me to tell my story and talk about my culture."  He mentions Valentyn Silvestrov (see Blog June 8). 

"Without these tragic events, these artists might never get the attention they absolutely deserve. By playing them, I want to promote the Ukrainian repertoire."

lIlia Ovcharenko was born in 2001 in Chernihiv, a historic city in northern Ukraine that was under siege by the Russian army from 24 February to 4 April 2022. Neither of his parents are musical, both being teachers.  

Illia started playing piano at the age of 8 and by the time he was 12 he had been invited to study at the most famous music school in Ukraine – Kiev Special Music Secondary school.

.At the age of 9, he won his first competition and at 10 he gave a solo recital in the Philharmonic center of Ukraine, performing Mozart piano concerto No.23.

 Illia graduated from Mykola Lysenko Secondary Special Music school in 2018. He is now studying for his master's degree at the Hanover  (Germany) University of Music, Drama and Media after completing his bachelor's degree at the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music in Tel Aviv under the direction of Arie Vardi.

“…technically flawless and impeccably musical…” — International Piano

Photo: Illia and Jackie Kimora Parker (Orcas Island Chamber Music Festival Artistic Adviser) last summer at Toronto Summer Music Festival

SUMMER

 

                                        In  Praise  of  Summer   

God speaks:

“I am the breeze that nurtures all things green

I am the rain coming from the dew

that causes the grasses to laugh with joy of life.

I am the yearning for good.”  

                                                St. Hildegard

MUSICAL SPOKESMAN FOR UKRAINE

  

Again in looking at one person, I find another. The article about the Ukrainian conductor Kirill Karabits (see previous Blog), led me to a composer I had never heard of. As the war in Ukraine continues, their artists and musicians continue to work in whatever capacity they can, often to help provide support for those behind the lines.

                                                           Valentin with Kirill Karabits

Among them is the renowned Ukrainian composer, VALENTIN SILVESTROV, who will be 87 in September. In the beginning, Valentin did not want to leave Kiev, but as the war progressed he and his daughter and granddaughter were forced to flee to Berlin on the night of March 8, 2022. Since every train was too packed to board, they were lucky, an acquaintance spied them and drove, via back roads, to the Polish border, where they caught a train to Germany. His grandson stayed behind as a volunteer with the war effort.

 His Prayer for the Ukraine, composed in 2014, is now seeing performances in concert halls around the world. This lovely piece can be heard on Youtube. Valentin Silvestrov is perhaps the most important living Ukrainian composer. His music is now performed worldwide as a symbol of unity and solidarity with the Ukrainian people.  and stillness. 

He is  known as a master of poetryn for his quiet, tranquil tones, both in chamber music and in works for larger orchestras, yet his compositions are both sensual and thoughtful.  "I do not write new music. My music is a response to and an echo of what already exists," Valentin has said.

In an interview with "Deutsche Welle", the usually quiet Ukrainian composer openly condems Russia’s President Vladimir Putin in the strongest terms, but not Russian culture. Rather, he considers Russian and Ukrainian music to be a part of European culture. Valentin sees his music as a response to totalitarianism and violence. It is sad that so many Russian artists across the world have been rejected due to the regime of one madman!

In 1974, under pressure to conform to both official precepts of socialist realism and fashionable modernism, and likewise to apologize for his walkout from a composers' meeting to protest the Soviet Union invasion of Czechoslovakia, Valentin chose to withdraw from the spotlight. In this period he began to reject his previously modernist style.

 Instead, he composed Quiet Songs (1977)) a cycle intended to be played in private. Later, after the fall of the Soviet Union, he also began to compose spiritual and religious works influenced by the style of Russian and Ukrainian Orthodox liturgical music.

  Some of his music, particularly the symphonies,  tended at times towards the tempestuous, yet much of his choral work is more in keeping with his chamber music, in that it displays the gentler, quieter side of his palette. This, as the composer has explained, is entirely intentional: ‘It’s no accident that the symbolic crown and ending of the Maidan 2014 cycle is a quiet lullaby. For I’m neither able nor willing to duplicate the noise of this terrible war. Instead, I want to show how fragile our civilization is.’

 Valentin laments how his stock has risen since the Russian onslaught. He's now the musical spokesperson for his homeland, and more people are hearing his music. Even at his age and in exile he is still composing.

The BBC’s Andrew McGregor said: “Like so much Silverstov, you don't have to know how or why it works to be deeply affected by it. It feels simple, yet it obviously isn't; it's profoundly beautiful, timeless, and unforgettable”. 

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HEARTS OF CHRIST & HIS MOTHER

 

Tomorrow and Saturday we celebrate the feasts of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of His Mother Mary (Saturday).

Pope Francis announced yesterday that he is preparing a reflection, which will be published in September, on the Sacred Heart of Jesus for a world “that seems to have lost its heart”.

 “I am happy to prepare a document that brings together the valuable reflections of previous magisterial texts and a long history going back to the sacred Scriptures to re-propose today to the whole Church this devotion, full of spiritual beauty.

 The feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, , reminds us of the need to respond to the redemptive love of Christ and invites us to entrust ourselves with confidence to the intercession of the Mother of the Lord.

 I believe it will do us much good to meditate on various aspects of the Lord’s love, which can illuminate the path of ecclesial renewal, which says something meaningful to a world that seems to have lost its heart.

 We ask the Lord, through the intercession of his mother, for peace: peace in the tormented Ukraine, peace in Palestine, Israel, peace in Myanmar.

 We pray that the Lord will give us peace and that the world will not suffer so much from war.”

 Heart of Jesus, our life and resurrection, have mercy on us!

Immaculate Heart of Mary, intercede for us!

Paintings by Josef Mehoffer - Polish (1911 & 1926)

UKRAINIAN CONDUCTOR IN UK

 

Another find in the BBC music magazine our neighbor gives us each month is another famed Ukrainian musician.

Since the invasion of his beloved homeland in February 2022, the conductor KIRILLS KARABITS has combined a punishing schedule here and around the world with constant concern for his family, friends and country.

Regarding Russia’s invasion of his home country, Kirills said it has “a huge impact on my life, my career and my state of mind as a musician and human being,” and he thinks about what he can do as a conductor.

" I think that in such tragic circumstances Ukraine and Ukrainian culture has a huge chance of getting better known around the world and I see my very important role in promoting the music of Ukrainian composers which I do on many levels."

But he says, more than anywhere else, he has found the greatest support and understanding with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, its staff, musicians and audiences.

 It more than sums up the remarkable bond formed over the past the fifteen years since he began his musical stewardship in the 2009/2010 season, having first performed with the orchestra back in 2006. He followed the famed American conductor, Marin Alsop- not an easy task.

 Another of his great highlights in the past 15 years has been conducting the music of his late father Ivan Fedorovych Karabyts, a renowned Ukrainian conductor and composer.

Having achieved everything he wanted to achieve, at the age of 47 Kirills now finds himself trying to work out what his next challenges are.

 “Part of this is that together, we have been championing Ukrainian music for many years, before it was fashionable. Now it’s fashionable. When Ukraine began to appear every day in the news in 2022, the orchestra knew much more than other people about it."

Kirills was born in Kyiv (then in the Ukrainian SSR of the Soviet Union). In his youth, he studied piano, musicology and composition developing an interest in conducting at age 13. His early teachers included Tatiana Kozlova. In Kyiv, he studied at the Lysenko Music School, and later at the National Tchaikovsky Music Academy. In 1995, he began studies at the Vienna Musikhochschule and earned a diploma in orchestral conducting after five years of study.

Kirills made his first public conducting appearance aged 19. He was the first Ukrainian conductor to be named principal conductor of a UK orchestra.

A series of CDs with music by composers from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Ukraine, such as Kara Karayev, Boris Lyatoshynsky, Chary Nurymov and Avet Terterian has appeared on the Chandos label

Kirills was recognized with an Honorary OBE earlier this year for Services to Music and the promotion in the UK of symphonic works from Ukraine and the East.

His last concert as chief conductor in the orchestra’s home base was an emotional occasion. A packed audience gave him a standing ovation before he had even conducted a note. The last piece played was the beautiful and mysterious: the Farewell Serenade by fellow Ukrainian Valentin Silvestrov (see following Blog), a piece whose ineffable gentleness, beautifully played by the orchestra, came as a healing balm. 

ANOTHER EUCHARISTIC MODERN SAINT

 

One of the reasons I love researching modern saints, is there is often so much information, that we know to be true- not mere legends. Case in point, is BLESSED LOJZE GROZDE, a Slovenian student who was murdered by Partisans during World War II. 

He was born in 1923 in a village called Zgornje Vodale in Slovenia. He was the illegitimate son of a young woman, daughter of poor farmers. Due to the circumstances of his birth, he was never looked upon favorably by his family. When he was four, his mother married, but her new husband was not fond of Lojze, so Lojze was forced to live with his grandparents. It was his grandfather who taught him how to pray.

Lojze  described his childhood as “a starless night.” At the age of six, he was at the top of his class. He loved to study. Lojze was able to go to school for a few years where he learned to read, write and do math. He soon had to help with the farm work, and eventually ended up as a herdsman for cattle. Nonetheless, he found a way to continue with his studies by waking up earlier to let the cows out to graze so as to have more time to learn.

His aunt Joan, whom he loved, left their little village to work as a house maid in the capital. She told the house owner she worked for that she had a nephew who was very smart, but did not have enough money to go to school. The woman was moved and decided to help the boy. She sent him word to go the city and take the entrance exam for the Marianum College.

The twelve-year-old Lojze arrived at Ljubljana on June 28, 1935. It was the day the Eucharistic Congress was being celebrated, which was a big celebration for Slovenians with music bands, tapestries, and flags everywhere.

When he came to the house where his aunt worked, the family was  astonished to see the boy with his broken rope-soled sandals, tangled hair, dirty clothes, and smelling of cows. The woman was somewhat caught off guard before this so-called student.

His aunt Joan, whom he loved, left their little village to work as a house maid in the capital. As soon as she could, she told the house owner she worked for that Lojze was very smart, but that he did not have enough money to go to school and had to settle for being a herdsman. The woman was moved and decided to help Lojze. She sent him word to go the city and take the entrance exam for the Marianum College.

The twelve-year-old Lojze arrived at Ljubljana on June 28, 1935. It was the day the Eucharistic Congress was being celebrated, and in which Slovenians put all their energy into taking part in the celebrations. Lojze, who had never left his village, was amazed. There were a lot of people, music bands, tapestries, and flags everywhere. When he reached the house where his aunt worked, the family was also astonished to see the boy. He wore broken rope-soled sandals, had tangled hair, dirty clothes, and smelled like cows. The woman was somewhat caught off guard before this so-called student,yet despite her fears, Lojze passed the entrance exam and was accepted.

 The atmosphere at Marianum was not easy for him to adjust to with his unsociable and rough nature. Although he changed into clean clothes and learned good hygiene practices, the other children made fun of his farmer ways and he defended himself the only way he knew how to: by punching. One day he even went so far as to throw a pocketknife at a boy who was bothering him, wounding the boy's face.

The complaints against him reached the principal, who had no mercy on the young Lojze. He gave him a stern warning that if he did not change his behavior, he would have to go back to his village. After his conversation with the principal, he made incredible progress, and with great strength of character, decided to fight against his bad tendencies, but would have to practice self-control throughout his life. He became a model of good behavior.

 One of his classmates affirmed: “When I did not know how to act, I looked at Lojze, careful not to be noticed. I heard his point of view and adhered to his position... I really could not imagine him not keeping the rules and going against the superiors’ orders. What could be considered natural in others, was unbelievable in him.”

Hard to believe, but Lojze became one of the best students at Marianum, and one of the most loved by his classmates. He joined the choir, played on the soccer team and wrote for the student magazine "Izvir". He was known for his poetry and was famed for of being “the one who knows everything.”

 On December 8, 1936, he joined the school’s Marian congregation, where he began to lead a serious life of prayer and deep interior life. From that day on, he always felt the Virgin Mary’s presence close to him. He found in her the mother he never had, which brought him happiness.

During recess, while the others played, Lojze would go to the chapel to pay a visit to Jesus in the tabernacle. One of his favorite prayers was: “My God, let me know You, and let me know myself.” He drew strength from prayer to overcome his interior battles against his passions. Soon he started to receive Holy Communion on a daily basis, even when he had to walk a long way to find a church.

When he was 15, he discovered Catholic Action and quickly became one of its bravest and most daring members. The situation in Slovenia was terrible. Lojze described it as “a burning wound.” The country, entirely under German control, tried to organize a resistance against its invader. Meanwhile, the groups of Communist partisans, backed by Russia, gained power provoking violence throughout the country.

In Lojze’s fifth year of studies, a new boy named Antoine joined his class. He was intelligent and easy to get along with yet he had been formed by the Communist militant youth and professed the Marxist and atheist materialism ideology. War was breaking out between Lojze and Antoine: Christianity against Communism. The class was also divided into two groups.

During recess, Antoine would gather together his followers and, all of a sudden, Lojze would show up and defend Christian convictions with such brilliance that he brought about every difficulty possible for the Communist seducer. One day a student asked to have his photo taken with Lojze.

 During the summer break of 1942, Lojze worked in railway construction. This experience made him realize the serious reality of the times, the de-Christianization of workers, and the hatred and violence raised by the Communists. From that time, he carried a note in his wallet which read: “A young person should be ready for sacrifice, martyrdom and death.”

Shortly after, the procession of martyrs began in Ljubljana. Among them was Lambert Ehrlich,a young priest. Some of those killed were also members of Catholic Action and friends of Lojze. He had a premonition that he was going to die, but was not afraid: “Even if they kill 90% of our ranks, they will never intimidate us.”

 During Christmas of 1942, Lojze decided to go back to his village. The train service was suspended because of the snow, so Lojze began his journey on foot with a friend. He spent New Year’s Eve at his friend’s house, and then made his way to his own village. It was a first Friday, and Lojze received Holy Communion in reparation.

The following day, he took a bus to his village. Halfway there, he was stopped by a Communist patrol. Lojze was identified as a sought for person, and was brought to a shelter. There, Antoine and the boy who pretended to be his friend looked at him in triumph. There on the table was the photo used to identify Lojze.

The partisans commanded him to put the Communist uniform on and fight for them. In response to Lojze’s resolute refusal, they prepared his torture. They stripped him of his clothes and pound him with clubs. They cut off the ends of his toes, tore off his ear, plucked out his right eye, and made a huge wound in his jaw, pulling his tongue out through the hole. Then they dragged him into the woods nearby and finished him off with the blow of a pickaxe to his head. 

At the end of February, his body was found in the woods by children. He was buried in Saint Rupert Cemetery, near his birthplace. Lojze Grozde was just one of the hundreds of Slovenian martyrs from the 20th century. The Communist regime did not leave a single town without victims. In one of his poems, Lojze wrote: “Given over, powerless before the enemy, with bloody hands that approach you. Oh, heart, be at ease! God lives forever!”

This great lover of the Eucharist, lived and died a saint's death, in spite of a hard beginning. He is a model for youth, that no matter one's nature, there can always be change.