Ministry Monday

Here at Ministry Monday we still have NPM conventions on the brain. Our next episode from the archives comes from Dr. Elaine Rendler. Originally rat the twenty-fifth NPM national convention in 2001, Dr. Rendler’s talk breaks open the rite of gathering and the liturgy of the word. This episode was originally hosted by Matt Reichert following the National Convention in Baltimore in 2018, and we’re glad to bring you this throwback episode today.

Our next episode from the archives comes from Msgr Ray East, and is a fan favorite of the podcast. Originally hosted by Matt Reichert, former host of Ministry Monday, we’re glad to bring you this throwback episode today. Please note that this is an archived recording from a previous NPM Convention, and for this reason, the audio quality has some bumps along the way. But Msgr. Ray’s message more than makes up for it, and we hope you’ll enjoy.

For the next four weeks, we in Ministry Monday will be taking a brief hiatus from new episodes, as we will be participating in the 2020 Virtual Convention. But don’t worry! We’ve combed through our archives and have found some great Ministry Monday episodes for you to listen to.

Our first episode from the archives comes from Bishop Mark Seitz. Bishop Seitz is the bishop of El Paso, Texas, as well as NPM’s episcopal moderator. This episode originally aired on February 11, 2019. For this reason, Bishop Seitz discusses the still-raw wounds from the crisis facing the Catholic Church in light of the sex abuse scandals which rocked our country in August 2018. However, in a way, his discussion of maintaining unity in good times and bad still resonates today. Originally hosted by Matt Reichert, former host of Ministry Monday, we’re glad to bring you this throwback episode today.

Today on the podcast I speak to Steve Petrunak and Berta Sabrio. Steve is the President of the National Association of Pastoral Musicians, and Berta Sabrio is the Vice President of Programming and Planning for NPM. Steve, Berta and I sat down and reflected on the ways NPM has changed in the last 3 months, and how this is only a starting point for the association. So sit back, grab a cup of coffee and sit with us as we reflect on the next steps for NPM.

Many Dioceses across the country are in its first few weeks returning to public Masses since the COVID-19 lockdown began in early to mid-March. But to the Diocese of Austin, public masses have been in place for a month already. What have they discovered so far? How did they inform and educate both their English and Spanish-speaking communities, in terms of what to expect upon returning to their parishes for the Mass? Is there anything we can take away from the weeks that the Diocese of Austin have already experienced?

I’m grateful to speak to Andrea Ramos today to discuss just that. Andrea is the Associate Director for Music in the Diocese of Austin. She offers assistance to parishes concerning liturgical music. Andrea also serves as the Director of the Diocesan Choir.

Today on the podcast I get the chance to speak to Fr. Joseph Brown. Fr. Brown is a Professor in the Department of Africana Studies at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, and is one of our plenum speakers at this year’s NPM Convention.

I’ll admit to you that I was humbled to speak to Fr. Brown. I’ve never been so nervous to speak to an interviewee in my life, because this week I learned how much I still need to learn about the racism that pulses through the veins in our country. In the past week my eyes have been opened to how my silence works against the cause of equality and social justice.

And so I prepared to sit down with Fr. Brown. I started by reading his interview from the Southern Illinoisan, a local Illinois newspaper. The article mentioned Breonna Taylor and linked back to a news article about her. I read the article related to her being shot eight times in her own home. That article cited the death of Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia several weeks prior. I sat and read every article I could, and watched a video breakdown of how Arbery’s death occurred. From there I read more and more articles linked to deaths in the black community that simply shouldn’t have happened.

And lastly, I watched the combined footage of George Floyd. I watched it, and then watched it again.

From there, my education began. My education into the privilege I inherited as a white woman, and the privilege I hope to use to voice that black lives matter and to help facilitate change.

That was the context from where I spoke to Fr. Brown today.

Fr. Brown begins the conversation by reflecting on the uprising across the country- and the world- to support the black community and take action towards anti-racist policies and real social change.

Today Berta Sabrio and I sit down and discuss the Virtual Convention at length. We unpack all of the different ways attendees will receive content, along with brainstorming how you can attend the Virtual Convention in the same “group” mindset as when you attend in-person.

The Faces of Mary continues this week with two stories of Our Lady, both from different cultures but similar in devotion. We start with Dr. Gerardo Ramos, or as many call him, Dr. G. Today Dr. G shares his experiences celebrating and honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe, both in Mexico, North America and the Americas as a whole. Our second and last interview for today’s episode comes from Christopher Ferraro. Chris is also the chair of the Pastoral Liturgy Interest Section on the NPM National Council. Chris is the Director of Music at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Lindenhurst, New York. As his parish’s namesake, Chris celebrates large liturgies and celebrations honoring Our Lady of Perpetual Help each year. He was kind enough to share some insights and reflections with us today.

Now this week we’re starting a multi-part series celebrating the many Faces in which we see and worship the Blessed Virgin Mary. We’ll explore the different ways we honor her, both in feasts and cultures and devotions across the world. We begin with Dr. Neil Stahurski, a Polish organist who oversees the celebration of Our Lady of Częstochowa in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We then hear from Debbie Brown, a pastoral musician in Fairfax, Virginia, who went on pilgrimage to Knock, Ireland, and Međugorje, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This week’s podcast honors the mothers of our association and the love and support they show everyone, especially their children. So many parents bring their children to church with them as they minister, and they also do so at NPM events! Today we feature three mothers who have brought their daughters to NPM events for many years.