Solemn High Traditional Latin Mass for the Feast of the Assumption, August 15, 2019

Dear Friends of Sacred Music and Mater Ecclesiae,

This year on the Feast of the Assumption we will celebrate our 19th Annual Mass of Thanksgiving on Thursday, August 15, at 7 p.m. at The Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, 18th Street and Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Reverend Robert C. Pasley, KCHS, Rector of Mater Ecclesiae, will be the Celebrant.

The Solemn High Tridentine Mass will once again feature the Ars Laudis Festival Chorus and Orchestra. Dr. Timothy McDonnell, the conductor, says the centerpiece of the Mass of the Assumption 2019 will be Franz Joseph Haydn’s (1732-1809) so-called “Theresienmesse,” nicknamed for its unofficial dedicatee, the empress Maria Theresa of the Two Sicilies, the consort of the last Holy Roman Emperor, Francis II.  Maria Theresa herself was an accomplished soprano, singing the soprano solos in performances of both The Creation and The Seasons at the Viennese court in 1801.  How this Mass in B-flat came to bear her name is unknown, and the original title of the work is simply “Missa.”

Mater Ecclesiae celebrates this feast each year by the use of the great treasury of Sacred Music, especially the beautiful polyphonic Masses that are very infrequently prayed in their proper place: the Sacred Liturgy. We want to foster a greater love for the great works of our Catholic heritage.

In order to sponsor such grand music we cannot depend on our little parish of 500 families. We need the help of everyone in the Delaware Valley who wants to foster excellent sacred music as well as support professional musicians who have been blessed by God with a magnificent talent. I, therefore, appeal to you for financial assistance. We need to raise at least $12,500.00. Any money that is raised over the amount needed will be put directly in the Sacred Music Fund.

To donate, click here for the Patron Donation Form, or send a check to Mater Ecclesiae Roman Catholic Church, 261 Cross Keys Rd., Berlin, NJ 08009-9431. When we receive the donation, we will send a letter acknowledging receipt that can be used for tax purposes. We will also put your name before the statue of Saint Jude, and specifically remember all the donors at our Perpetual Novena to St. Jude on Wednesdays starting August 22nd.

Parking at the Cathedral is available in the adjoining parking lot and at the underground garage at the Sheraton Hotel on 17th Street. More information is available at the Cathedral’s website here.

Click here for the donation form. Click here for the advertising form.