Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary  (Choir Camp)
August 15, 2013
 
            Strange as it may seem, I got to thinking about Prince William and Kate Middleton (the Duchess of Cambridge) when I thought about a homily for today!  Remember all the excitement there was about a month ago when their baby was about to be born?  When would it arrive?   Would it be a boy or a girl?  What would the baby’s name be?  Now we know all of that.  A boy was born on July 22, they named him George, and even though he’s just a tiny baby, he’s also a Prince and he’s third in line for the British throne.
            Now let’s look way back 2,000 years ago, to a young girl in a tiny, no-count town called Nazareth who was expecting a baby, too.  Almost nobody knew about this baby and his birth certainly didn’t make the headlines, although St Luke’s gospel does tell us that his arrival was announced by angels!  Unlike Prince George this baby wasn’t exactly royalty although we do call him the Prince of Peace.  But he was far more than that: he was God, but also one of us. He was Jesus, our Savior and Lord!
            And even though Mary, the baby’s mother, had no royal title like Kate Middleton, the Church has always thought of her as royalty—as a queen. That’s because no other woman in history ever did what Mary did – no other woman ever brought into the world a Child who was both God and human, the Child who was the savior of the world.  There is only one Mary in all of human history, that’s for sure.  No wonder we call her Queen of Heaven, Queen of Christians. With all due respect, the British royal family doesn’t hold a candle to her!
            Mary has many feasts on the Church’s calendar (almost too many to count!). Today’s feast of the Assumption zeroes in on what happened when Mary died.  The Church believes that because Mary carried Jesus in her womb and brought him into the world – gave him to all of us -- when she died, God did for her what he did for Jesus when he died:  He didn’t allow her body to decay as ours will one day. Instead, he raised her, body and soul, into heaven right away, gave her a special place with all the angels and saints in heaven that no other creature has ever had or ever will.
            Now, there’s a beautiful hymn that says all of this in a very few words. Our Choir Camp kids have learned it, so I’m now going to ask them to sing a verse of that hymn for us right now.  Listen carefully!

O higher than the cherubim,
more glorious than the seraphim,
lead their praises, Alleluia!
Thou bearer of th' eternal Word,
most gracious, magnify the Lord:
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
 

            Beautiful!  Thank you for reminding us that Mary is “higher than the cherubim, more glorious than the seraphim.”  That’s another way of saying that she’s the Queen of Heaven.  And I hope you noticed the words that came right after that: “Lead their praises,” you sang.  Lead their praises, Mary!  Lead the praises of the cherubim and seraphim.  You know what that means, don’t you?  It means that Mary is a choir director!  Mary is the director of the heavenly choir. She’s the one who “leads” the praises of God that are sung by all the angels and saints around God’s throne.
            So, today is the feast of the Mary, the Queen of Heaven, and it’s the feast of Mary the heavenly choir director.  It’s the perfect feast for Choir Camp!

What does it mean to be a disciple?

• It means to follow God.
  
• To be a disciple is like to follow someone you admire.
  
• Follow Jesus.
  
• To learn about and share my faith.  To follow.
  
• To be a disciple means to be a follower and worshiper of Jesus.
  
• To follow.
  
• To follow Jesus.
  
• A disciple is a person who serves.
  
• To be a disciple is to be a follower of Jesus and help Jesus spread the good news.
  
• Being a disciple means to be a follower of God and a believer.
  
• It means to serve the Lord and help other people.
  
• To be a disciple means to teach and guide people.
  
• Today I acted like a disciple by quickly acting how I needed to act.
  
• In your midst ready to serve.
  
• It means to treat with love and graciousness and to spread the love Jesus has given us.
  
• A disciple is a follower of God.
  
• I think that being a disciple means to help people when they need it and always be a good steward of faith.
  
• A disciple is one who follows God, spreads his word, teaches about God, and prays.
  
• Disciple means follower of God.
  
• Teaching God’s word, being kind, and serving.
  
• To be a disciple means to follow God closely.
  
• A follower or a student is the meaning of a disciple.
  

How did I act like a disciple today?

• I shared my talent of singing with others at Mass.
  
• I concentrated in Mass.
  
• I listened to the Gospel.
  
• I helped a friend in need when he was confused.
  
• Today I acted like a disciple by helping people with music.
  
• I acted like a disciple today by trying to be more positive and kind towards others.
  
• I acted like a disciple today by singing for God and at Mass.
  
• I acted like a disciple by checking to see if Grace was okay with her knee.
  
• I sang hymns of praise in church today.
  
• I served in church.
  
• Today I was a disciple by congratulating Sarah on her beautiful solo and asking someone to please help clean up a spill made at lunch.
  
• I acted like a disciple because I sang God’s praises, and prayed, and loved… I also got up on time….
  
• I acted like a disciple when someone’s paper fell and I picked it up.
  
• Singing at Mass.
  

What am I most excited to share at the concert?

• I am most excited about sharing every song at the concert.
  
• “As the Birds of the Air”
  
• Singing and especially singing “Gloria tibi”
  
• Singing “Ave Maria”
  
• Gloria Tibi
  
• I can’t wait to show how well we can sing Gloria Tibi.
  
• I will most like to share with my family the songs Gloria Tibi and Blessed.  I really enjoy Gloria Tibi because it is fast moving and, frankly, glorious, and it just makes me happy.  I will enjoy sharing Blessed because even though I didn’t appreciate it at firt, I have grown to love the way it flows along.
  
• I’m very excited to share the Gloria Tibi!  I love it! And also Ave Maria, because it’s a beautiful song.
  
• I am excited to share what we have learned and all the new songs that we got this week to everyone at the concert.
  
• I am most excited about sharing our music with people at the concert.
  
• I am excited about having mom and dad there.
  
• I am most excited about sharing our service to others because I know even little things can have a big effect.
  
• I am most excited about sharing music at the Cathedral.
  
• I’m most excited about sharing the song Gloria Tibi.
  
• I’m excited for my mom to hear the Ave Maria because it’s one of her favorites.
  
• I’m definitely excited about singing the Gloria Tibi at the concert.  I also have a fun fact about it:  if any of you know about West Side Story, one of the composers was Leonard Bernstein, who composed the Gloria Tibi.
  
• I’m excited to share all the fun music I learned here and show my family the hard work I put into this. 
  
• I am most excited about sharing in the concert “Thou That Art So Fair and Bright,” “Ave Maria,” “Gloria Tibi,” and “Agnus Dei.”
  
• What I’m excited about sharing at the concert tomorrow is my new and improved singing.
  
• I am most excited to be sharing Gloria Tibi, even though it’s not my favorite, it’s a good song.
  

What will I miss most about Choir Camp?

• I will miss seeing everyone.
  
• I will miss all the friends, old and new, when I leave.
  
• I will miss the feel of community and that most of us share the same beliefs in church.  I will also miss everyone and I will miss all the songs.
  
• Singing and the shop.
  
• Seeing friends and singing music.
  
• Next week I will miss singing with everyone here and all the games we get to sing at Choir Camp.  Also, seeing everyone that goes to Choir with me.
  
• What I will miss most about camp is my friends, choir teachers, and, of course, singing, even though I sing anywhere, anytime, it’s not the same without Ms Sunde and Ms Gilmore.  Their conducting makes it easier and more fun.
  
• My friends.
  
• Sarah, Maria, Noelle.
  
• I will miss all the friends I made.  I hope I will see them in Schola!
  
• I will miss doing a lot of activities and having fun with my friends.
  
• I will miss my friends that I made.
  
• I will miss seeing my friends and going every day, since I moved to another choir.
  
• What I will miss most about camp is laughing about funny statements, comments, and times.
  
• What I will miss most is all my friends.
  
• The songs and my friends.
  
• I’m going to miss everything about it, especially my friends because I’m pretty sure I’m a volunteer next year.
  
• I will miss the songs we sing and Jubilate! and the instructors.
  
• I will miss the shop.
  
• I think I’ll miss my friends the most.  And who wouldn’t miss Ms. Sunde, Ms. Gilmore, and Mr. Castro?  You are so amazing and I’ll miss you soooo much!
  
• I’ll miss my friends and the excitement of every new day bringing surprises.  I love to sing!
  
• I’ll miss morning praise.
  
• I will miss singing and seeing new friends that I have made.  (This is my first time singing with a kids’ choir group.)
  
• I will miss the dance parties.
  
• Everything – my friends, the singing, the teachers, getting up early and driving downtown.  Like I said, everything.
  
• Ms. Sunde and Ms. Gilmore.  I love choir camp!
  
• What I’ll miss the most about camp is the new friends I made.
  
• I will miss my teachers.
  
• I will miss the teachers and the camp store and the singing.