Yesterday was Saint Cecilia's Day, and I am sending out thoughts and prayers especially to all my musician friends. In many cultures this day is celebrated as “Music Day.”
Saint Cecilia—who was another heroic young woman who loved Jesus and gave everything for Him—is the third century Roman martyr who “praised the Lord in song.” In iconography (such as we have here) Cecilia is often depicted carrying a musical instrument, in this case a miniature pipe organ. Her connection to music stems from an experience given to her by God, but she is something more than an abstract symbol. As the patroness of music, Saint Cecilia is, in the presence of God, the friend and helper of all musicians and singers. The music that the Lord gave her in the depths of her soul—which she alone could hear—resounds in the ancient chants and later musical compositions that enrich the liturgical prayer of the Church. It also echoes within all the music written by composers or recorded by music ensembles that raises us beyond ourselves and reminds us of the wonderful and inescapable longing of our hearts. Even in distant and/or obscure performances, music “tries to remind us” that we are made for God.
I would have liked to have written something more specific about music, but I don’t have the energy right now. It’s a topic that means so much to me that I would have to give it more thorough attention, and I don’t feel capable of doing this kind of work right now. Perhaps I will write something before Christmas or during the Christmas season, so “stay tuned.”
The Collect Prayer for this feast reflects that it “gladden[s] us,” and these words articulate the special joy of this day. It’s a feast day that brings us the gladness that music engenders within our hearts, and so much more. Music can be a beautiful instrument of God’s grace, and it also can express all the urgency of the human search for the Mystery that gives meaning to everything.
O God, who gladden us each year
with the feast day of your handmaid Saint Cecilia,
grant, we pray,
that what has been devoutly handed down concerning her
may offer us examples to imitate
and proclaim the wonders worked in his servants by Christ your Son.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
Amen. Saint Cecilia, pray for us!