Bach and Special Stations of the Cross
Anthony Visco is a master sculptor and painter who lives half the year in South Philadelphia, and half the year in Florence, Italy. You can see several of his murals and statues at the St. Rita Shrine on South Broad Street.
A few years ago, we took a Frassati Friday to the shrine and Mr. Visco's studio. Afterwards, on our way out the door, Mr. Visco handed Deacon Roberts a stack of old drawings, as a gift.
Today you can visit these drawings in Deacon's office, as pictured below. They're a little beaten up and ragged, and we've never been quite sure how to put them on more public display. But they remain a stunning set of Stations of the Cross.
Mr. Visco drew them perhaps twenty years ago, when Cardinal Raymond Burke commissioned him to sculpt outdoor Stations for the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Wisconsin.
We bring them out every year at Lent for devotions. Last year, we put them outside for Stations in the field across the street from school, but the wind took its toll on them.
For yesterday's school prayers, we brought them down to Church for a truly special Lenten devotional, as pictured below.
Mr. Brett Cuddy, our inestimable music teacher, chose fourteen excerpts from Bach's Saint Matthew Passion, matching a musical excerpt with each Station. Meanwhile, Deacon announced each Station and placed each of Mr. Visco's drawings, one by one, on an easel at the front of the church.
We cannot thank Mr. Cuddy enough for how hard he worked to create yesterday's musical Stations. That he had both the artistic acumen and the theological formation to integrate music and prayer like that is a testimony to his many years of training and professionalism. It is the kind of interdisciplinary integration that we cherish at Martin Saints, and it is evidence of the quality of people teaching here. Thank you, Mr. Cuddy.
Earlier this week, we hosted 31 seventh graders as prospective students. It was by far the largest visitation day we have ever had. All of the faculty and staff worked extra hard to accommodate our guests, but especially Ms. Lindmeier and Ms. Marshall, plus a battery of parents who provided meals and refreshments. Thank you, Ms. Lindmeier and Ms. Marshall, and congratulations on your hard work bearing much fruit. To the coaches and student ambassadors who were part of yesterday's team, we see you too - thank you!
Thank you to all of our teachers, coaches, staff, student leaders, parents, board members, visiting priests, and donors who daily bring your whole selves and work so hard to make this school special. This convergence of hospitality, artistic beauty, and faith is the kind of thing that we are always aiming for at Martin Saints. It's what makes this school worth building, nurturing, protecting, and supporting. This is how we build and renew Catholic culture in this day and age. As we prepare for Holy Week, oremus pro invicem.*
*Our students are, of course, all erudite Latin scholars. But perhaps there are a few of us parents still catching up on our classical education. "Oremus pro invicem" is a traditional way that Catholic clergy sign-off in letters to each other, and it means "let us pray for one another"
