“Christus vincit, Christus regnat, Christus imperat!” echoed from the choir loft of Saint Paul’s as hundreds of students, united in spirit and in truth, rejoiced in singing, To Jesus Christ our Sovereign King at the 9:30am Mass on Sunday, November 23rd.
To commemorate Pope XI’s 100th anniversary of Christ the King, the Saint Paul’s chamber choir performed their semesterly Orchestral Mass. 40 young men and women typically make up the chamber choir with principal organist, Jaret Schroeder. In the Orchestral Mass, however, the choir unites in worship with 20 instrumentalists including strings, winds, brass, and percussion.
Carson Lipinski, the Saint Paul’s Director of Sacred Music, explains, “Aside from the Tridium, the Solemnity of Christ the King is the highlight of the year for most students.”
Fr. Dave Carrano, Pastor of Saint Paul’s, explained that the main message of Christ the King is, “Jesus Christ is King. He is the King of the Heavens above and the earth below. He is King of the Universe.”
The Orchestral Mass is extremely fitting to perform for Christ the King because the triumphant sound of the choir and the instruments reflect the grand royalty of Christ, the One to whom we give our entire lives for. As Psalm 98:6 exclaims, “With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord!”
The Orchestral Mass is very special because it allows students to rejoice in a unique way they don’t get to most Sundays. Members of the congregation couldn’t help but smile their way through the Mass as they heard the brass, strings, percussion, winds, organ, and the choir all united in worship.
Asked about his experience directing the choir, Lipinski says, “The experience for me was uncontainable joy and excitement. For me, the Orchestral Mass is the greatest marriage of my loves for music and Our Lord. And to be able to lead 60 talented musicians in praise of Our Lord just gives me elation and elation that the saints feel when they see God face to face.”
This Mass highlights Pope Leo XIV’s motto, “In Illo uno unum,” which means “In the One, we are one.” All with different backgrounds, hometowns, areas of study, interests, and hobbies, hundreds of students unite in worship to exclaim and sing their praise for Jesus Christ the King.
The Orchestral Mass featured a lineup of To Jesus Christ Our Sovereign King, Nearer My God To Thee, and closing with O God Beyond All Praising. “Nothing makes me feel the goodness of God more than belting out O God Beyond All Praising with all the power and volume I can muster,” notes choir member and junior student Nicholas Hall. “Being in the choir for Orchestral Mass is truly a foretaste of what it will be like in Heaven singing God’s glory with the cherubim and seraphim. It felt so good to hear from my friends after Mass that our music brought them to tears…The beauty of this Mass has the power to transform souls.”
As Fr. Dave professed in the final words of his homily, “We must seize the opportunity to proclaim, “Christus vincit, Christus regnat, Christus imperat!…Chris Jesus Victor, Christ Jesus Ruler, Christ Jesus Lord and Redeemer!”
