Music ministry strikes a chord
Schools
An end of year concert with a difference took place in Adelaide’s western suburbs last month when Nazareth Catholic College secondary students combined music, prayer and reflection in a joyful performance for primary students.
Songs of Hope is a new initiative introduced by Year 9-10 Religious Education coordinator Laura Possingham.
It comprised a series of concerts for primary students, performed by the Nazareth Music Ministry – a cohort of 39 children, some musically experienced and some not.
The Year 10 students have been learning about the structure of the liturgy and exploring musical versions of the Mass parts, as well as learning contemporary spiritual music and songs that connect with faith-based themes.
“We’ve had huge interest in the subject and are currently running two Year 10 classes,” said Laura, who is an accomplished flautist.
“The end of year concert at the school’s Findon campus was an opportunity to showcase work from throughout the year including meaningful reflections about items of hope and the way each song connected with our theme,” she said.
“A standout moment at the concert was witnessing our primary students join in the actions for our final song, My Lighthouse by Rend Collective.”
Laura said the Music Ministry was set up to see how music ties in with the Catholic faith with religious and secular songs covered across the year.
While a willingness to be involved in the Mass and liturgy was key, participating students come from various faiths.
Student reaction to the course has been resoundingly upbeat.
“Music ministry has been even better than I thought it would be,” said Year 10 student Liam.
“I thought that it would have a heavy focus on religious music and hymns, however I found that we focused more on how faith connects to modern music.”
Classmate Isabelle said her favourite new piece was ‘Pilgrims of Hope’. “When I travelled to Italy this year I heard this song playing in many churches and it resonated well
