Letters to Young Girls

Dear Friend,

The Christmas concert in which Mathilda and Sophie participated brought much joy to its listeners. It must be said that it was quite successful; and giving oneself for others makes one happy!

Today, in the enthusiasm of their performance on the previous day, still on holidays for a few more days, and amid the activities with family and friends, the two friends go to the church’s choir loft where the organist is waiting for them.

– “The organ is a unique and impressive instrument. It consists of many pipes, and it is often compared to an orchestra. It can have up to five keyboards, and it is also the only instrument played with both the hands and the feet at the same time.”

– “Is it true that some pipes are higher than a house?” Sophie asks.

– “Yes, that’s true. Some can measure up to 32 feet. Did you know that the organist is essentially a church musician? To hear an organ and discover it, one must mainly go to places of worship. It accompanies and supports the liturgy of the Mass and the choir when there is one. The Christians began using it approximately 300 years after the birth of Jesus Christ. So, it’s a very old instrument. Of course, it was a much simpler instrument then, than it is today. It has greatly evolved over the centuries as a result of the fantastic ingenuity of men. Now, I have prepared a few selections for you. Do you want to hear them?”

– “Oh yes, we are anxious to listen to you!”

Can you imagine our Masses and ceremonies without an organ? There would be something missing, right? It fosters prayer and helps souls elevate themselves to God. That is its role, its vocation.

Other instruments are also appropriate within a liturgical context, such as the violin or the trumpet. On the other hand, certain percussion instruments or some more modern ones do not have the capacity to open the soul to praise and adoration. That is why they do not really belong in a church.

Of course, during Sunday or weekday Masses the accompaniment is much simpler, but we should be glad to be able to “pray with beauty”, to be favored by that which really fosters the soul’s desire to go to God. It is also thanks to the spirit of service of the organists and the choir members that we can pray with beauty.

Close to the organ, Mathilda and Sophie are completely enraptured by the arrangement of Haendel’s “Messiah”, an inspired musical masterpiece, brilliantly played by the organist. The instrument’s powerful registers and the church’s excellent acoustics are like a “lever” uplifting them and giving them the impression of being carried away into a different world. Their soul soars to unknown heights, next to the throne of the King of kings and the Sovereign of the Earth.

Mathilda closes her eyes and listens. A thrilling sensation runs through her. She experiences an intense musical emotion. She thinks: “It’s marvelous!” Her being quivers at this extraordinary music that resounds. It is an “opening” of the soul. And as if everything was about to burst with the triumphant sounds of the organ, with an urgent need to express her feelings, she joins in with the notes, singing: “He will reign for ever and ever. The only true God and King of kings!”

The King! The Queen! Who reign in hearts with a view to the Kingdom! A Kingdom, about which she is taught, that it must first come in her heart and her life so that it can spread to all peoples. A Kingdom that begins with the life of grace in oneself, and this grace must be protected or regained! The organist, carried away by her music, plays the final impressive notes. Mathilda thinks: “Yes, this is marvelous! May Almighty God reign in me! Alleluia! Alleluia!”

The Daughters of Mary