Solemn Vespers & Te Deum for the 250th Anniversary of the United States
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Join us as we commemorate the Semiquincentennial (250th anniversary) of the founding of the United States, with a celebration of Vespers as it would have been experienced in 1776 in a Catholic chapel of the Thirteen Colonies. It will take place at St. Augustine Church, in walking distance of Independence Hall, on the feast of St. James: Saturday, July 25 at 6pm.
It was Vespers that John Adams experienced during a visit to Old St. Mary's, Philadelphia in 1774. He wrote to his wife Abigail: "The Musick consisting of an organ, and a Choir of singers, went all the Afternoon, excepting sermon Time, and the Assembly chanted-most sweetly and exquisitely." Much of the music for this event has been taken from "A Compilation of Litanies and Vespers, Hymns and Anthems as they are sung in the Catholic Church". Printed in 1787 in Philadelphia by John Aitken, this was the first Catholic hymnal ever published in the new United States.
A sermon will be preached by Fr. Alan Bridges. We will conclude with the singing of Te Deum, as was experienced by George Washington and members of the Continental Congress when they attended the first celebration of Independence Day in a Catholic church, on July 4, 1779, again at Old St. Mary's, Philadelphia.
Please come, and invite your friends!
It was Vespers that John Adams experienced during a visit to Old St. Mary's, Philadelphia in 1774. He wrote to his wife Abigail: "The Musick consisting of an organ, and a Choir of singers, went all the Afternoon, excepting sermon Time, and the Assembly chanted-most sweetly and exquisitely." Much of the music for this event has been taken from "A Compilation of Litanies and Vespers, Hymns and Anthems as they are sung in the Catholic Church". Printed in 1787 in Philadelphia by John Aitken, this was the first Catholic hymnal ever published in the new United States.
A sermon will be preached by Fr. Alan Bridges. We will conclude with the singing of Te Deum, as was experienced by George Washington and members of the Continental Congress when they attended the first celebration of Independence Day in a Catholic church, on July 4, 1779, again at Old St. Mary's, Philadelphia.
Please come, and invite your friends!
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Where is it happening?
St. Augustine Church, 243 N Lawrence St,Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
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Host or PublisherThe Durandus Institute for Sacred Liturgy & Music
