Anytime we’re going on a journey, whether it’s an overnight or weekend with friends or a trip to an unfamiliar place, we have to pack for the trip.

Choosing music for Lent is like packing for a six month trip. Which means prioritizing: what has to come with us? What’s already there, in the community’s repertoire? What needs to be replaced, because it’s no longer suitable for this community? What’s a tradition that the community would sorely miss?

And we also must consider who’s coming with us? Are we a small faith community, with limited resources? Are we a rural or small-town community devastated by the effects of winter storms or vicious tornados? Are we among thousands in a large suburban parish? Are we an inner city parish with financial challenges but hope-filled liturgies? Are people seeking baptism or full communion with the Church? It makes a difference in the music that will resonate in the hearts of the specific community.

What has happened in the community since last Easter? Has there been a change in parish leadership, with accompanying changes and anxieties? Are beloved members facing their own eternity? Has the community been clustered with one or more others? Will all major celebrations take place in the “big” church, while the smaller ones remain dark during Holy Week?