Cover photo: The two of us with Fr. Kevin Grove, CSC, who is a Holy Cross priest and our sacramental theology professor. He helped workshop each of our songs and cheered us on—all the way from Cambridge!
ORDINATION DAY
It’s time, Your house is gathered here
With all who I hold dear
Stained glass shines on the floor
From the first time I heard You call my name,
I’ve never been the same
You’re calling me to more
Ten thousand what-ifs in my head
Ten thousand reasons to say yes to You, ‘cause
I am called to be
Your human hand through Christ in me
I swear to serve, to love, to lead
For all my life, forevermore
I’ll be a shepherd to Your sheep
I’ll lead them to the wedding feast
Presiding over this great sacrifice of Yours
I’m ready, Lord
I’ll take Your yoke, the burden’s light
I’ll even leave the ninety-nine
To bring the lost ones home
I’ll tell the truth to those with ears to hear
My mission is made clear
I’ll be Your cornerstone
I want to be an altar
I want to be an offering
I want to give You all of me
And lay down at Your feet
I want to be Your servant
I want to call You worthy
I want to say yes to You forever,
God and King!
In the sacrament of Holy Orders, men are ordained as deacons, priests, and bishops in the Catholic—serving and ministering to the Church through worship as they participate in the apostolic succession of the priesthood instituted by Christ.
“Ordination Day” is the third song we wrote, in April 2024, around the same time as the rite of Ordinations for the Congregation of Holy Cross, which Thomas attended. The piano line, sounding like a melody straight out of a Disney movie, came to Sofia in a dream, in a manner like the Lord waking Samuel up from his sleep. (The Lord woke Sofia up too!) We decided that we wanted to capture the essence of this sacrament from the perspective of a priest on his Ordination day, with flashbacks to his vocational calling and foretellings of his mission as a servant in the Church.
- The first verse paints the picture of the setting of the Church that the priest is getting ordained in with the second verse retelling his call to clergy. The third and fourth verses tell the story of his future job and duty, shepherding and evangelizing the Christian mission. In the prechorus, doubts float through his head and then are subsequently resolved out of his desire to lay down his life in service to his future bride, the Church. The chorus quintessentially captures what it means to be a Catholic priest—priest, prophet, and king acting in persona Christi, officiating and re-actualizing Christ’s ultimate sacrifice at each and every Mass. Lastly, the bridge discusses the sacrifice that our baptismal priesthood entails, one immensely magnified by a priest receiving this sacrament.
- “I am called to be Your human hand through Christ in me” places a dual-responsibility on both man and God in the success of the priest. The priest is responsible for choosing the good—what his actions and involvement will be in the Catholic Church, though the Trinity is responsible for infusing the priest with the power to love with the heart of Christ.
- Altars are where the sacrifice happens, and so a priest, in becoming an altar for the church, becomes the place where sacrifice is offered. Priests, like Peter, called to be rocks and altars for the Church, can often crack or stumble, yet repenting unto the Lord gives him a special grace to resume his ministry as an altar mortared together with, and in Christ.
Are there any parts of this song you were surprised to find yourself relating to or praying with?
