Father Hubert Beaudoin, O. Praem. - my next door neighbor during my first two years of seminary - was an amazing artist. I loved to watch him working in his studio. During one visit he took a broad stick of charcoal and made several passes over a blank piece of paper. I looked at the page and asked him, “Are you designing Rorschach tests?” He turned his head, looked at me over the rim of his glasses, and shot me down with the acidic retort: “Snot!” Without missing a beat, he picked up a fine pointed ink pen and made a few thin scratches on the page. Suddenly, a choir of angels announcing the birth of Christ magically appeared on the page. His two minutes-worth of effort became one of the Christmas cards printed and sold at the Abbey that year! 

Just as Fr. Hubert was able to create a choir of angels in a bunch of criss-crossing charcoal lines, he was able to explain one of the holiest - and most complex - ceremonies of the church year in an easy to understand analogy. Here’s the introduction he gave to those attending the Abbey Easter Vigil: Have you ever been on a camping trip? First, you establish camp by building a fire. Next, you go about finding water for cooking, drinking, and cleaning up. Then you sit around the fire telling stories while dinner is readied. Finally, you share the meal with your friends. That’s what we’ll be doing here tonight: blessing the new fire; blessing the font; listening to stories from salvation history; and sharing the Bread and Cup.

If you’ve attended an Easter Vigil you’re probably sitting there nodding your head in agreement. If you haven’t attended a Vigil, I hope Fr. Hubert’s demystifying the service has piqued your interest in attending one in the future.

Nick Martellacci
Music Director of St. James