Not many priests can say they’ve concelebrated Mass at a cathedral while a Mass setting they have composed is making its debut – but Jesuit Fr Christopher Willcock can. Source: Sandpiper.

Fr Willcock’s composition was recently sung publicly for the first time at Sacred Heart Cathedral, Bendigo.

*Fr Christopher Wilcock SJ. PHOTO: The Sandpiper.*

Fr Willcock was commissioned to compose a Mass setting for the the Diocese of Sandhurst and Sacred Heart Cathedral parish by an anonymous supporter. Heeding Pope Francis’ Laudto Si’ call to find ways to creatively give praise and thanks for God’s Creation during the Celebration of the Eucharist, Fr Willcock titled the Mass Setting, ‘Mass: Our Common Home’.

Fr Willcock wanted to foster congregational participation in the Mass, so he underpinned most of the composition with the melody of a pre-existing composition HYFRYDOL, which is used for texts such as Love pine, All Loves Excelling and Lord, You Give the Great Commission. Using a melody that already sits in the collective memory of many Church-goers is a clever approach that will hopefully foster more participation in the music of the Mass and more uptake of the Mass setting locally and more broadly around Australia and beyond. (A traditional approach in the history of Church music and western music composition in general).

Fr Willcock was commissioned by an anonymous supporter to compose the Mass setting for the Diocese of Sandhurst and Sacred Heart Cathedral Parish. He has generously agreed for the Mass: Our Common Home Settings to be uploaded to the Diocesan website so that parishes, schools and other communities can freely download and use the score.

The Australian Jesuit has an international reputation as an outstanding composer of liturgical music during the post-conciliar era. Born in 1947, he has written several hundred compositions, both for the Church and the concert platform. Several of his Masses, and collections of psalmody have been published by Oregon Catholic Press.

Fr Willcock was commissioned to write music for the papal visit of Pope John Paul II (1986), World Youth Day (2008), and has undertaken commissions from local Cathedrals, orchestras, and choral ensembles such as the Tallis Scholars. He has always been particularly generous in responding to commissions from Dioceses and religious congregations for compositions and arrangements for special occasions.

In 2022, Christopher Willock was awarded an honorary Doctorate from Australian Catholic University for his services to liturgical music within the Catholic Church.

This article was published in The Sandpiper, the publication of the Diocese of Sandhurst.