Ecce Sacerdos Magnus

This Sunday, February 4, Saint Philip’s will be graced with a visit from our retired bishop, The Right Rev’d Kirk S. Smith. He will perform the rite of Confirmation for candidates from Saint Philip’s.

Whenever a bishop visits, it is customary for the choir to sing a suitable motet as a welcome gesture. This is particularly appropriate given the hierarchical nature of Episcopal church polity: our local church is essentially the bishop’s church, and we welcome the bishop as the head figure in various ways. The choir might sing a setting of Tu Es Petrus, recalling Christ’s words to Peter:

“You are Peter, and on this Rock (Peter’s name means “rock”) I will build my church…” (Matt. 16:18)

Another traditional welcome would be the Ecce Sacerdos Magnus, an antiphon or gradual with text from Ecclesiasticus 44:16-27, a passage that extols the virtue of the righteous priest who serves the Lord faithfully:

“Behold a great priest who in his days
pleased God, and was found to be just.”

This second text, which the choir will sing this Sunday, confirms the notion that a bishop stands in the place of Christ, our great High Priest, and ministers to the church on his behalf.

—Justin Appel
Director of Music