Stations: Songs for the Paschal Journey Stations: starting places, ports of call, junctures and stops along the way. In the Christian tradition fourteen stations sign The Way of the Cross, and have become a devotional itinerary etched in the hearts of disciples who seek to follow Jesus on an arduous and glorious path of transformation. During the season of Lent, Christians set out again and again on this paschal journey, and by means of spiritual practice and liturgical celebration, trace ever more deeply the pattern of christic renewal on their own experience of being. In great cultic circles we sing aloud our passionate hymns of acclamation; in the solitude of our hearts we chant our most intimate prayers for reconciliation, healing and rebirth. We sing because we are alive; we sing to become more alive, by raising up all the dying in which new life has its source. These are the songs of one such paschal community. For over a quarter of a century, Evelyn Avoglia and Kathleen Deignan, C.N.D. have composed songs for worship and devotion drawn from the rich resources of the Christian experience. This selection draws from the repertoire for Holy Week sung by Anima Schola at the Benedictine Grange, a liturgical community in West Redding, CT. Each song is a station, a contemplative moment of the paschal journey where we find ourselves in the company of familiar icons of passiontide: Simon the Cyrenean, the family at Bethany, the women of Jerusalem, the outlaws of Calvary. We sing with Mary at the foot of the cross as she keens her final lullaby, a mother’s lament which paradoxically echoes the empowering song her son first heard at his baptism as Abba God’s anointing anthem. We sing the songs of the Suffering Servant, in whose passion we see reflected our own. And we sing the songs of Jesus, the beautiful icon of transformed humanity, who incarnates for us the energy of resurrection at work in all our passionate strivings for being. May these songs be a blessing to enchant us on our paschal journey, so we may bear the cross of our own existence with a deeper sense of its power to raise us up in Christ to fullness of life. Come now, let us be on our way… —Kathleen Deignan, C.N.D. “Take in the beauty of Kathleen Deignan's gentle, penetrating music. Her lyrics, her melodies, and her exquisite voice lift us to new heights. Joined with the exquisite vocal harmonies of Anima Schola these recordings provide a restful, refreshing space in your spiritual journey. You will play this music over and over. It will full your prayer. Captivated by its beauty, you will want to give this gift to those you love.” Dan Driscoll, Spiritual Books Associates Anima Schola Kathleen is the composer for the enselble Anima Schola who lead the sung praise of a vibrant Christian community in New England. Offering a variety of musical gifts, they interweave the evocative sounds of Native American flute, medieval psaltry, folk guitar, African rattles and tambourines, and the intensity of Middle Eastern percussion. Entwined with the Celtic lyrical and mysticism of Sister Kathleen's songs, theirs is a unique sound able to transport a congregation, or a single soul, into the depths of prayer. Short takes The spirited musicians of Anima Schola carry the ancient traditions of sacred music into a new time and fresh musical idiom. The vibrant language of soul expressed in Kathleen Deignan's compositions, resounds in a skillful blend of Celtic lyricism, Middle Eastern rhythms, and rich vocal harmonies. There is simply no sound like theirs in the world of Christian or liturgical music. Kathleen Deignan, C.N.D., Ph.D. is Professor of Religious Studies at Iona College in New Rochelle, New York, where she founded and directs the Iona Spirituality Institute and the Iona Peace Institute in Ireland. A graduate of Fordham University, she is the author of Christ Spirit: The Eschatology of Shaker Christianity. Articles on the legacy of Thomas Merton and other issues in spirituality have been published in The Way, Review for Religious, Franciscan Review, Sacred Journey, the Thomas Merton Annual, and Sisters Today. A liturgical musician and composer, she has produced several recordings of sacred song for worship and prayer: Stations: Songs for the Paschal Journey, Borne By Grace: Songs of Praise and Contemplation, and Bride Spirit: Songs of the Beloved. For more information on her recordings and ministry visit www.deignan.org.