'Song of the Longing Heart' tells composer's story

By Susan Bailey | CFP Correspondent

Paul Jernberg stands before the 130-member choir at St. John the Evangelist Parish in Clinton, encouraging them with these words: “You are going to draw in (the congregation) by your singing … the idea is to surround as much of the congregation as we can with singing.”
The choir will be performing the “Votive Mass of the Holy Spirit,” composed by Mr. Jernberg. Every part is sung, including those customarily spoken by the priest and deacon.
Once the music director at St John’s, and still a parishioner there, Paul Jernberg has been composing sacred music for the liturgy for 25 years. “The Song of the Longing Heart,” a documentary featured on EWTN, opens with the above scene. In telling Mr. Jernberg’s story, the film highlights his mission: the renewal of sacred music in the Catholic Church.
“We aim to help parishes and communities of humble means, as well as those with an abundance of resources, to recover the dignity, depth, and grace that have characterized the great traditions of Catholic sacred music,” says Mr. Jernberg in the mission statement found on the website of the Magnificat Institute of Sacred Music. He is the founder and director.
The filmmaker, François Lespés, made “The Song of the Longing Heart” after an email exchange with Mr. Jernberg over a previous documentary of Mr. Lespés’ about Jérôme Lejeune, the geneticist who discovered the cause of Down’s Syndrome. Moved by the film, Mr. Jernberg sent an email praising Mr. Lespés on his accomplishment. He included a small sampling of his music, which then inspired the filmmaker to discuss the idea of creating a documentary on Mr. Jernberg.
In the film, we hear the praises of Mr. Jernberg’s work by Richard Clark, music director in the Archdiocese of Boston; Samuel Schmitt, Cathedral music director in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and Bishop Robert McManus.
“Phenomenal composer,” said Mr. Clark. “Everything he puts out is done with so much thought and care, [and] artistic beauty. And the best thing about it is that he believes it! When he’s writing something, you know he believes these words.”
Mr. Schmitt commented that “he’s familiar with a lot of the tradition, both East and West. He brings a choral sound to the Mass [which] envelops you, [and] can really lift your heart.”
“Paul’s love for the liturgy [and] sacred music has been combined beautifully,” said Bishop McManus. “It’s so dense theologically, rich with the tradition of the Church. It is prayer because it helps [people] through song to raise [their] hearts and minds to God.”
“I first came to appreciate the wonderful work of Paul Jernberg during my time as director of the Bishops’ Committee on the Liturgy,” said Msgr. James P. Moroney, now rector of St. Paul Cathedral. “I was so proud of the national and international reputation Paul enjoyed as the composer of beautiful settings of contemporary liturgical texts. Paul’s love for the Church and for her Sacred Music has led the way toward a rediscovery of the best of our liturgical traditions.”
Several music traditions influence Mr. Jernberg’s compositions, including the Russian Orthodox and Eastern European Slavic chant and Taizé by Jacques Berthier. But his foundation is the Roman Rite music: Gregorian chant and sacred polyphony.
Brought up in the Swedish Baptist Church, Mr. Jernberg experienced a dramatic religious experience at age 12 while reading a modern translation of the Bible that his grandparents had given him. He called it “a flash of light, immersed in something beyond words.” He later traveled to Sweden, ending up in Gothenburg, where he stayed at a Franciscan community house. Praying the Liturgy of the Hours and experiencing the Mass with the monks was life changing. 
“I was attracted to this place because I felt a great need to pray more,” said Mr. Jernberg. “There was an inner experience of profound grace, peace, and healing. And I think a call to conversion.”
It was not until his return to Lancaster that he would realize his vocation as a liturgical composer. He began to teach music and direct the choir at the Trivium School in Lancaster in the mid-1990s.
“The school was founded by a group of families, and their desire was to do something that was deeply faithful (to) the Catholic faith, but also integrated the wonderful traditions we have — intellectual, spiritual, artistic,” he said. He led the students step by step into an appreciation of Gregorian chant and sacred polyphony.
Mr. Jernberg’s compositions follow Vatican II’s precepts that new music should have an organic continuity with the great traditions.
“One of the main themes of Vatican II was full participation in the liturgy,” said Mr. Jernberg. “This is a real deep thing; it’s like being united with Christ. But what happened, I think, is that it became very easy to fall into ‘participation’ by popular music. Popular music is good, the music itself is fine, and it does promote a certain kind of participation, but I think that it was cut off from the depth of the tradition and what that means.”
He began to adapt Latin chants for use in the English language. In response to the new translation of the Roman Missal, Mr. Jernberg produced “Mass of St. Philip Neri.” Completed in 2012, it was the text’s first thoroughly composed setting. During this time, he was the music director for his home parish, St. John the Evangelist in Clinton, from 1996-2000, and then from 2009-2013. The “Votive Mass of the Holy Spirit,” which opens the documentary, was filmed at St John’s.
Composing, however, was not enough; Mr. Jernberg felt compelled to do more.
He is now devoting all of his time to The Magnificat Institute and the renewal of sacred music. Originally the Magnificat Academy, it was founded as a Choir School in Warren. In 2008 it moved to St. Paul’s Cathedral in Worcester, where it remained in operation until 2011. In 2018, the academy became a full-fledged institute dedicated to its new mission.
“What we’re trying to do is help people to understand the principles of sacred music and the principles of liturgy,” he said. “What we’re offering is a formation through our website [and] workshops we are giving here and around the country. We’re trying to help light the fire, this fire of the love of God that is translated into the music that we use in the liturgy.”
He continues, “The liturgy is meant to be an experience of the presence of God, an exchange of love. And music plays such an important role. It’s not trying to do something beautiful for the Mass. It comes rather from people being united with Christ, and through that profound experience of faith and love, they find an inspiration to create music and to sing music that is deeply harmonious with the reality of the liturgy.”

– The Magnificat Institute can be found at magnificatinstitute.org.
“The Song of the Longing Heart” can be found on EWTN and YouTube at https://bit.ly/3dIEE7K.