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Fall Choral Concert: Saturday, October 17th, at 7 p.m. Gather with us in the Sanctuary to hear a full concert featuring the Choir and Praise Band. A highlight of the evening will be Robert Ray’s Gospel Mass. His "Gospel Mass" is a celebration of both Gospel and Liturgical Mass traditions. These combine in a call to prayer for God’s Grace during this troubled time for our nation and the world.

Robert Ray (1946–2022) was a renowned African American composer, pianist, and educator known for creating the landmark Gospel Mass (1979), which blends traditional liturgical Latin texts with African American gospel music styles. He was the founding director of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra’s IN UNISON Chorus and a respected faculty member at the University of Missouri–St. Louis.

A lifelong member of the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, Ray was tasked by the Catholic priest Clarence Rivers with bridging Black music and liturgical settings.

The Gospel Mass: Written in 1978–1979, the six-movement piece combines high-energy gospel with a liturgical structure, including movements such as "Kyrie," "Gloria," "Credo," "Sanctus," "Benedictus," and "Agnus Dei".