The Upper Room: Art and Sacrament
Led by Grammy® Award winner and Director of the Notre Dame Folk Choir Dr. J.J. Wright, experience The Passion, a new artistic production combining Scripture with original poetry and set to original music. Through Christ’s Passion, we learn to encounter suffering and incarnate love, to behold one another in our “not-enoughness.” As we enter the upcoming Lenten and Easter seasons, journey with the Folk Choir and some of our closest collaborators through the development, rehearsal, and performance process of The Passion, and explore the relationship between art and sacrament. Along the way, we will explore the Passion and Resurrection in light of the most pressing issues on the minds of our students, including the clergy sexual abuse crisis, the role of women in the Church, and climate change.
Experience the Episode
Presented by Notre Dame Folk Choir
Scripture is not meant to be passive participation, but rather lived fully. In this dynamic conversation, the creative team behind The Passion reveals how they transformed solitary contemplation into a shared, artistic journey. From the Upper Room to your own community, discover how “entering the scene” through imagination and song can reveal profound new truths. Watch now to see how art and tradition collide to make the Gospel vibrant for a new generation.
Click below to watch the video of this conversation.
Click below to listen to the audio podcast of this conversation.
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MoreMeet the Student Speaker: Julia Bellefeuille Canonico '20 MTS
Julia Bellefeuille Canonico ’20 MTS is a second year Ph.D. student studying liturgy in the department of Theology at Notre Dame. Her academic interests include sacramental theology and popular piety, enculturation, and exploring how God is made present to the world. Julia is originally from a small Native American reservation in the Pacific Northwest and prior to coming to South Bend for her M.T.S., she worked as a Campus Minister in Salt Lake City, UT.
Meet the Student Speaker: Noelle Dorvault '25
Soprano Noelle Dorvault ’25 is a first-year at Notre Dame pursuing a major in biology and a minor in science and patient advocacy. She is originally from Pensacola, FL, and is very grateful to have been welcomed into this project through the ND Folk Choir this year.
A Lenten 2026 Reflection from the Notre Dame Senior Alumni
Dear Alumni and Friends,
In this session, Professor Kim Belcher notes that “making art is part of her baptized calling and uses art as an expression of faith,” which hopefully helps to develop our understanding of the Sacrament of the Mass. We need to see and appreciate religious art outside of the Sacred Liturgy to fully appreciate the Liturgy. Communal art in the The Way of the Cross: A Passion Pilgrimage Through Song, is its own art form, which will hopefully result in a more intimate participation in the Sacrament of the Mass. This enables us to live into art in a fuller way.
My wife, Lynda have six children, two of whom are very talented artists. Through theatre, song, and art, they have enlivened our lives and the lives of others. Our daughter’s painting of the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome hangs prominently in our home, which helps remind us of the physical center of our Catholic Church and the apostolic faith and tradition handed down to the successors of St. Peter.
We need to try to find Christ in our own lives and in our community. It is my hope that by encountering Notre Dame’s production of The Passion throughout Lent, its art will inspire our deeper understanding of and participation in the Sacrament of the Mass and challenge our faith journey throughout our lives. Through this participation, we can more fully be the Body of Christ beyond the Liturgy of the Mass and apply that to others as Christians reaching out to others in our daily lives.
As director J.J. Wright explains in his closing comments, “Art, whether visual art or music, is an essential part of being a full member of the Church. Furthermore, it can be a device to lead people into the Church or incorporate current members in a deeper way, as it can be a beautiful or more accessible way to develop a relationship with Christ and Scripture.”
Yours in Notre Dame,
Patrick Sarb ‘76, ’78 M.S.
Regional Director, Midwest
Notre Dame Senior Alumni Board