Chat, music welcomes Jesus

Catholic Christmas CD explains the spiritual meaning of the holy days

By RAMON GONZALEZ
WCR Staff Writer
Radway

Looking for an inspiring way to prepare your children for the true spirit of Christmas? Make sure you get A Christmas to Remember.

In addition to containing great Catholic music, this new CD is full of fun and learning opportunities.

A Christmas to Remember is volume 5 in the Cat.Chat series, the new Catholic audio show for kids aged three to 11. Gerald Montpetit and his wife Denise produce the series in Radway.

The CD is filled with new and traditional songs, faith-filled stories and inspiring conversations about Advent and Christmas.

Prepare children

"The first thing we want to do is prepare kids for the true meaning of Christmas," Montpetit said.

The volume features songs such as O Come, O Come Emmanuel, Angels We Have Heard on High, O Holy Night, Destined for You, Joy to the World and Feliz Navidad. Montpetit did all the music arrangements. Featured singers in the CD include Montpetit, recording artist Janelle Reinhart and local singer Christine Paranych.

"Advent is a time where we as Catholics really need to prepare our hearts for the coming of Jesus," said Montpetit.

"We need to clean the manger of our own hearts to receive Christ more fully when he arrives at Christmas. The song that starts off Volume 5, Prepare my Heart, explains just that."

The CD begins with Hannah and her grandma listening to Advent music and then talking about Advent and its meaning. "Well, Grandma, that was a really neat song; it was all about Advent," Hannah said after listening to Prepare my Heart. "Hannah, do you know what Advent is?" Grandma asks. "Sure Grandma; it is the four weeks before Christmas when we get ready for Jesus' birthday."

The whole CD revolves around a family reminiscing about their favourite Christmas stories. Papa, Josh, Hannah and, of course, Moses, the Amazing Talking Cat, visit Grandma and Grandpa on the farm for the holidays.

Moses meets Sneak, a lonely house mouse, and together they discover the meaning of Advent and Christmas. Grandpa tells a Christmas story where his family nearly lost the farm. Hanna explains the meaning of the candy cane.

"We want to reinforce the true meaning of Christmas because I think what's happening nowadays (is that society is) trying to take away what Christmas is all about and make it into a holiday that's all about presents and snowmen and Santa Claus," said Montpetit. "And we want to help kids keep the true meaning of Christmas."

Close to 2,000 copies of the CD have already been sold to parishes, schools, families and individuals since it was released in August.

A Christmas to Remember sells for $20 and is available at Catholic bookstores, at the company's website www.catchat.ca or by calling toll free 1-866-286-5433.

The other volumes in the Cat.Chat series are Mary Leads Me Closer to Jesus, Jesus in My Heart, Amazing Angels and Super Saints, and the Mass Comes Alive.

Using prayer, cool conversations, stories and songs, each CD in the series discusses aspects of the Catholic faith while teaching children lessons for living out their faith in everyday life.

Cat.Chat Productions also offers live music concerts at parishes and schools featuring The Cat.Chat Man & Moses the Cat, a seven-foot talking mascot.

Show time

"I bring up kids to come and sing with me and I interact with the crowd," explained Montpetit, who is the Cat.Chat Man. "It's a big show that we do; it's a whole production."

Also taking part in the 90-minute concerts are Montpetit's son Dominic, 7, a bongo player, and his nine-year-old daughter Reanne, a dancer.

Montpetit has done seven concerts since he began last fall. The next show, a Christmas concert, will be in Strome Dec. 9.

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