Paulemont, 30, spent five years as a registered nurse in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. She sang in the choir at her evangelical Baptist church, but did not see a future as a singer. But after repeatedly being called upon to perform as a soloist, she decided that God was leading her somewhere. Since 2007, when Paulemont began singing alto with the Celebrant Singers, she has come “to see how God provides.”
“I’m walking in the steps of somebody who walks by faith,” she said. “I’m not walking in the steps of somebody who walks according to her own strength or financial power.”
The Celebrant Singers is a 25-member missionary team, which includes 10 vocalists, a 12-piece orchestra and band, an American Sign Language interpreter, a sound technician and a bus driver. The missionaries hail from various countries around the world, and commit to a minimum of three months of service.
Potential group members must provide a recommendation from their priest or minister, demonstrate their musical talent in an audition, and raise $4,000 – one-third of what it costs for one missionary to tour with the group.
A typical concert includes music and personal testimony from the missionaries themselves; group members also pray individually with attendees at the end of each concert. Concerts have been held at churches, schools, malls, hospitals and other venues. In the past, the group has performed at the Pentagon, several World Youth Day celebrations and even the Nobel Peace Prize reception for Mother Teresa.
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Over the years, the Celebrant Singers have brought the Gospel to places where it has not always been welcomed when presented non-musically, such as Albania, Bulgaria and Cuba. The group has also been able to transcend language and cultural barriers.
“I think music is … a universal language,” said Paulemont, who recalled a concert that took place in a remote region of the Philippines where the people did not understand English. Though they did not comprehend the words, she said, “where the Holy Spirit manifests Himself through the music, there’s something; there’s an understanding that is common to everyone.”
The Celebrant Singers are requesting applications from interested singers, musicians, sound technicians, ASL interpreters and bus drivers, age 18 to 40.