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Monday, February 18, 2013

THE RITE OF ELECTION AT SAINT JOSEPH CATHEDRAL, I MEAN CHURCH, MACON, GEORGIA

Bishop Gregory Hartmayer continues our tradition of having two Rites of Election for the Diocese of Savannah. This year it was our turn to host it for the western side of the diocese. The picture below is from Saturday, February 15th and shows about 45 catechumens and their sponsors after the elect had entered their names in the Book of the Elect. Bishop Hartmayer is facing ad orientem. There were about 105 baptized candidates not shown in this photo along with their sponsors. We hosted a luncheon afterward for everyone in our social hall.

20 comments:

ytc said...

Music: dreadful? Or glorious?

Fr. Allan J. McDonald said...

Glorious!

ytc said...

What kind?!

Joe Shlabotnick said...

As much as you joke Father about your church being a "cathedral" you could be on to something. While the Catholic population of the Diocese of Savannah is thin, Savannah itself is isolated from much of the diocese it represents. I propose a new diocese of Macon. Savannah would retain the coastal parishes and deaneries and Macon would take the I-75 corridor to the west. And for its first Bishop, I nominate...YOU! I'm not clairvoyant, but maybe...

Fr. Allan J. McDonald said...

The glorious kind.

Anonymous said...

Gosh, Macon as the See? That'd be nice for those who live far far out from Savannah!

Father, did I understand correctly, the Bishop celebrated Mass ad orientem?

-Beth

Fr. Allan J. McDonald said...

No, this was not Mass but a Liturgy of the Word, the bishop was just facing the "elect" at the time of the photo.

Anonymous said...

More pictures from Saturday in your email inbox, Father. Enjoy! St. Joseph is such a wonderful place. I am 33 years old and remember going to Mass there as a small child with my grandparents. The Sacristy is still the same as it was when I was a young child and my grandmother would take me back there with her while she picked up the Holy Eucharist to take to the home bound on Sunday mornings. One day I would love to see all the beautiful vestments you have, Father.

Unknown said...

Not to completely undermine your post, but did you hear about the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City?

750 catechumens and candidates! 750!!

Holy Crap! Archbishop Coakley is doing something right. Not to mention he was one of my spiritual directors whilst I was at The Mount.

ytc said...

Andy, what? My low population Diocese of Charleston had like 1500... ?_?

Unknown said...

ytc...

In one year?

Anonymous said...

If this was during Holy Mass, why were the laity allowed in the Sanctuary?

Fr. Allan J. McDonald said...

It was not a Mass.

Marc said...

Anonymous, why should the laity be allowed in the sanctuary at times other than Mass?

Fr. Allan J. McDonald said...

Please point out the canons, liturgical or otherwise, which state the laity are not to be allowed in the sanctuary. I think this would be news to the Holy Father and the bishops in union with him.

Marc said...

Oh, Father... You forgot about the centuries prior to Vatican II, it seems.

Fr. Allan J. McDonald said...

Of course you mean all those centuries when canon law and liturgical law that were not of divine origin were changed, no, I did not forget that at all, although you must have.

Marc said...

Yes, I seem to have forgotten we are free to rework all aspects of canon law and liturgics to suit modern man with no account made for the Tradition that our forebears preserved for us. It's just too bad all those saints and theologians were so wrong for all those centuries -- they just needed modern man to correct their errors!

I must have missed the memo that we are all Protestants and modernists now. Although, it doesn't surprise me in the least.

Hammer of Fascists said...

I haven't looked up the canonical history of laity in the Sanctuary, nor will I in the next couple of weeks due to workload. But either: 1) They changed it, which may be technically permissible but rather presumptuous in assuming that they know better than centuries of earlier Catholics, or 2) they didn't change it and they (and we) simply ignore it, which is even worse, since it makes Catholic authority irrelevant.

Just sayin'.

ytc said...

Yes Andy, in one year.

I was forced to stand in the sanctuary one time, I felt like a big, fat moron. It felt so wrong.