Thursday, April 20, 2017
MY FIRST EASTER VIGIL AT SAINT ANNE CATHOLIC CHURCH, RICHMOND HILL, GEORGIA
Consecration of Paschal Baptismal Water:
Beginning of baptisms:
Another baptism (13 in all)
Clothing with white garment:
Giving the sponsor the neophyte's lighted candle:
Preparing for the Sacrament of Confirmation:
Confirmation:
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
22 comments:
Congratulations, Father and Happy Easter to all. I hope all were uplifted by sharing that experience in what is still a new church.
As a new/newer church is always a work in progress, I wonder if perhaps a carpenter could create a matching wooden reredos with gradines in the space that is under the structure that's behind the altar. The arch would continue to serve almost as a baldachin over that beautiful and I believe antique tabernacle enthroned on its reredos with room for flowers and candles.
My efforts at re-engineering aside, thank you for sharing.
Doubtless it was nicer in your parish than in most. But, my goodness, the sanctuary does look mighty crowded (if not cluttered) in some of those photos, at least to one more accustomed to the "noble simplicity" of the classical Roman rite.
When I see pictures like this, it becomes all the clearer that you believe in a very different religion than I do.
Fr. McDonald and I and most other commenters here belong to the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic church. And, yes, your religion is not the same as ours.
Well done, Father and welcome to the new folks.
Now your job is to keep them hungry. Keep educating them on the immensity of the Church and her history. Show them the Liturgy and WHY it is as it is. I bet you have a stable group in no time, and these children will lead the others.
Building on previous comments, in addition to education, re-enchanting the liturgy like you did in Macon will certainly open the eyes and hearts of many. As you mentioned, your new church has good 'bones', is low maintenance and has noble fixtures. A good start for what I hope is an enthusiastic parish. Certainly, the number welcomed into the church is reflective of that (welcome to them and I hope their first Easter was blessed). Perhaps an opportunity will come along to buy fixtures from a closed church at a reasonable price from an exchange. Certainly, a grand reredos for your tabernacle would create that treasured focal point for reflection outside of mass in addition to when it is used for ad orientem celebration. Side altars to create shrines for the statuary that you mentioned would also enhance devotion. In aggregate, this would help to better agree the interior of the church to the traditional exterior one approaches from the road.
You are right. Apart from gaining the trust of the congregation, our first priority is paying off a $5 million debt. The next phase would be traditional stain glass, but we have a ton of windows and some quite large. Although the clear windows are nice because of all the tall Georgia pines surrounding us. But stain glass would change the ambiance. A nice reredos is impotant too.
Stained glass, not "stain" glass.
The most important thing is to get the music right. Don't pay a 'director of music' who simply chooses hymns from an 'authorized' collection. Anyone can do that. The aim should be to encourage chant, in both Latin and the vernacular, and there are plenty of resources out there.
It is also a mistake to try and produce 'something for everyone' on the lines of: 'Let's have a "gathering song" because people like it, but have a chanted Introit as well. Let's have a mixture of modern and traditional hymns. Let's have a pop-style Gloria by Marty Haugen but a plainchant Sanctus to mollify the traditionalists. We'll sing the Preface dialogue but not the Preface itself. The Creed has to be recited by everybody in the vernacular, since people have forgotten how to sing it in Latin and it would be to much trouble to teach them. In any case, we don't want too much singing because it suggests a throwback to the days of formal liturgy ...'
This sort of approach leads to an incoherent liturgy which pleases no-one and repels many.
Fr., I seem to recall you writing that a significant number of your congregation was from the local Army base. Is that Ft. Stewart? I used to work with the Aviation and some of the other units there. In any case, you will find a significant number of people at the base who are definitely interested in tradition and would support fund raising as best they can. They could for a foundation for an EF Mass and almost certainly a core of servers who will be scrupulous in their movements.
Obnoxious pedant, not "Anonymous."
Rich, Richmond Hill is in the middle between Ft. Steward in Hinesville and Hunter Army Air Field in Savannah. We have army personnel from both posts.
Rcg was changed to rich by that dang spell check!
For clarity, I am anonymous at 9:43 p.m. NOT anonymous at 9:54 a.m. I appreciate the academic discussion of most commenters on this blog, I appreciate that a busy pastor is answering my comment at 5:22 a.m. (which, I fully understood without seeing any necessity to correct) and appreciate Fr. sharing the celebration enjoyed by him and his parishioners as well as the joy felt by the newly initiated. During this Easter season, prayers and gratitude to you Fr., Fr. Kavanaugh, the newly initiated and all others.
It was the detachment at Hunter I supported. I recall being pleasantly surprised to find several of them deeply admired Pope JPII and had photos of him in their daily 'kit'. That all got left behind on missions, of course. It interesting how they noticed, too. Once, when I was deployed in a country where they don't use the same alphabet as we do I 'chanced' upon one of the Army fellows. He told me there was a Mass to be offered in a room of a certain hotel at a certain time. this was strictly against the law, and likely foolish of me to go. It was a small gathering, really only about five few men. Very quick and we dispersed. I think there were several that day, and I never saw the priest again. I bet you can find some dedicated types on that base.
For the sake of clarity it would help if those who insist on posting anonymously would identify themselves by at least using a pseudonym. Most blogs will not accept anonymous comments, with good reason. What are you trying to hide?
The identity of those of us who post anonymously is not an issue.
We are not trying to "hide" anything.
Posts, all too often, become launching pads for slanderous, vitriolic personal attacks. Even that doesn't deter some here from making in-Christian attacks on, for example, "Anonymous 2."
If we discuss ideas, not personalities, we'll do better.
It's silly to deny that people who post as "Anonymous" are trying to hide anything. They're trying to hide their real names, and they have the right to do so. Sometimes with good reason; for instance, religious or church employees who might face retribution for a stance out of favor with powers that be.
The issue is not one of personal identity, but rather of coherence of the arguments presented in a thread, so that the comments by the same poster can be seen as fitting together properly.
Because they lack that coherence, as a general rule I skip anonymous comments without reading them. It was an exception that I happened to read Anonymous@7:37 am, simply because it followed the comment of John Nolan which attracted (temporarily) my attention to the issue of anonymity.
In any event, different wishing to remain anonymous could do so, yet avoid rendering threads incoherent, simply by choosing different names Anonymous1, Anonymous2, Anonymous3, ... in sequence to use throughout the thread.
In any event, my personal advice to everyone, is simply to follow my own good example and generally decline to read--and certainly not respond to--any comment signed as "Anonymous". By so doing, you may contribute to the quality of this blog by encouraging offenders to weed themselves out.
To Father Kavanaugh, my goodness your Novus Ordo attitude is on full display with your comment, well Father your NO is not the real deal it is "man made" by all means keep your altar girls, dancing girls in black leotards, lay lectors both female and male, drums, guitas, banjos, pianos, folk, rock, mariachi music, felt banners, communion in the hand while standing, kiss of peace, lay people packed into the high altar area which by the way is OFF LIMITS to laymen just thought you might want to know that, Protestant hymns, "dinner table" smack in the middle, risen christ not the traditional crucifix, and we will have: altar boys only, Latin, Gregorian chant, statues, central tabernacle, high altar, central crucifix, six candlesticks, fiddleback vestments, kneeling for Holy Communion, communion rail, Mozart, Palestrina, Bach, organ, silence, mantillas, men and women in proper attire, this my dear Father Kavanaugh is called the Holy Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church. It has NEVER changed it is you and others who have changed and tossed the TRUE FAITH from away.
As a guest in Fr. McDonald's 'living room', I'm surprised at the tenor of some of the comments directed at priests to whom we should be expressing our appreciation as well as other commenters. Our host welcomed us into this forum, shouldn't we as guests do the same for others who might be seeking some sort of sanctuary, are new and aren't yet comfortable or familiar with every nuance of posting, are perhaps interested in exploring the traditional life of the church that might be unfamiliar etc? Our church's unified umbrella is quite large and we are fortunate that many options are available that are valid despite our personal viewpoint. On Sunday of all days, we should be peaceful and charitable toward each other.
My Dear Anonymous at 5:07, "Fr. McDonald and I and most other commenters here belong to the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic church. And, yes, your religion is not the same as ours."
One last point of reflection here.... If the newly initiated and/or their families who are celebrating with them looked to see the reaction to the photos of them receiving the sacraments during the celebratory Easter Vigil, what do you think their reaction would be such dialogue? We who are already initiated and churched or, are regularly representing a particular church on this blog along with commenters who are either churched outside of our communion or, not at all owe it to our host to maintain an appropriate level of decorum. We who favor traditon will neither evangelize nor effect a change of heart by doing otherwise.
Post a Comment