Pastor's Corner, September 29, 2013

Dear Parishioners and Friends,

This afternoon the Red Mass will be celebrated in the Cathedral. We are privileged to have as our guest homilist Archbishop William Lori, Archbishop of Baltimore and chairman of the ad hoc Committee for Religious Liberty of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. All are welcome to attend.

The first Red Mass for the Bench and Bar took place in 1245. In England the Mass was celebrated at the opening of each term of Court, a custom which continues in the United States. In England the celebrant of the Mass wore red vestments, and the judges of the High Court at the time of King Edward I, who were all doctors of the law, wore red robes, thus giving rise to the name “Red Mass.” Liturgically, the celebration is a votive Mass of the Holy Spirit.

It seems ever more important these days to celebrate the Red Mass. Those in the legal profession gather in prayer and worship so as to be a living sign of the importance of not just the freedom of worship but for the much wider and more fundamental right of the freedom of religion.

Each of us has the right and duty to live our faith in the world around us. Also, all Americans and the Church need advocates in the legal profession to defend and promote religious freedom and freedom of conscience precisely at a time in which these fundamental human rights are being questioned.

In Christ,

Msgr. Baker

End with Our Lady

The last evening in Fatima and the last day of our pilgrimage was spent participating in a special rosary and procession at the chapel of the apparitions. Bob and Sue Bartos prayed in English 5 Hail Marys of the fourth glorious mystery of the rosary. At the end of the rosary they carried a statue of Mary around the plaza and then returned to the chapel. It was a magnificent ending to our pilgrimage. 

Popes of Fatima

Fatima has received such high approbation by the visit of several popes. Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI have visited the shrine. The pope with the closest connection with Our Lady of Fatima is Pope John Paul II. On May 13, 1981 an attempt was made on his life. A bullet passed near his heart which doctors said should have struck his aorta and killed him. The Pope said that Our Lady guided the bullet which made an unexplained deviation and barely missed the aorta. The bullet was given to the Shrine by Pope John Paul II and it is now in the crown of the statue of Our Lady. 

Old friend

This afternoon I visited an old friend here in Fatima. I met Armando Mendes on a previous visit to Fatima in the early 90's and stayed in his hotel. It was built on his family property which is only a block from the Shrine. He has a great love for Our Lady and he knows all about the apparitions. He continues to run the hotel and he is now married with 7 children. 

The sanctuary in Fatima

The first chapel in Fatima was built near the site of apparition. We will have Mass there today. Then they built another, larger church and them finally, just a few year ago, they completed a modern basilica which hold over 8,000 people. Blessed Francisco and Jacinta Marto as well as Sr. Lucia are buried in the old basilica. 

The three shepherd children

The three children who saw Our Lady in 1917 first were visited three times by the Angel of Peace in 1916, teaching them how to pray and offer sacrifices for sinners. The last visit culminated with the angel giving them Holy Communion. This morning we visited the homes of the children and the sites of the apparitions of the angel. 

Our Lady of Fatima

We have arrived in Fatima a bit tired but excited to see the site where Our Lady appeared to 3 shepherd children in 1917. A small outdoor chapel marks the spot of the apparition. We will have Mass this evening in the chapel of the angel of peace. Tomorrow we will have a formal tour of the sanctuary and the place where the children lived.  

In Lisbon

We made it back to Lisbon and now we are taking a brief tour of the city before we go to Fatima. We will have a free afternoon before Mass at 6:30 pm.  

Wake up in Lourdes

After the evening rosary procession we had a nap and then got on the bus at 2 am ( yes AM!) to catch a 6:15 am flight to Lisbon. We then will proceed to Fatima for our two day visit of another famous Marian shine. Here is a picture of some of our faithful (and tired) pilgrims waiting in the Toulouse airport so early in the morning. 

Rosary procession

Along with tens of thousands of our closest friends in the Lord, we joined the nightly rosary procession here at Lourdes. While the rosary is being prayed and sung, we carried lighted candles in procession following a beautiful statue of Our Lady of Lourdes. These pictures do not do it justice. 

The baths

St. Bernadette was told by Our Lady to dig in the ground and wash herself with the water from the spring. After some digging in the spot indicated by Mary, Bernadette found a source of water which has not ceased flowing since then. One of the pictures shows the source of the spring. You can actually enter into a semi-private area and be helped into a small bath whose water comes from the spring. There have been over 65 officially approved miracles from Lourdes water. Some of us, including me, dipped ourselves into the baths. 

Eucharistic procession

Here in Lourdes from May to October every evening at 5 pm they have a procession of the Blessed Sacrament from the chapel of adoration to the large underground church of St. Pius X. It was an amazing manifestation of faith in the Real Presence! 

St. Bernadette's home

The family of St. Bernadette fell on hard time when she was 10 years old. They were evicted from their home and had to move into a small house which use to be the city jail. They whole family lived in one small room. She was gathering firewood for the fireplace when Our Lady appeared to her. 

The troubles of a pastor

When St. Bernadette was told by Our Lady to have a chapel built on the site of the apparition, she went to tell her pastor - Fr. Peyramale. He didn't believe this young, uneducated girl. Can you blame him? Afterward, when Bernadette repeated to her pastor that the lady in the grotto said that she was the Immaculate Conception (a term he knew Bernadette could not have understood let alone make up), he started to believe her. Eventually, he became one of Bernadette's greatest defenders. It's not easy being a pastor.

Prayed at site of apparition

I hope this photo will say it all. We arrived at Lourdes and prayed for all of those intentions in our Intention Book. 

On way to Lourdes

We took the bus from Florence to Rome and hopped an Easy Jet airplane, leaving Italy behind. We are on our way from Toulouse to Lourdes, a trip that will take about 2 hours and 15 minutes. Our driver and guide is Freddy. We are all looking forward to meeting with Our Lady at the end of our pilgrimage. 

Pastor's Corner, September 22, 2013

Dear Parishioners and Friends,

At this time I and my fellow pilgrims are on our way to Lourdes and then to Fatima. Once again let me assure you that we are praying for all the intentions many of you gave us before we left.

What happened on February 11, 1858, in Lourdes, France? 14-year-old Bernadette Soubirous went with her sister and a friend to the river Gave to gather wood. She saw there a young and beautiful lady in a niche in the grotto near the river. This was the first of 18 apparitions. The lady later identified herself as “the Immaculate Conception.” Yearly from March to October the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes is a place of mass pilgrimage from all over the world. The spring water from the grotto is the source of many physical healings.

What happened on May 13, 1917, in Fatima, Portugal? Ten year old Lucia Santos and her cousins Jacinta (7 years old) and Francisco (8 years old) Marto were herding sheep at the Cova da Iria near Fatima. Lúcia described seeing a woman “brighter than the sun.” Further appearances took place on the 13^th of each month and Our Lady asked the children to do penance and acts of reparation to save sinners. In the course of her appearances, Mary confided to the children three secrets, now known as the Three Secrets of Fatima. On October 13, 1917, the “Miracle of the Sun” took place. Witnesses later spoke of the sun appearing to change colors, rotate like a wheel, and “dance” in the sky.

Please remember us in your prayers as we visit these holy sites.

In Christ,

Msgr. Baker

David

Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of the magnificent statue of Michelangelo called "David" because they did not allow us to take pictures of it. It was originally intended to be on top of a Church but DaVinci thought so highly of the statue that it ended up on top of the town hall for many years. At the end of the 19th Century they moved it indoors.  

Duomo

We visited the Cathedral in Florence today which is also called "il Duomo" (the eighth graders will tell me why it's called that). The two pictures are from the inside of the Church. Awesome! Later in the day there was a regularly scheduled Vigil Mass for Sunday in English at the Duomo which we celebrated with other English-speakers in Florence. 

Venice

The boat ride from the mainland to Venice was exciting. Venice is a grouping of 120 islands and 400 bridges. It as a major medieval port because of its proximity to Constantinople. The city is NOT on the Mediterranean Sea but on a sea that the eighth graders of St. John Vianney school will be able to tell me when we return.

Happy birthday

Even without the presence of Bishop Barres, we sang and celebrated his birthday this evening at dinner. They served us an interesting pasta called "strozzapreti" which literally translated means "priest strangler." Of course, I had several servings. 

Driver

The pilgrimage depends on so many people to keep things organized and to help us arrive to all the holy places on time. We have had some great guides and the hotel personnel have been very accommodating. Cosimo has been our bus driver these pass few days and has been miraculously squeezing our large bus through the tight streets of Rome. Yes, he is old enough to drive!

Seraphic Father

My eighth graders can tell me when I return why St. Francis of Assisi is called the "Seraphic Father." We made our way from Rome to Assisi. There we explored the home town of the 12th century saint most known for his living of poverty and his closeness to creation. His grave was discovered at the beginning of the 19th Century. We placed our intention book near his grave and prayed for all of those included in the book. Today was a special day for one of our pilgrims - Leeann Baumer - who celebrated her birthday with a little champagne at dinner. 

Leaving Rome

Tomorrow we leave Rome and head to Florence by way of Assisi. Coming back from dinner with a friend I spent some time in St. Peter's Square praying for the Holy Father. Here is a picture of the Square at night... Arrivederci Roma!

The Pope's Cathedral

Every bishop has his own Cathedral Church. Pope Francis' Cathedral is St. John Lateran (not St. Peter's). We spent some time in this Church and saw the chair or "cathedra" which gives every Cathedral its name. 

Saint Sebatian

We visited the catacombs of St. Sebatian. We had Mass in the chapel of St. Fabian and then visited the catacombs beneath the Church. The cemetery was originally dug near an abandoned tuffa stone mine cave and so the area was called in Greek "cata combe" or "near the cave." Thus we got the word "catacomb." 

Pope Francis

We woke up early this morning for our anticipated meeting with the Pope - and with about 100,000 other Catholics! We have very good seats and the pope passed in front of us TWICE. He spoke of the Church as a tender and merciful mother who teaches her children the right path to take in life. 

Summer residence

This evening we has Mass in St. Thomas Church in the town of Castel Gondolfo. This is the town where the Pope has his the summer residence. We had a wonderful dinner near the Church. 

Museums

After a rather long line to get in, we finally enjoyed the precious artwork, sculpture, etc. of the Vatican Museums. If you spent just one minute in front of each piece of art it would take you many years to get through the museums. The tour ended inside the Sistine Chapel. Just look at a few things we saw there:

St. Peter's Basilica

Today we visited the Church built over the grave of St. Peter. It is the most magnificent Church in all of Christendom. On the inside of the dome it s written, "You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church and I give you the keys of the kingdom."

Coliseum

Soon after the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem in 70 AD  the Emperor used many Jewish slaves to build a large stadium for gladiator games. Eventually the stadium was called the Coliseum. My  eighth grade class from St. John Vianney will be able to tell me how the stadium got its name.

Apparition of Mary

There is a small church called Sant'Andrea delle Fratte where Our Lady appeared to the famous atheist Ratisbonne which converted him to the Catholic faith. It is the same place where St. Maximilian Kolbe celebrated his first Mass.

Finally we made it to the tomb of St. Paul

We made it to the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls. Why "outside the walls"? St.  Paul was buried in a cemetery outside the walls of the ancient city of Rome. We prayed at the tomb of the great apostle to the Gentiles, especially for all the intentions given to us by the parishioners at the Cathedral. 

Tomb of St. Catharine of Siena

Some of us made it to the Church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva. St. Catharine's body is entombed below the main altar. We once again prayed for all those intentions at the final resting place of the great woman doctor of the Church and patroness of our Cathedral. 

Piazza del Popolo

This morning we first visited the Church of St. Mary of the people (Santa Maria del Popolo).  It gave the name of the square just inside the walls of the ancient city of Rome called "Piazza del Popolo." Then we went on to the Spanish Steps.

Spanish Steps

The Spanish Steps, named after the embassy to Spain which is nearby, is one of the most popular spots in Rome. A large column topped by a statue of the Immaculate Conception is at one end of the square at the bottom of the steps. This statue is surrounded by four statues of Old Testament figures who prophecised the coming of the Blessed Mother. I will give extra credit to any eighth grader from St. John Vianney who tells me who they are.