From the Pastor: From 8/16/15 when Epiphany's TLM was new.
Here is a question raised now that Epiphany has become the Center for the Traditional Latin Mass™ in Tampa. Why don’t we (the congregation) make the responses at the low Mass? Answer: Because I said so. Yes, for those of you who are raising children, you know this is a pretty stock answer to any question that you would rather not answer because either 1. you don’t know the answer or 2. the explanation would be beyond the ability of the child to grasp or 3. you are short on time (or patience) or 4. for any other good parental reason. But that is not a very fulfilling answer. So here is a “real” answer. I don’t know the TLM very well. I have no formal training in it and I did not grow up with it. All I knew about it when I started came from books and the insights of several adult altar boys. I think I celebrated the Low Mass for about two years before I could even attend one and see if I was doing it right. While some of the old books I consulted mentioned a “dialogue Mass” in which the congregation responded, it was almost always put forth as a novelty that never really caught on in most places. Exceptions to the “silent Mass” seemed to be mostly limited to places where altar boys were not available, such as cloistered convents and all-girls schools. At such places, one or two Sisters or female students were allowed to kneel outside of the altar rail and make the responses in place of the altar boys (who were themselves, in fact, making the responses in place of additional clergy). Upon seeing that the “dialogue” in the Mass was originally between priests and between the priest celebrant and God the Father, it made sense to me that the congregation remained silent. Altar boys (men) who helped train me came from a TLM which was a “silent Mass” and the first TLM which I finally attended was also a “silent Mass” so I naturally started with and continued with a silent Mass. I have a respected How-to-TLM type of book by Rev. J.B. O’Connell in which he writes, “At low Mass, in which the people are not participating by common prayer or song...” and contrasts it with a “sung Mass.” This is a pretty clear indicator that at the low Mass the people are silent, neither responding to the prayers, joining in with the responses, nor singing. But later he adds an appendix on “the active participation of the people in the Liturgy.” In this section, he gives directions to be followed if the people are to engage in a “dialogue” Mass. He first states that “participation” in the Mass is already achieved when the people “spontaneously share in the Mass by due attention to its principal parts and by their external behavior” (in other words, by silently praying, sitting, standing, kneeling, striking the breast, making the threefold sign of the cross on the head, lips and breast at the introduction to the Gospel, dressing appropriately, keeping custody of the eyes, etc.). Then he gives other ways of participating. “If possible, they ought to follow the Mass in a Missal--at least in a small Missal arranged for the use of the laity--but if they cannot do this they should meditate on the mysteries of Jesus Christ and say prayers in keeping with the sacred rites. Better still they should pray aloud and sing hymns in common--prayers and song in accord with the different parts of the Mass at which they are used. Such common prayers and hymns should not, however, be said or sung when the celebrant of Mass is reciting aloud important parts of the Mass, especially the presidential prayers (such as the Collect, Preface, Postcommunion). And silence is desirable from the Consecration to Pater noster.” Whew! So in the low Mass the congregation can “better participate” by praying together the rosary or stations of the cross, for instance, as long as they know when to shut up? Yes! Now I have to ask those who attend the Low Mass: would you be able to understand and pray the Mass more fully if everybody started singing hymns and/or praying the Litany of the Sacred Heart together at some point and then abruptly became silent and then started again somewhere along the line? I don’t think so. O’Connell goes on to explain four different methods of “dialogue Mass,” each getting “more complete,” and ends by stating, “[I]t is not of obligation, nor is any one of the four possible forms imposed--it is for the rector of the church to judge which of these is feasible at any time--but if it is used it must follow one or the other of these forms and other parts of the Mass may not be recited aloud.” So if and when I decide a “dialogue Mass” is going to be used I believe I must first teach you all four forms and be sure you do not mix them. Without going into detail but giving you simple examples of how the four forms differ, it is not allowed for you to respond at a “form 2” Mass (at which you say aloud only the altar boy parts) but also pray aloud the Pater Noster as in the “form 3” Mass. Want to say the Domine non sum dignus? Not in form 1 or 2, you don’t! Can’t recite the Introit and Offertory in Latin? Too bad, but you just lost out on the number four form! Too confusing for my blood. So, at least for now (and still in 2023!), I simply tell you to remain completely silent throughout the entire Mass. Why? Because I said so. With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: A Belated “Welcome Back” to our Choir
Several weeks ago I had every intention of writing an article about our choir, which goes by the name “St. Dunstan Schola.” I got waylaid by several things that popped up that needed my immediate attention, so I put it off. I believe that the first issue that came up was the letter the Bishop received from Rome giving us two years to continue celebrating the TLM at Epiphany and at the other two parishes in the diocese which have that form of the Mass. I had to break up Bishop Parkes’ letter to us into two separate weekly bulletins in order to get it all in. The following week I was whining about being sick so we ran an old bulletin article about hurricanes in this spot. Of course, Hurricane Idalia zoomed in past us right after that so I had to write about her and also give a health update. But this weekend—finally—I have the opportunity to write a bit about our incredible schola. Every week they spend more time than most people could possibly imagine learning new chant pieces, practicing both old and new Mass settings, and preparing for Sunday and special feast day Masses. All of the time spent is, I hope it goes without saying, time spent in prayer, for all that they do is for the glory of God and the sanctification of souls. Whether they are studying the chant notation, practicing in the choir room with everyone else, singing in the car as they drive to work, or even spending their lunch hour or children’s nap time going over particularly difficult pieces, it is all part of their prayer life. It is truly a ministry and one which our schola takes very seriously, as you can hear from the results. If we had a church building with even mediocre acoustics, they would sound even better than what you hear already, and that is saying something since they sound pretty darn good even in our “acoustically challenged” building. They are truly a blessing for all of us who attend (or celebrate) the 10:30 Mass on Sundays. Every year they take about a month off so that members can either go on vacation, sit with their families at Mass (a true luxury for them!), or simply get a break from the constant preparation they do the rest of the year. While they are not singing we have been blessed to have at least a few choir members do some “simple” chants for the Masses so that we can keep our main Mass as a High Mass instead of a Low Mass (where nothing at all is chanted, neither by the choir nor the priest). But as great as it is that we have those few stalwart members chanting for us, it is still a huge grace to once again hear the whole choir when they return. This year I was caught by surprise when the time came for them to return from their respite. I was lining up with the altar boys before our entrance procession and asked where the “chant men” were, for they had been processing in with us. The boys, of course, all knew that the choir was already back in their stalls and ready to start singing. The pastor really is the last to know anything at the parish! I was so impressed with their singing at that Mass that I was tempted to follow my old seminary training and have everyone clap for them! You all know that that defeats their whole purpose of being in the choir, though, as it turns them from being an important part of the “prayer ministry” of the church into being the “entertainment squad” of the parish. Even at other parishes, I think that more choir members understand that reality than their priests do and they get quite embarrassed when the clapping begins. Even so, I had the urge... But now that I finally get a chance to write about them, I don’t have the ability to enjoy them. As you know, the first part of my recent illness was an almost complete loss of my voice. In case you missed it, I couldn’t preach even a simple sermon that week, since nobody could hear me even if I shouted into the microphone. I had to chant the High Mass, but the choir knew ahead of time that they were going to have to just guess as to when I was finished with my “lines” as they would not be able to make out most of what I was trying so desperately to chant. Heck, even the altar boys couldn’t hear me and they were just a few feet from me all the way through Mass. But after getting my voice back, my hearing went out. As I write this my ears still have not yet cleared and everything I hear is muffled. Some tones are missing as well so I can’t even recognize people’s voices when they speak to me. Everyone sounds a bit squeaky, like cartoon characters. Even my own voice, which sounds very loud in my head, sounds completely different than normal. So when I hear the choir sing, I hear the strangest voices ringing through the church. It’s not quite as bad as listening to Alvin and the Chipmunks sing, but it’s somewhat toward that spectrum. Maybe by this weekend I’ll be able to hear them properly once again. Anyway, I am still grateful for Mr. Bergmann and the schola he leads. We are very blessed to have them here. If you agree with me, please say a prayer of thanksgiving for them and ask God to bless them as much as they bless us. With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Good Timing!
Last week we ran an old article in this space about what to do to prepare for a hurricane. The timing was perfect. First of all, I have been sick for a while now and wasn’t feeling up to writing an article for the bulletin. It was good to have something worthwhile to put in there without me having to work at it. The information it contained was meant especially to help all of the newer parishioners who may not know about such things as prayers to avert storms or the fact that we will still have Mass under most circumstances. The fact that we had a hurricane come through right after it ran in the bulletin was another piece of good timing. Not that one caused the other, mind you, but good timing nonetheless. Of course, it also showed how many people do not read that part of the bulletin, since the parish phones and other means of communication were lit up with the same question over and over. Will there be Mass? We had more people asking if we would continue to have Mass than actually attend weekday Masses during normal days! Or it seemed like it, at least. It was very similar to our annual routine on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday when everyone calling has a bulletin in their hand in which they look up the church phone number, yet don’t bother to look at the three places in that same bulletin for the Mass schedule. Which reminds me, Ash Wednesday is this coming week. Masses are at 4:00 am, 5:00 am, and 5:45 am, not at Epiphany, but at whatever parish is closest to your house. Just go very early to any of those churches and knock on the rectory door if the church is not yet open. Father will be very happy to cover you with sackcloth and ashes when you wake him up. Just don’t tell him that you read it here! But enough joking. Ash Wednesday really isn’t until the following week. Hurricane Idalia came through pretty quickly instead of just hanging out in the Gulf and making everyone wonder what her plans might be. On Tuesday, we prayed the prayers from the Mass to Avert Storms. On Thursday, we prayed the prayers of the Mass of Thanksgiving for the storm having missed us. It is a pattern we have seen often enough. It would be nice if we never needed to pray either of those two Masses again but, this being Florida, I think we’ll keep the pages marked well! This time the eye of the storm stayed more than 100 miles away from us and we didn’t have any flooding, fallen trees, or damage to buildings or property. We didn’t even lose electricity. Thanks be to God. Now for an update on my health. Two weeks ago I had no voice. Last week I had a voice but no hearing. At the time I am typing this out, I still have very little hearing. My ears are so blocked up that I cannot tell how loud or soft I am speaking. I cannot tell if I am chanting anywhere near on tune or not (although I am guessing not) when doing something so easy as leading the simple chants for Exposition and Benediction. I can’t understand most of what people are saying when they speak with me. There are some benefits to this. I haven’t been waken by the train all week. If there were any storms during the night the hurricane went through, I wasn’t bothered by them, let alone waken by them. But I still can’t hear well enough to hear confessions. All week long I have had to leave signs up stating that point. It is disappointing to people, but really, you would have to speak pretty loudly in order to make yourself understood, too loud for privacy. I am just starting to hear some crackling and squealing in my ears indicating that the congestion inside them (or whatever is doing this) is starting to break up. Perhaps by this weekend I will already be back in the confessional box. We shall see. The other symptoms are all slowly going away as well. Thank you for all your prayers. I want to say a special thank you to all of you who did not phone and text or knock on the rectory door but rather kept your prayers and other assistance between just you and God. Have you ever tried to rest and relax and recuperate under doctor’s orders but your loving family members keep calling or stopping by to check on you (all mothers raise your hands now!) and manage to keep even a small nap from being a reality? Now imagine your family is 900 plus strong (Bauers, quit scoffing at such a low number!) and each decides that their visit, their cold remedy, their phone calls, their text messages, and/or their special meals (all good things in themselves) are absolutely necessary for your well-being. The constant barrage of love, rather than being of assistance, actually makes things worse. This is what it can be for priests who are loved too much, too. Thankfully, I had both my mother and sister able to run interference for me to push me through the crowds and get me from the church to the rectory without being stopped. The office staff kept a variety of tactical weapons such as drones, bazookas, and electric cow prods on hand to stop anybody trying to sneak past the trenches and barbed wire during the week. And the sign on the front door to the rectory telling people to Go Away kept most people from attempting to sneak past the other defenses when nobody was looking. Thanks for understanding! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: The Rest of the Bishop’s Letter
Last week I typed out the first part of Bishop Parkes’ letter regarding the two-year dispensation granted to the three parishes in the diocese where the Traditional Latin Mass is celebrated. (Read it on our website if you missed it.) This week I will give you the rest of the letter, which part begins explaining what we are asked to do during those two years. Once again, I have made no edits or corrections to the text with the exception of leaving out our Bishop’s actual signature. It is unbecoming of a priest, after all, to engage in forging his Bishop’s signature! Specifically, the Holy See presented the motu proprio’s provisions which those granted the dispensation should keep in mind, namely,
You should see the dispensation as a pastorally sensitive response to the spiritual needs of the faithful who are attached to the pre-conciliar liturgy. The favor also allows time for deeper reflection on how to proceed celebrating the antecedent liturgy in manner that is respectfully obedient to the Holy Father’s supreme authority in shepherding the liturgical life of the entire Church. As Diocesan Bishop and the one responsible for moderating the liturgical life of the Diocese of St. Petersburg, I look forward to cooperating with you and your parishioners in finding the way forward with prudence. With every best wish and a promise of a remembrance in prayer, I remain Sincerely yours in Christ, Most Reverend Gregory Parkes Bishop Of St. Petersburg At this point, the letter being ended, I return to my own words. I asked you last week to do two things to show the Bishop that we appreciate the work he does as our Bishop and, specifically, what he has done for our parish. In case you missed it, let me repeat this request by copying (below his address) what I wrote. Envelopes can be addressed to: The Most Reverend Gregory Parkes Bishop of St. Petersburg PO Box 40200 St. Petersburg, FL 33743-0200. The salutation on the letters may be either, “Your Excellency” or “Dear Bishop”. Now I want to ask you for a favor. Bishop Parkes is not completely convinced that we fully support him. He would like to know that we not just grudgingly support him, but fully support him as he does us. I can think of a few things that might help convince him. Number one: Money talks. Loudly sometimes! The Bishop’s Catholic Ministry Appeal is a good place to start. If you have not yet donated to this year’s appeal (we only have 15% participation so far), please do so now. I had told him earlier that it was hard to convince people to give if they were unsure of the parish being kept open. Now we know we will be here for at least two more years. There is now no reason we cannot meet our goal in both years. Number two: Prayers. Now is a great time to send the Bishop a personal letter thanking him for his support and pledging your prayers for him. 900 personal notes (have each child send a separate card too!) sent individually will capture his attention far more than all of the spiritual bouquets we have sent him in the past, which arrive in one single package. Thank you for following through on this! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Good News from Bishop Parkes!
I had a meeting with Bishop Parkes this week. Since you read the title of this article, you already know that he had good news for us. There is a push from Rome to end the Traditional Latin Mass throughout the world and the Bishops have been instructed to see to it that that happens. They were given an opportunity to keep the TLMs going, however, for the spiritual good of their flock, if they could present a good case for doing so. Bishop Parkes made such a request and received a response. Below is the first part of a letter dated August 9, 2023 that he wrote to me regarding the response he received. I have made no edits or corrections to the text. Dear Father Palka, Permit me to extend my cordial greeting to you and the faithful of Epiphany of our Lord Parish. With this letter, I can convey the response of the Holy See to my request of March 15, 2023, for a dispensation from certain prescripts of the motu proprio Traditionis Custodes. You will remember I informed you of my petition to the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments asking the three parishes in our Diocese who celebrate the Mass according to the Roman Missal of 1962 to be allowed to continue doing so. In my request, I presented the spiritual and pastoral reasons the dispensation would foster the harmony and communion of the Diocese and the communities celebrating the antecedent liturgy. On July 20, 2023, the Dicastery issued its response and granted the requested dispensations for two years. The decree also allowed the Diocese to revisit the pastoral conditions which motivated the March 2023 request after the two years period expires. The Holy See will permit a request to extend the dispensation if the pastoral and spiritual reasons remain and suggest the dispensation’s renewal. The Dicastery’s response was a gracious and generous. In fact, it is more generous than I expected, given that, as far as I am aware, other dioceses have not received dispensations for more than a year. It is obvious that they were sensitive to the pastoral and spiritual reasons articulated in my request. It is hoped that the faithful of Epiphany Parish will understand the pastoral concern for them that led me to request the dispensation and the generosity of the Holy See’s response. Please encourage parishioners to be grateful that the Dicastery granted this favor on Pope Francis’s behalf. The Dicastery did propose some issues of pastoral leadership that should guide you and your community in planning for the future. These issues also advise you regarding the likely criteria the Holy See will use in evaluating whether to renew the dispensation after two years. I expect, as Pastor, you will pay close attention to these issues as you inform parishioners of the decision and proceed over the next two years. It is here that I break from his letter. I should be able to publish the rest of the letter next week. Not all Bishops have been as supportive of their own people as Bishop Parkes has been and continues to be. He has a true shepherd’s heart and wants to allow us to continue using the 1962 Missal and liturgical rites as we have been doing ever since his predecessor established this parish as “Tampa’s Center for the Traditional Latin Mass” in 2015. This is, as you see, better news than he expected. Without a long-term assurance, though, I still cannot justify doing all of the work and fundraising for a much-needed new church building and classrooms. But I am much happier with a two-year agreement than a negative decree closing us down! Now I want to ask you for a favor. Bishop Parkes is not completely convinced that we fully support him. He would like to know that we not just grudgingly support him, but fully support him as he does us. I can think of a few things that might help convince him. Number one: Money talks. Loudly sometimes! The Bishop’s Catholic Ministry Appeal is a good place to start. If you have not yet donated to this year’s appeal (we only have 15% participation so far), please do so now. I had told him earlier that it was hard to convince people to give if they were unsure of the parish being kept open. Now we know we will be here for at least two more years. There is now no reason we cannot meet our goal in both years. Number two: Prayers. Now is a great time to send the Bishop a personal letter thanking him for his support and pledging your prayers for him. 900 personal notes (have each child send a separate card too!) sent individually will capture his attention far more than all of the spiritual bouquets we have sent him in the past, which arrive in one single package. Thank you for following through on this! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Creation With Evolution?
I recently came across this article about two Catholic arguments regarding how man and other living creatures on Earth were created. I believe it is worth passing on to you. Read this shortened version of it closely if you dare. Credit to William Briggs, https://www.wmbriggs.com/post/47573/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ There are two basic positions, which are held by many, but which here I name by their well known champions. Fr. Chad Ripperger: …every essence is immediately created by God and could not be caused by any created substance [like a species]. The essential reason for this is that to create a substance requires the ability to bridge the gap between nothing and something. The gap between nothing and something that is being actualized requires an infinite power since the ontological distance between nothing and something is infinite…. Some theistic evolutionists hold that evolution is just a natural process used by God to bring about the various forms of life up to and including the bodies of the first human beings. Other theistic evolutionists hold that evolution is a case of constant miracles being used to bring about the various forms of life culminating in man. As to those who hold it is a natural process, they introduce God into the issue to provide what might be lacking in the order of nature, such as the order that one finds in the universe, which may not be accounted for by purely natural causes and this introduces the above philosophical difficulty where only God can create a substance as well as a whole host of other difficulties… If God is used to supply on the side [via evolution] of the principle of sufficient reason, it ends up violating the principle of economy because God must intervene to supply the sufficient reason at each step. This indicates that it is not strictly a natural process but requires the introduction of God into each step to be able to achieve the next higher species in the evolutionary process. This violates the principle of economy because what is ultimately being stated is that nature does not suffice in order to produce each individual species on its own. This is a true enough principle but theistic evolution requires God to be involved in each individual step since the laws of nature do not suffice. At each step, therefore, God must suspend the laws of nature and add what is lacking in the order of nature. The definition of a miracle is: “something occurring aside the whole created nature”. Theistic evolution, whether it states that it is a natural process, which is really just a covert way of introducing constant miracles, or asserts outright that miracles are constantly necessary for the process, violates the principle of economy. It violates the principle of economy because it posits a number of causes, in this case God intervening as a cause on repeated occasions, without a sufficient reason. In this sense, God creating directly all of the individual species including man in a short period of time without a large number of secondary causes more perfectly fulfills the principle of economy than any theory of evolution, theistic evolution included. Mike Flynn & Kenneth Kemp The Flynn-Kemp proposal is this. Suppose evolutionary processes gave rise to a population of several thousand creatures of this non-rational but genetically and physiologically “human” sort. Suppose further that God infused rational souls into two of these creatures, thereby giving them our distinctive intellectual and volitional powers and making them truly human. Call this pair “Adam” and “Eve.” Adam and Eve have descendents, and God infuses into each of them rational souls of their own, so that they too are human in the strict metaphysical sense. Suppose that some of these descendents interbreed with creatures of the non-rational but genetically and physiologically “human” sort. The offspring that result would also have rational souls since they have Adam and Eve as ancestors (even if they also have non-rational creatures as ancestors). This interbreeding carries on for some time, but eventually the population of non-rational but genetically and physiologically “human” creatures dies out [or is snuffed out], leaving only those creatures who are human in the strict metaphysical sense. On this scenario, the modern human population has the genes it does because it is descended from this group of several thousand individuals, initially only two of whom had rational or human souls. But only those later individuals who had this pair among their ancestors (even if they also had as ancestors members of the original group which did not have human souls) have descendents living today. In that sense, every modern human is both descended from an original population of several thousand and from an original pair. There is no contradiction, because the claim that modern humans are descended from an original pair does not entail that they received all their genes from that pair alone. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ So, which of these, if either, makes sense to you? Can their differences be reconciled? Briggs thinks so. Check out his article if you wish to go a little deeper. With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Our Most Beloved Saints are in Hell?
For the last two weeks, I have been grousing about the news coming from both the secular world and the Church. Even though I have put up a “news force field” around myself, some of it still manages to slip through. Case in point: The French Bishop Pascal Roland has notified everyone visiting the shrine at Ars (the city where St. John Marie Vianney, patron Saint of priests, was the pastor) that priests may celebrate Mass in any language as long as they are celebrating the Novus Ordo Mass. The Traditional Latin Mass, though, may only be celebrated in a crypt (out of sight of all the Catholics who would be scandalized by such a sight!) without any people in attendance. And please, leave a donation for the use of the facilities. Do you know which form of the Mass St. John Vianney celebrated? I’ll give you a hint. He died in 1859. Of the two forms of the Mass (NOM and TLM), only the TLM had been celebrated for 1400 years or more before his birth. Of the two forms, the TLM was still the only one being celebrated 110 years after his death. Therefore, the TLM produced all of the Saints and converts throughout the world during all of those centuries. But now, at the very place where the famous Curé of Ars celebrated the TLM, only a solitary, hidden priest may celebrate it and no laity may attend. Newsflash: TLMers are treated like lepers. Another bit of Church news also made it through my barrier. This gem is from this side of the ocean and shows that lepers are sometimes treated much better than those who want the TLM. A recording of a homily publicly delivered just last weekend is making the rounds. The preacher is a retired bishop who joked that he is nimis stultum to understand Latin even though he studied it for six years. Self-deprecating humor is good for a laugh from the congregation, but he was deprecating the Latin Mass rather than himself. He didn’t decry not knowing Vietnamese, Spanish, Polish, Lithuanian, Portuguese, or any other of the many languages in which the Novus Ordo Mass is celebrated within the diocese he is residing in after having headed it up for more than two decades. No, he was clearly maligning the Traditional Latin form of Mass rather than simply the language of the Mass. He explained the parable of the wheat and the weeds by inserting the Latin Mass and those who want it into the story. Here is a transcribed tiny fraction of what he said, and it is not being taken out of context. “There are people making seeds that don’t like the fact that the Mass we celebrate is no longer in Latin. Latin! Which I grew up with in my childhood, didn’t understand then, don’t understand now after six years of studying Latin. (laughter) But then Christ’s presence comes to the Altar here in plain sight instead of hidden to all by the priest who has his back to us. These are weeds. These are bad weeds that are being planted. In our midst. There are people, movements which are planting seeds in the Body of Christ, which is the Church.” In that parable, the one responsible for the bad weeds in the Master’s (God’s) field of good wheat was his enemy (Satan). When the harvest time comes, the weeds will be collected and burned. The bad weeds are the heretics, unrepentant evil-doers, and antichrists, used by the devil to infiltrate God’s Church, pervert His teachings, and corrupt His children with false morals and worship. These bad weeds will be sent to hell on Judgment Day. This bishop equated those who celebrate, attend, or even simply desire the TLM with Satan and his demons. He directly implied that they are evil and will burn in hell for all of eternity. He later explained that the parable is one of mercy and a reminder that we “should refrain from judging.” You can’t make this stuff up! He did wrap up by reminding all of the TLMers listening to him, “While things will be sorted out someday, there’s still time. If we are among those who are tempted to plant those bad seeds, there’s still time for us to change.” Yes, dump the TLM if you wish to get to Heaven. I wish that St. John Vianney, who struggled with Latin himself, had had this good bishop warn him how much spiritual damage he was doing to the people and to his own soul by giving them the TLM. He may have refrained from sowing those demonic seeds. According to the “logic” of this sermon, St. John Vianney went to hell and took the whole town of Ars with him. I wonder how many priests since then have turned to that vile man, their patron Saint, and prayed to him, mistakenly thinking that he is in Heaven since the Church proclaimed him a Saint, when, obviously, “Saint” must really mean “damned TLM priest.” Of course, all of the other “Saints” who celebrated or attended the Traditional Latin Mass from the earliest days of its celebration must be in hell as well, so let that be a lesson to you! Rejoice in this good news! Two bishops, one in France and one in the USA, are spiritually joined together, destroying the TLM in order to save the souls of those who want it. The evil that St. John Vianney spread may soon be conquered! The world needs more such merciful bishops who will denigrate the TLM and berate its adherents, for, after all, every single faithful Catholic who died before Advent of 1969 is now and for always, like the bad weeds they were, evidently burning in hell. God, save us from Sainthood! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: How Do You Do It?
Last week I wrote about some of the news I was hearing and reading. Both the secular news and that coming from the Church are disheartening. I said that I wasn’t planning on reading any more news while I was away and I meant it. Yet I still got an earful simply by having the radio on while driving, for even Relevant Radio has news breaks. To those of you who spend hours every day listening to or watching the news, I ask this very serious question: How do you do it? Doesn’t it steal your joy? Doesn’t it lead to hopelessness? Powerlessness? Constant anger and resentment? Do yourself a favor and turn it off and tune it out to the best of your ability. You don’t need to be a prophet to know at least the near future: In the Church, the Syndod on Synodality will be a fiasco, as the unfaithful participants are the promoted messengers. The new kissing cardinal-to-be will endorse heresy and condemn orthodoxy. Bishop Strickland’s persecution for “not being nice” will keep other bishops from speaking the truth even as evil becomes more blatant. China will continue to persecute actual Catholics while their own communist “catholics” will be coddled by Rome. Fr. Rupnik will keep his faculties and his $$$ but will have to be more discreet in his “undercover” work since the Jesuits will not be able to cover for him as meticulously as before. And, as a segue into the current secular issues, the mainstream media and politicians will continue to hate the Catholic Church and will do all they can to promote immoral clergy while simultaneously mocking and berating the clergy and laity who strive to uphold morality. Also in the secular world, you already know that the media will do all they can to denounce Trump and anyone associated with him, not for his real moral shortcomings (for they actually like his immorality) but for all sorts of imaginary and delusive offenses. Hunter Biden will be protected until his father is no longer useful as a tool against Trump. Both political parties will act like they contain the fullness of morality and will only pretend that there is a war going on between them—one of good vs evil—while all members of both sides suck deeply on the breast of anyone who will enrich them, regardless of the cost to the country. The right will be censored by the left (even Country songs are no longer safe!) while the left decries the censorship of the right. The news will continue to lie to protect its largest advertisers. Social media will continue to shadowban and outright cancel anyone the government tells them to. Fake women (males, but certainly not real men) will continue to steal athletic awards and even beauty pageants from females while feminists cheer on their degrading actions. And, bringing this section to a close by combining both Church and secular news once again, so-called “Catholic” schools, colleges, and universities will lead the way in the moral degradation of your children and grandchildren as they try to out-secularize the secular schools, colleges, and universities. Ok. Now you don’t need to watch the news for a few more months. Or years. Except for the weather. It is summer in Florida. It will be hot and humid with a good chance of thundershowers. Now you don’t need anything more. By the time you read this, I will be back to my normal schedule. I won’t be driving as much as I did last week so I won’t be listening to so much bad news. I really do recommend that you take a break from the news as well. It was anything but uplifting or even helpful. I listened because there are only so many rosaries I can actually pray (instead of just going through the motions) a day. I liked listening to some of the Relevant Radio shows when I could tune in that program. I only found one station playing classical music but it went out of range pretty quickly. I listened to country and classic rock and I even heard the country song that was subsequently banned by Country Music Television (a channel I have never heard of before) because the artist, Jason Aldean (a man I had never heard of before), turned out to be a Trump supporter, so his song (Try that in a small town) about how, in a small town, you won’t get away with the horrific and immoral but now-normal things that make up big city life, had to be labeled as racist, white supremist, homophobic, sexist, and orange. Or something like that. I took it as simply a song about how people living in small towns stick up for one another and for (for the most part, anyway) old-fashioned morality. I would guess that a large number of country music artists and listeners support Trump and support small-town life. Is CMT pulling a Bud Light? I hope Jason becomes a millionaire because of the hatred shown by the big city leftists (a pretty good guess on my part as to who would do this) who canceled him. On my time off I drove around Florida visiting people and places I rarely get to see. From Crystal River to Miami, from St. Petersburg to Palatka, I drove and listened and returned home. Here’s this priest’s take on this one particular aspect of my travels: listening to hours of confessions is preferable to listening to hours of the news! The sins I hear in the confessional are from repentant sinners who crave and then receive God’s mercy. Sins heard on the news are generally from braggarts and hooligans who willfully embrace and promote their sins, distancing themselves from God. What a difference! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Don’t Read This Article!
This week I have had the opportunity to sit back and relax a little. I have spent some of that time perusing the news, both Catholic and secular. I am not sure if it was a good idea, though! Here are some of the “highlights” of world events. Fr. James Martin, LGBTSJ, has been again given special honors by being named as one of the official Synod of All Synods US officials. He is the only non-bishop chosen by Francis to represent the US. But rest assured, the news organizations nearly unanimously proclaim, the Synod will not and can not produce any moral teachings that are not Catholic. After all, that Fr. Martin’s entire identity is wrapped up in convoluting Church moral teachings of the sexual nature doesn’t mean that he will vote in favor of mortal sin. Likewise, Francis’ hand-picked Cardinal McElroy may not vote for women’s ordination, although he has publicly stated that he wants the Synod to do so. The same logic will also have us believe that Cardinal Cupich, another of Francis’ personally chosen members of the US delegation, will now throw his support behind Eucharistic Processions and Traditional Latin Masses. The rest of the group chosen (even though the US Bishops elected their own delegates without including these men) can also be counted on to fully uphold Catholic Church teachings to the same degree. Uh-huh. But enough of this. There is much more news to consider. Not that this paragraph has anything to do with the above paragraph, but Disney+ (the “+” must be the one from LGBTQI+) has a new show in the works, called “Pauline.” In this family-friendly, children-oriented series, Pauline, a teenage girl, has relations with Satan and is pregnant with his child. This is portrayed as a “coming of age” movie. Pauline will supposedly have all sorts of supernatural powers given to her due to this physical union with the devil, which is certain to entice impressionable young girls into searching out a similar relationship with demons as well. Sounds like good, clean entertainment for the whole family to enjoy, doesn’t it? I will sandwich that bit of secular news between Church news by here pointing out that Monsignor Victor Manuel Fernández, archbishop of La Plata, Argentina, was recently appointed to head the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. This is the Vatican position formerly held by Benedict XVI under John Paul II. Until now, the purpose of this dicastery/congregation was to uphold Church teaching. Now the new head, who will be made a Cardinal next month, has been told that rooting out heresy is not to be his function in this new and improved organization. He is rather to find ways to join heresy to doctrine to bring us to a fuller understanding of morality. Gosh, that sounds just dandy, doesn’t it? This appointment is being criticized for two reasons which have absolutely nothing to do with each other. First, when this bishop was still just a priest, he wrote a book titled, “Heal Me With Your Mouth. The Art of Kissing (1995).” He now claims that people are just being mean by pointing out that it is totally inappropriate for a priest to write such a book. Even doing the research would be inappropriate, as he writes about it, “I went to bars, colleges, businesses, in order to ask (over 1000) young people about what they knew to say about kissing, I collected varied opinions about what a kiss means for them, about the different ways of kissing.” Really? Would you want your son or daughter interviewed by a priest about such matters? Would you send your son to the seminary of which he is the rector? The second major criticism is that he supported an abuser priest and disparaged his victims, the first of his multiple alleged coverups as a bishop. He only now has reluctantly admitted that he “made mistakes” in this one case, which “ended” with the suicide of the accused priest. Anyway, remember this man’s position when the Synod proclaims that much more than kissing is now to be embraced as a healing remedy for all that ails us. Back on the secular side again there was cocaine found in the “secure” area of the White House. Just because all visitors have to be signed in and escorted everywhere they go inside that residence, and just because there are security cameras in every room and hallway and secret service agents throughout the entire place doesn’t mean that they can figure out whose cocaine it is. And the Justice Department just filed charges against the whistleblower “Gal” threatening over 100 years in prison for the same charges which were just dropped against the most likely suspect in the cocaine story. Meanwhile, Leslie Van Houten, who took part in the Charles Manson murders, was just released from prison. A California court (of course) made the decision that she is now “safe.” In California holding down a woman while others repeatedly stab her and then personally stabbing her another 14-16 times, cleaning up the blood, changing clothes, and calmly drinking the victim's chocolate milk shows the murderer to be the real victim (of white supremacy, racism, and homophobia, assuredly). Where are all of the people crying out for knife control? On a similar topic, we soon won’t need gun control because the US is out of ammo. At least that is the official reason given for sending cluster bombs to Ukraine. And this immoral ammunition became moral because they are old, so many of them won’t work. So says our old, non-working President. But let me end on a good note. Screen for screen, “Sound of Freedom” (the movie Disney owned but refused to release, which has now been released independently) topped WokeDisney’s emasculated Indian Jones at the box office! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Welcome Back, Fr. Vincent!
I assume that at least most of you know Fr. Vincent. He used to help out at Epiphany on a regular basis, along with all of the other work he did throughout the diocese and at Jesuit High School. He is a great teacher, homilist, and speaker and a good, holy, personable priest, and was truly missed when he was transferred out of the country. But last year he returned, not quite to our country, but to Miami, which, in geographical terms, at least, is fairly close to Florida. At that time he offered to come and spend a month here in order to give me a break while he took over the Masses. Of course, I jumped at the chance for a respite. But before he came, we had plumbing problems and sewage problems stemming from the construction workers across the street doing something improperly, and everyone was worried that he was going to be coming into a mess. Fortunately, it was all cleared up before he arrived. By strange coincidence, though, we recently had another water outage due to the construction across the street, and, just last week, we had water pouring in through the ceiling downstairs as the air conditioner upstairs decided to drain onto the floor rather than to the outside. We caught several gallons of water before we were able to fix the problem. As you might have surmised by now, Fr. Vincent is coming back for a visit, a bit of work, and a personal retreat, and it looks like he will escape the worst of the plumbing issues once again. He should be here the Monday after this article appears in the bulletin. As mentioned, Fr. Vincent said that while he is here he will be making a personal retreat. There is something quite spiritually uplifting about starting out each day with two Masses, Adoration, and Confessions! Due to his desire to spend time in solitary prayer, he may not be able to go on many social visits, but, he still may be in need of some good home cooking. After all, we do not have a cook at the rectory to take care of his nutritional needs. So if you are willing and able to bring him some of your family’s favorite meals, don’t hesitate to offer him some Southern hospitality, even though it means serving it up in Tupperware rather than on fine China! Once Father Vincent appears on the scene, I will disappear for about 10 days. There are no baptisms or weddings scheduled during the time I will be gone but there are a few other things that I usually tend to that will just have to find ways of continuing without me. I have no doubt that you will all manage to survive my absence. Of course, there are always one or two smart alecks around who may plan on not surviving, just to prove me wrong in that assertation. To them, I say: I forbid it! No dying allowed while the pastor isn’t here! The last time I went away, everyone was pestering my mom about where I was. I had only told her what I told everybody else, namely, that “I will be in a private hermitage with a bed, a bath, and a chapel. No emails, no phone calls, no meetings!” This year, to spare her the endless questions that she was helpless to answer (even though you were convinced that she was holding back on you!) I will tell you exactly where I am going. I will give you the name, address, and even the keys to the place at which I will be staying. I will also have a complimentary chauffeur and limo on call for your convenience, plus free train, bus, and ship tickets for anyone who wishes to come and join me. Oh, and I put approximately $1903.47 cash in each of those 850 information packets so that nobody will feel that they are unable to join me on account of a lack of spending money. You should be able to find me quite easily without having to bother my mother at all. The box containing all of this is quite large and labeled in huge, eye-catching fluorescent print: “FREE VACATION PACKAGES AND CASH. TAKE WHAT YOU NEED!” If, for some strange reason, you cannot find the box where I left it (outside of the doors to the social hall) feel free to check the dumpster to see if somebody accidentally threw it away. I can’t think of any other reason it might be missing. Fr. Dorvil will also be gone while I am away. He has an assignment from his Religious Order wherein he needs to check up on other De Montfort priests in the US to make sure they are doing well, are in good health, have their needs taken care of, and any other thing that might be easily overlooked when they are by themselves in a foreign country. In July he will be traveling to tend to those duties. Please pray for him and the priests he assists as he performs this charitable visitation. I will end this article with a small but necessary reminder. It is very important that if your group is scheduled to meet at Epiphany in the afternoon or evening, especially during the time I am away, should you need to cancel your meeting you let the office staff know that you won’t be here, for that means that you won’t be locking up the facilities. The last group scheduled is tasked with locking up, but every once in a while a group doesn’t meet but fails to have the calendar updated. The church will remain open all night unless I happen to check, which I definitely won’t do when I am not here! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: I’m Old!
Get off the grass! Close the door, do you want to invite in every mosquito? Were you born in a barn? Get a haircut; you look like a girl! These are all stereotypical “old man” sayings. Yet I have been noticing more and more that I think just like I remember old people thinking when I was young. I remember old people complaining about the music, hairstyles, and clothing of the young people. I cannot stand most of what passes for music these days, nor can I, just like mom and dad (old people) when I was younger, name or identify a single top musician or vocalist today. I remember complaints by old people about boys' hair being too long. I have similar thoughts today when I see a man-bun (which is simply a ponytail the man is afraid to be seen sporting) or a half-shaved buzz cut on a woman. I think (usually to myself only) that this has been the groundwork for transgenderism. Men wearing earrings, for instance, though widely accepted, is not manly to me at all. Men’s tight slacks and jeans, in this old man’s opinion, make them look absolutely silly, as if they are wearing their wife’s or younger sister’s pants. Don’t get me started on women covered with tattoos, either. It’s no wonder nobody can tell Matt Walsh what the definition of a woman is! No, I know that I am not young, for only an old guy looks at the “stupidity” of the younger generation with the mixture of scorn and pity as I do with ever-increasing regularity. This realization came to mind this week when I re-told a story about a “van life” article that had me baffled at first, followed by the realization that I absolutely do not get this one particular thing about the younger generations. The “thing” I will sooner or later get to is something that immediately, to an old geezer like me, makes me think of such politically incorrect labels for the person in question that I cannot write them without facing immediate and drastic repercussions. (For those even older folks, “van life” is either like being homeless and living out of your vehicle, be it a car, van, or truck, or like camping (anywhere except for in a campground) full time in that same vehicle. People do all sorts of things to make this life as comfortable as possible, from building (or having someone else build) cabinets, beds, shelving, and, sometimes, bathrooms in the vehicle, to adding solar panels to run electricity for appliances, fans, computers, and other things needed for life on the road. It is much more popular in places where the temperatures are relatively cool in the summer and warm in the winter.) The article caught my eye because, in the opening paragraph, the author wrote, “I have been writing about van life for six years and I have never been in a van, truck, or camper in my entire life. So I thought it was time to see what it was like.” My current old man thinking went like this: “You can’t possibly be good at your job if you have never experienced any part of what you write about. How could anybody ever hire such an ignoramus? How much ‘expert information’ do you have to make up because you don’t know what the reality of such life is? How much do you leave out because you don’t know that it is important for those who actually live in a vehicle?” I can only imagine that today’s young men if reading the same lines, would think differently: “Cool. You get paid to bloviate upon a topic of which you know nothing! I want that kind of a job.” But it only got worse. The author got one of the van conversion companies he regularly writes about to loan him a built-out van for a week. Except that he then admitted that “I am afraid to drive. So I called one of my friends and talked her into coming with me on this adventure so that she could drive.” I had to go back to make sure that this was a man writing the article. Certainly, no man would write such a wimpy confession in a public forum—in fact, in the very publication that pays his salary—and not fear absolute ridicule and demands that he be fired immediately for being such a **** (this is where I cannot write any of the many descriptive words I would like to use). Doubtless, John Wayne was not his childhood role model. Heck, Pee-wee Herman was probably more masculine than whoever taught him how to be a man. I guarantee you that this guy still wears a face diaper while riding his bike between his permanent digs in his mother’s basement and the local comic book shop for a big night out on the town. I am not sure if spends his life playing video games, since the ones I hear of all feature violence and guns and I just cannot believe he would be able to handle anything like that. Lest you think I am being too harsh on him, later he admitted—without a trace of awareness of how **** (more must go unwritten) he was making himself out to be—that when they stopped for gas his female friend had to pump it because he didn’t know how! In my day (an “old man” statement if there ever was one) the men (who got their license as soon as they turned 15, not 25!) drove and pumped gas. That is quickly changing. But just wait, one day these **** guys will find themselves old, too, and will look askance at the young men riding on the back of Harleys while their biker babes take them to Daytona or Sturgis! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Even More Excitement!
Last week I wrote about the excitement we had here at the parish with the water going out during our chant camp and with a visiting priest staying at the rectory. This week I have even more stories that are at least somehow connected to that week’s activities. As I mentioned, the visiting priest, Fr. Nick Ward, was in town to celebrate a family wedding. One of his sisters, Maggie, was marrying one of my nephews, Ryan. I am trying to figure out just how to describe the new family relationships this brings about. Maggie must now be my niece-in-law. Since Father Ward is her brother, he, too, is related to me, but how do I describe this family link? Calling him “the brother of my niece-in-law” is too much of a mouthful. Plus, people who saw him wearing a cassock might mistake that for that habit and think I called him a Religious brother. So I might have to clarify that he is her biological brother and also a priest by calling him “brother Father of my niece-in-law.” But then they may think that he is a Religious brother who was given the name “Father” when he took his vows. So perhaps turning that phrase around a bit and calling him “Father brother of my niece-in-law” would be better. But that sounds like “Brother” is Father’s last name. So at this point let me try something much more simple. A priest is called “Father” and this priest is now an in-law to me. So I will simply call him my Father-in-law! No, no, no, that would certainly confuse people. But the confusion in describing Father’s relation to me is only the beginning. There is also the confusing matter of Father’s father. Let me explain. The man who walked Maggie down the aisle at her wedding was dressed in black and wore a Roman collar. You see, her father is a Catholic deacon. (I think there were a lot of people on this side of the family who were a little bit puzzled by that sight!) Deacon Paul Ward is also now related to me as an in-law. Once again, something like, “the deacon father of my niece-in-law” seems too complicated and also might be misunderstood as if stating that the deacon’s last name is “Father.” Hmmm. Since the father of a niece is an uncle, through Maggie the deacon becomes my uncle-in-law. The father of a father is a grandfather so through Father the deacon becomes my grandfather-in-law. Combining those two relationships, since Maggie and Father are siblings (how strange that her brother is also her Father!), perhaps I can just describe him as my deacon-uncle-grandfather-in-law, which should make everything perfectly clear! Back to storytelling now and I’ll worry about relationships another time. After the rehearsal dinner, from across the parking lot, I could see that my car’s brake lights were on. How odd. Was somebody in the car stepping on the brake pedal? No. The lights were just on. I was sure that they hadn’t been on when we left the rehearsal and headed out to the restaurant, since I approached the car from the rear that time, too, and would have noticed, just as I did this time. The brake pedal wasn’t stuck. The activation switch under the pedal wasn’t frozen up. I couldn’t see any blown fuses. I didn’t want to drive with my brake lights constantly lit since any driver following me would never know when I was actually braking. But Fr. Dorvil, who had come with me, and I had to get home. So I tried taking the back roads to avoid causing an accident. And I found out how many roads are closed due to construction. Even Hanna was closed on the other side of the Interstate. Neither Google Maps nor Waze showed any road closures in the area, yet one after another intersection was cordoned off. Fortunately, we eventually made it home safe and sound but then had to disconnect the battery so that it wouldn’t be drained by the morning. The next morning, after my usual schedule of Mass, confessions, and adult Catechism class, I only had a short time to try fixing it before needing to get to the wedding at the Jesuit High School chapel. I used every tool I could find to twist, bang, pry, and smash as many parts as I could, hoping something would make the brake lights work properly again. Nothing worked, so I needed a ride. Fr. Ward had to get to the wedding very early, so he was gone already. I looked for Fr. Dorvil, hoping to catch a ride, but I couldn’t find him anywhere. Fortunately, Anders was grabbing some needed chant sheets from the office so I asked him to pick me up at the rectory when he headed out. Before he got there, one of our parishioners came to check out the car, diagnosed the problem as probably a bad break switch (the car is over 20 years old, so I suppose parts may start wearing out about now), and offered to disconnect it, go to the auto parts store, and replace it with a new one while I was at the Nuptial Mass. Yes, there are some wonderful people around here! Anders got me to the wedding early enough to still help get things set up. Poor Fr. Dorvil, who was around the whole time even though I couldn’t find him, waited patiently for me so that we could drive together since he knew that the car wasn’t fixed. But he managed to get to the wedding on time, too. And when I got back home, the brake lights were fixed, the battery was attached, and all was well with the world. With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Excitement for the Week
This last week was filled with all sorts of excitement. The first and most important thing was our Chant Camp. We have been holding this absolutely impossible week for a number of years now and proving that the impossible is not only possible, but so well received that not only do the youth come back year after year, but the adults (and not just parents) constantly want to join in on the fun. Why do I say it is impossible? Because that is what I hear all the time. “Chant? Latin? Tradition? No way! If we want to reach the youth we must give them guitars and generic Christian ‘praise and worship’ music from the ‘70s, ‘80s, and ‘90s. That’s the real classical music, the true tradition of the Church. Nobody under 87 will ever show up for a summer chant camp.” Don’t think I am exaggerating. Go to any diocese-wide or even parish-based youth group, holy hour, vocation gathering, or large Mass (in any diocese—ours is not unique) and you will not have silence, organ music, or Latin a cappella chant. You will have some old codger (like me but with a ponytail) strumming a guitar singing, softly and sweetly, Father, I adore You and encouraging everybody to close their eyes, raise their arms, and sway to the music, followed by Open Our Eyes, Lord and maybe Glorify Thy Name because they claim that that is what all children, teenagers, and adults really like. If there is a whole band, somebody will undoubtedly bring out her rainstick for a rousing edition, complete with full-body motions of wriggling fingers raised high and then brought down low, of Rain Down. There will be absolutely no time for silence, never a thought of using organ music, and certainly no Latin. There is no doubt in anybody’s mind that what Epiphany offered once again at chant camp would make children flee to the nearest protestant Vacation Bible School for something “relevant.” But, as before, we proved the naysayers wrong. It was a smashing success. Many thanks to all those who worked so hard to teach our obviously not-normal (thanks be to God!) young parishioners the beauty of Traditional Chant. I also had a nephew’s wedding on the calendar. His new wife (I assume the marriage took place on Saturday!) has a brother who is a priest in the Diocese of Steubenville, Ohio. He stayed at the rectory for the week and was able to spend time with his family before witnessing his sister’s vows of Holy Matrimony. How he managed to get time off to come here is beyond me. Look him up on the Steubenville priest page and you will see, “Father Nicholas S. Ward. Parochial Vicar - St. Ann, Chesapeake; St. Joseph, Ironton; St. Lawrence O'Toole, Ironton; and St. Mary, Pine Grove; Assistant Director of Vocations.” Yikes! I would never even remember how to get to that many parishes, let alone work at so many. Plus vocation director? Nope. It’s a good thing he is young, energetic, and holy! Tying those two things (chant and a visiting priest) together was an expected demonic intrusion, as the dark ones try to bring chaos wherever Faith is being strengthened. I was at the VA with my dad on Tuesday afternoon, immersed in incompetence that only a Federal agency can muster, when I got a text message: “No water in neighborhood for 4-6 hrs...pipe break across the street.” Yep. We had a chant camp with what seemed like a hundred children plus adults and no water for either drinking or flushing. Our great hospitality for the visiting priest no longer included showers or restroom facilities. At least this time it wasn’t the AC that went out! When I finally got home that evening there were papers taped to every door and sink of the rectory stating, “Precautionary Boil Water Notice, No Water. Your service was interrupted 6-6-23 from approximately 12:30 pm until approximately 7:00 pm. Blah, blah, blah... two consecutive days of satisfactory bacteriological water samples...” Fortunately, the water was already restored by the time I read it. I went around opening up the outside spigots to let the nasty, rusty water gush until clear. Then inside to do the same with the sinks, showers, and toilets. Then over to the school and church, following the same procedure. After everything was “fixed” I headed back to the rectory to find a can of food of some sort for dinner. But before I could even do that I got a message from the social hall that the handicapped bathroom toilet was making such terrible noises and was spluttering so violently that the water valve had to be turned off. And the kitchen faucets were not flowing. Back over to the church I went. There was, once again, nasty, rusty, or grey water at every faucet and toilet. I went back outside to open a hose nozzle and it wouldn’t even squirt. Opening up the outlet without the hose allowed me to hear sounds of air movement in the pipe, followed by an explosion of misty spray, alternating mist and air and spluttering nasty (the word “nasty” does not even begin to describe it), rusty water with full force for a split second, then pause, splutter, gush, pause, repeat. More than five minutes went by before the water came out full force without air. But it was still nasty. Ten minutes later it was still nasty. I opened up another spigot with the same result. Then inside to open every faucet. Nasty, nasty, nasty. Sploosh, woosh, splash, gurgle. Then the toilets. Yech! But after 20 or so minutes, water was running clear everywhere. By the time you read this, it should even be drinkable! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Who Likes Donuts?
Who likes donuts? What kind of a crazy question is that? Who doesn’t like donuts? Heck, even people who don’t eat them generally like them but simply refrain for purposes other than a lack of enjoyment in eating them. The best donuts, of course, are Sunday morning donuts. There is nothing like a fresh donut after Mass. There is just something special about participating in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, where Jesus offers Himself to the Father in atonement for our sins, that naturally gets us thinking about eternal life and all of the joys of being in the Beatific Vision, which naturally makes the indulgence of consuming fried dough with icing on it seem like, maybe, a little peek into the joys of Heaven itself. Ok, maybe I exaggerated just a little bit there. But there is no denying that staying after Mass for coffee and donuts leads to stronger relationships among old and newfound friends. The young children eat and drink quickly so that they can (finally!) run around, yelling and playing; the young adults stand to eat their donuts and make plans for the week; and the “old” geezers—everyone over 30 and oh, so boring to the youngsters—enjoy just sitting and talking while leisurely consuming the one breakfast sweet that they will allow themselves all week. If you are following me so far, you can see just how important donuts are to parish life. And right about now it is dawning on you that you heard an announcement a couple of weeks back that the two families who have been “religiously” ordering and picking up the donuts for the past few years are ready to pass the torch to the next families who are willing to take on this grave responsibility. NO, WAIT! DON’T STOP READING YET! The people who attend the 10:30 Mass generally have rotating groups that help make fresh coffee, set out drinks, serve the donuts, and clean up when things start winding down. As far as they know, the donuts milk, juice, cream, and other foods just appear in the kitchen, brought by angels when nobody is looking. Because multiple groups take on these tasks on a rotating basis (the groups that work the donut counter get to keep any donations over and above the cost of the food, and the parish picks up the tab if the donation jar is, ahem, light), none of the people helping out become overwhelmed with the burdens associated with occasionally working while everyone else socializes. But the people helping at the 7:30 are the ones charged with bringing in dozens upon dozens of donuts, enough for both Masses, plus stocking the refrigerator and pantry with the rest of the needed items, then getting everything set up, all before Mass begins! Then, after Mass, while everyone else is enjoying themselves as described above, the same people who brought everything in and set it all up, are the ones dishing it out and cleaning up. They also coordinate who is bringing in the extra homemade goodies (shhh, don’t tell this part to the 10:30 Mass people!) every couple of weeks when these delectable treats are made available. But there has been no rotating schedule for doing all of that, and they are ready to pass the torch to somebody else. if you remember, when the Traditional Latin Mass first started here in 2015, I was the one picking up the donuts and drinks before Mass started and I got to the point of needing others to take over for me, too. If you help take over, you will need others to pick up where you leave off at some point as well. It need not be a lifetime commitment! It would certainly help if many families volunteered to take over so that nobody would have to bear such a heavy burden each and every week. It is really a great “ministry” and should be one that everybody wants to take turns doing. Ask those working the donut hour how they were able to do so much for so long and the answer will be something like, “Just look at the face of that young lad as he chooses his donut. It’s all worth it just for that!” They truly have enjoyed working so hard and the reward of helping others at church is just a foretaste of the reward awaiting them in Heaven. (I am not exaggerating here. This is truly an act of charity worthy of a reward for such a sacrificial and virtuous deed.) You get to know everybody and everybody gets to know you, at least by sight. And it certainly is something that helps strengthen the bonds of solidarity amongst the Faithful. If you attend the 7:30 Sunday Mass and would like to assist in this, please speak with either the Beards or the Owens’ (you know where to find them!) and let them show you what they do. Remember, that you can also, if you chose to make this a part of your parish life, change things up if you have a different vision of how things should/could be done. So if you are an “idea person” and have been thinking, “If only they would do thus and so it would be so much better” now is your chance to see your dreams come to fruition! If nobody steps up to take over, that will be a sign that it is time to stop serving coffee and donuts at the early Mass and I will ask for volunteers at the 10:30 to pick up their donuts later in the morning. That would not be the end of the world. Even good things come and go. But if you want it to continue, don’t expect the angels to do all of the work! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: A Meeting With Bishop Parkes
Last Monday I received a phone call from Bishop Parkes’ secretary. She told me that Bishop Parkes wanted to see me as soon as possible. Could I come to his office tomorrow at 2:30? The timing was actually quite good. Because Tuesday was my “day off” (after morning Masses, confessions, and Adoration) I didn’t have any appointments scheduled except for a visit to my dad, who lives only about thirty minutes away from the Chancery offices. So, at the appointed time I showed up for our meeting. I was greeted quite warmly by both Bishop Parkes and his always-amiable Vicar General, Msgr. Bob Morris, and sat down for business. I fully expected that I would be told the fate of Epiphany and the other two parishes where the Traditional Latin Mass is celebrated. Why else would the Bishop request a rushed meeting? Two Roman documents had forced Bishop Parkes to ask permission for such Masses to continue and, up until now, I had heard nothing of a response. Do we all get to continue offering the TLM? Have only one or two of us been given permission? Have any of us been given permission to continue celebrating the Mass but not in the parish church, meaning that we have to rent a tent or barn or find some other place to continue? I was sure I was about to find out. No matter what the outcome, at least we would no longer be held in suspense, for we have been like Isaac, filled with trust that God’s will be done, patiently waiting for either his father Abraham’s knife to plunge deeply into his heart or for the angel to call off the sacrifice at the last second. Alas, that was not to be the case. The Bishop simply wanted to give me three messages. The first, and the one directly related to the paragraph above, is that he has not yet received an answer to his request that all three parishes continue as usual. He assured me that he fully supports us and that in his letter to Rome, which he sent a couple of months ago, he had laid out good arguments for keeping the TLM going in all three Diocesan locations. He has told me several times now that he supports us (specifically, Epiphany) and that he wants us to prosper. I have passed that message on to you before and I hope you know the sincerity of his words. The second message was that he is not sure if we—Epiphany—support him in return. The main thing he has to base such support on is the CMA, the Catholic Ministry Appeal. As he reminded me, the CMA has replaced the old APA (Annual Pastoral Appeal), which previously assessed each parish approximately 20 percent of all donations and used the money for running Diocesan programs and paying Diocesan bills such as staff salaries, insurance, electricity, and whatnot. The APA assessment was obligatory and, if not paid through parishioner donations directly, would be collected forcibly by the Diocese taking it directly from our savings account. The CMA, on the other hand, is used for the same purposes but is completely voluntary in nature. I wrote about it last year about this same time as we were in about the same situation. If the Bishop thinks that the pastor is not doing his best to encourage support for the Diocese, the CMA goal will revert back to “compulsory” instead of “voluntary.” If he believes that the best effort is being made, even if the goal is not met, he will accept whatever is willingly given and call it a done deal. Our current CMA goal is approximately $123,000 of which only 12% has been paid by only 6% of our parishioners. He sees this as a lack of support from you, the parishioners, which, in turn, shows a lack of support from me, the pastor. He asked if it would help if he sent one of his staff to explain how the program works (for instance, you can choose where you wish your donation to be used if you wish) and why it is important (the Bishop doesn’t have the ability to “pass the hat” as we do every week). I answered truthfully that while I would welcome that, the man he sends must be willing to answer the question, “Are we being shut down?” He was a bit put off by that answer because it is not him that would shut us down should such a terrible thing happen, but rather the Pope. Bishop Parkes supports allowing Traditional Latin Masses to continue. Pope Francis has been clear that he wants us “backward” TLM people eliminated from parish life. I hope nobody objects to me stating that truth so bluntly and clearly. So here is another reminder that the Diocese needs funds and the people have an opportunity, through the CMA, to supply for her needs in a manner that is much better than the previous method. The third thing Bishop Parkes wanted to tell me is that I am not present at many Diocesan functions. I certainly cannot argue with that statement. I attend all Diocesan meetings that are mandatory or seem informative, but that number is not large. I had no priest to take over for me during the annual Priest Convocation last fall and I stubbornly refuse to cancel Masses at the parish just so that I can enjoy the company of my fellow priests for the week. I skipped the Chrism Mass during Holy Week, and I have even been unable to attend several large fundraising dinner/speaker events that I normally attend. But I certainly can try harder. At the end of the day, though, the sad reality is that we are still in Limbo. With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Taylor Marshall and Bishop Schneider’s Visits
I wish we could have many more weeks like we had during the first week of May. At the same time, I hope we never have any more weeks like we had during the first week of May! What a blessing it was for both Dr. Taylor Marshall and Bishop Athanasius Schneider to be here back to back. But the amount of planning, physical work, preparation, and so much more was astronomical. I extend true thanks and gratitude to all of you who put this together, and who worked so hard before, during, and after the visits. Although I cannot possibly list everyone who sacrificed so much for these two men to be here almost back to back (and the extra priests, subdeacon, and brother who assisted us at either one or both events by hearing confessions and/or giving instructions and prayerful service at the altar), I would be remiss if I didn’t call out the Fraternal Society of St. John the Apostle. This relatively new group in our parish has this mission and vision: “We call upon all Catholic men to become St. Johns: courageously standing with Christ and taking Holy Mother Church into our homes and into the world. We seek to inspire men of all vocations to live liturgically in their personal and professional lives by providing events centered around Adoration, Confession, fellowship, tradition, and spiritual enrichment. Finally, we seek to invite all Catholics to experience and restore the Traditions of the Church as lived by our ancestors and Saints.” If that mission and vision is appealing and you would like to be a part of this group, please reach out to Don Orrico, Jay Kelley, Matthew Coughlin, or Luca Hickman via 813-720-7002, don@orricosc.com, or via fssja.substack.com. Beyond that group, though, are countless more people who sacrificed so much to make this such a spectacular week. The parish staff really worked their tails off in many and various ways to get things ready. Answering phones and emails and flocknotes and other media monsters was enough to drive some of them insane. Trying to clean and rearrange and beautify the church, hall, classrooms, and rectory took superhuman strength. How they were able to complete such tasks with such large events as bookends to an already packed “normal” week’s schedule shows the supernatural power of prayer and faith. Arranging to have enough, but not too much so as to have it go to waste, food and drinks took some mighty fine guesswork as well as back-breaking labor. Arranging flowers, killing ants, fixing plumbing and electrical issues, and setting up tents took even more people away from whatever else they would normally have been doing. And there is no way of forgetting how many people sacrificed even being able to attend the Bishop’s Mass so that they could do all the work that was required to be done while the rest of us were inside praying and listening to such a holy successor to the Apostles. (I hope it wasn’t all of the same people who sacrificed attending Cardinal Burke’s Mass who did so again for Bishop Schneider, but I have a feeling that there was a lot of overlap. If you were able to participate in both of those Masses, perhaps you would consider trading places with one of them for the next exalted visitor?) When Dr. Marshall gave his talk, we had a lot of female “infiltrators” who figured out that, although this was a male-only event, if they volunteered to work setting up and serving food and drinks, they could “clandestinely” listen in as he spoke. Fortunately for them, we were all so focused on spotting the undercover FBI agents that I don’t think anybody even noticed that the women were there. Wink, wink. But even if we had noticed, his talk on St. Joseph had captured our attention to such a degree that nobody would have wanted to break away from it long enough to kick out the imposters, anyway. Our altar boys also had to undergo extra training once again and they did a phenomenal job serving Our Lord. I saw many of our Troops of St. George working with boyhood energy, going far beyond their “highlight” event of Presenting the Flag and singing the National Anthem. Many of those working these events were members of the American Heritage Girls, our Epiphany Council of Catholic Women, the junior and senior high youth groups, the young adult group, Knights of Columbus, and the Holy League. I don’t know which, if any, of them were recruited specifically because they were part of the group or how many were there on their own initiative, for those who are active in one area are also the ones who volunteer for everything else as well. But it was still great to see. I don’t think there was a single Epiphany group without representatives working hard to make the week a success in both worldly and Heavenly ways. Finally, I wish to point out, as if you didn’t already know, how blessed we are to have such a fine schola. The assisting priests from the FSSP and ICKSP, both of which have the specific ministry of celebrating the Mass and other sacraments according to the older Rites, had high praise for the choir as they sang and chanted Compline, the Mass, and Vespers. I won’t mention how high was their praise, if only so that their own choirs won’t get jealous! Now I conclude by stating, almost unbelievably, that I have already been fielding this question over and over. “So, Father, who is coming next?” Whew! I am still exhausted and you want to know who and when another great speaker or holy Bishop or Cardinal will come and wear me out again? Let me just say, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Don’t Make Waves?
As I wrote last week, Dr. Taylor Marshall is going to give a talk on St. Joseph this coming Monday, May 1, which coincidentally happens to be the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker. What luck! On Saturday, May 6, His Excellency Bishop Athanasius Schneider will be with us at 7:00 pm for compline (night prayer), which will include a blessing of a new reliquary for a recently-received first-class relic of Blessed Karl of Austria. Following the prayers, he will give a short talk and then join us for coffee and dessert. He will be the celebrant of the Pontifical Solemn High Mass the next day, Sunday, May 7, at 10:30. Because I wrote more extensively about this last week, I won’t go into any more details but write it simply as a reminder. I certainly hope you put it on your calendar! One thing I have been asked about repeatedly after announcing that both of the above-mentioned men are coming to Epiphany is, “Aren’t you making us a target? Wouldn’t it be better to fly under the radar? After all, Cardinal Roach is canceling Traditional Latin Masses all over right now.” The people asking the question are, with good reason, worried that we will have our liturgical legs cut out from under us, so to speak, if we show ourselves to be “too Traditional.” But the reality is that our own Bishop, Gregory Parkes, already knows that the parish is traditional and he has always been supportive of us. He knows that I am outspoken in both speech and writing, and, although there have been things that I have written that he has chastised me for, he knows that even where we disagree about how or if certain issues should be explained, I am not doing anything to be mean or spiteful, but rather am looking out for the spiritual welfare of my parishioners. So, from a local perspective, there is no “flying under the radar” needed or even possible. As far as the men in Rome are concerned, I doubt very seriously that even if one of our FBI infiltrators should send them a letter tattling on us, it would make any more of a difference than if a million people sent them letters praising what we are doing. They have their minds made up as to what they are going to do with those who follow Tradition and they are going to follow through as they see fit. We are already, at least generically, a target, so why be timid at this point? Of course, I could be wrong and maybe they read our bulletin every week, breathlessly waiting to see what great things are happening here to help people achieve a heroic level of sanctity and we, instead of being limited or canceled, are going to be put up as an example of what a true parish should be! That is as likely as them reading the bulletins from all TLM parishes and adjusting their “cancelation schedule” based on who is visiting which parish. I am guessing that we are either already on the hit list or not and nothing we do or fail to do (save prayer) is going to change that. Therefore, we must just keep on doing the best we can, bring in the best speakers we can, allow the holiest priests, Bishops, and Cardinals who wish to come here to do so, and keep striving to become Saints. I hope you agree that going out with a bang is better than going out with nary a whimper. Once, when I was but a youngster, I heard a story about a man who died and went to hell. The demon “welcomed” him and told him that he would escort him to the place where he would spend eternity. Each damned soul, he was told, would receive the torment that he had specifically merited due to his particular tendency to sin. The poor man complained, “But I didn’t do anything bad! I never got into any trouble myself or caused any difficulty for anyone else! I can’t imagine why I deserve any torture at all!” Of course, the demon only cackled with harsh, throaty laughter, as only demons can do, as he dug his claws into the man's shoulder and started dragging him down a long, dark, foul-smelling hallway with doors lining either side. “But how can I be in hell? I never caused any disturbance. I was never judgmental or told people that they were wrong. I never bothered anyone at all,” the man continued to plead as he struggled against his captor. “I never rocked the boat. I have a clear conscience.” As they passed by each door he could hear various instruments of torture being used and the screams of the unseen people inside made him blubber his unheard excuses all the more. “I never protested for or against any cause whatsoever. I never took sides so that I would never anger anyone. I did everything I could to ‘make nice’ with all people. I don’t deserve this!” At last the demon stopped. They were outside of a door behind which could be heard no whips, no clubs, no roaring fire. Instead of terrifying screams of pain, there were only the soft sounds of gentle murmuring. “This is your destiny,” grunted the demon. The man said, “Oh, this doesn’t seem too bad. I guess I was worried for nothing.” The door opened and the man was thrown in, landing with a huge splash in the middle of hell’s septic tank. He found himself shackled in such a way that, if he strained with every fiber of his body, he could just barely keep his mouth out of all that foul excrement and he joined his damned companions in forever murmuring, “Don’t make waves, don’t make waves.” With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Two “Big Name” Guests Coming Soon!
In just two short weeks, on the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker (Monday, May 1), the first of the guests whom the headline mentions will arrive. Due to the hard work of our Fraternal Society of St John the Apostle, Dr. Taylor Marshall will be here to give a presentation on St. Joseph, the husband of Mary and foster father of Jesus. The Fraternity puts these talks/prayers/dinners together four times a year for men and boys, both from the parish and from outside the parish, to come together to form strong, virtuous, Catholic male bonds, to network, and to become familiar with the traditions of the Church. Dr. Marshall is the founder of the Troops of St. George, so we already have a connection to him through our very active troop. Now the boys get to meet the one who put the Troops together in the first place! Beginning at 6:00 pm we will have Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and confessions. Then at 7:00 pm, dinner and the presentation by Dr. Taylor. At about 8:15 we will have a fireside rosary and then dessert. Men, I expect to see you there! (Tickets are available on Eventbrite.com with a link available from our parish calendar on our website.) Just a few days after that big night we have another guest joining us. Although it is hard to top Dr. Taylor Marshall, we managed to pull it off. On Saturday, May 6, His Excellency Bishop Athanasius Schneider will be with us at 7:00 pm for compline (night prayer), after which he will give a short talk and then join us for coffee and dessert. He will be the celebrant of the Pontifical Solemn High Mass the next day, Sunday, May 7, at 10:30. At that Mass he will have the pleasure of giving First Holy Communion to nearly 30 of our children. I want to remind you that because of the First Holy Communion children and their families, the church and hall, which are normally both packed at 10:30, will be even more difficult to get into. We will not be able to reserve seats for even the extended families of those receiving the Eucharist for the first time, since that could conceivably reserve more than half of the available pews, but even their immediate families will take up a good-sized portion of the church. I tell you this, not to scare you away, but to remind you that we had a similarly expected crowd not too long ago when a well-known Cardinal celebrated Mass for us and it worked out better than we could have hoped. Everyone cooperated when asked to exit the church and hall after the 7:30 Mass so that we could get everything set properly for the big Mass. (Nobody was/is able to just attend the 7:30 and “camp out” there in the pew so as to “save” seats for the 10:30!) The crowd outside was polite and joyful as people waited for the doors of the church to open once we were ready for them to enter. Everyone sat closer together than they ever had before so that the full capacity of the church was reached and then the overflow crowd piled into the hall. We even had speakers and at least one TV set up outside so that those who were working the food tents (at a tremendous sacrifice of missing Cardinal Burke’s Mass, I might add) could at least sporadically keep tabs on what was happening. Since it all worked out once, I expect that it will work out again. After Mass, the Bishop will probably grab a quick snack and then greet everyone in the parish room in the old school. He will also bless objects if you bring them back there before Mass begins and you can pick up your items later that day. Those who attend the 7:30 Mass that day, whether it is because they always go to the low Mass or because they are working the later Mass or even because they don’t want to deal with the crowds at the 10:30 Mass may, of course, either stay for the “after-Mass” blessings and greetings or come back for them. You can still meet the Bishop after Mass and a leisurely breakfast! This week, before any of the above-mentioned things take place, I will be meeting with the children making their First Holy Communion. We have multiple meeting times scheduled throughout the week so parents can take their pick of times and dates. I think everyone is already on the schedule who is supposed to be, but if you are reading this and don’t know anything about it, please call the parish office right away! You can see the dates/times of these interviews on our parish calendar, which is available on the website as mentioned earlier in this article. That really is a helpful web page, for we usually keep all of the public activities up to date there and if you think to check you won’t have to call the office, or your friends, or ask on our falsebook page or anything like that. To close this out, I got a phone call from Aunt Irma as I was typing this. She evidently hacked into the FBI computers and, since they were hacking me, she was reading this article as I was writing it. She was laughing, sure that it was all fiction. “You might have pushed too far into fantasy to be believed,” she said. “After all, there is no parish in the world that can get both Taylor Marshall and Bishop Schneider in the same year, let alone the same week.” Imagine that. She thinks I sometimes make things up! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: An Amazing Easter!
This year, once again, Easter and the holy days leading up to it saw an increase in participation at Epiphany. Our Tenebraes must have been well-attended. Although I am inside the confessional during those beautiful candle-lit chanted prayers and so cannot see how many people show up, I can tell you that I spent more time hearing confessions during them than in previous years. I started before the schola entered the church and I left after they did. That is a good sign, for each of these three sessions lasts for hours! On Holy Thursday there were 800 Hosts consecrated at the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, anticipating large numbers of people receiving Holy Communion both that night and the following afternoon after the Veneration of the Cross. I thought, based on previous years’ numbers, that we would have plenty of Hosts left over. I was not expecting a full church (497 people in the 500-person capacity church) on Thursday night and then an overflow crowd (539) on Friday! When we finished the Communion Service on Good Friday there was only one (1) Host left! As a reference point, in 2018 (the first year I thought to take notes like this for Holy Week) we only had 312 people who received Holy Communion between those two days. Fr. Alexander made his “debut” at the Holy Thursday Mass as he assisted with the distribution of Holy Communion for the first time. Up until then, he had only observed the Mass. He is now starting to memorize prayers and parts of the Mass. For instance, in giving Holy Communion, he had to memorize and say not just, “The Body of Christ” as is done in the Novus Ordo Masses, but rather, “The Body of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve your soul unto life everlasting. Amen.” In Latin, of course! Then, while at the practice for the Holy Saturday Vigil, he was assigned the task of chanting the Epistle. He had less than an hour to practice and he had not yet been exposed to the old chant notation! He learned how to read the notes and actually chant them as written in what I would have seen as an impossibly short period of time. He did a marvelous job. He chanted at least as well as I currently do and much, much, MUCH better than I did when I first started! It won’t be long before he will be ready to celebrate Mass or take the part of the deacon or subdeacon at a Solemn Mass. The blessing of the Easter Baskets was also well attended. I can’t tell you how many people say how much they look forward to this simple ceremony. They even enjoy planning for it. They have to find just the perfect basket. They have to find (and some of it is very difficult to find) the objects that they will place in it. If they are cooking and baking and making any or all of it, all of that must be planned ahead of time so that the food is ready on time yet not done too soon so that it isn’t fresh by the time it gets eaten. And many people, after seeing what others put in their baskets and hearing what prayers are available for blessing the food and non-edible items, make it a point to add more things to their own list for next year! We had 6 tables filled with baskets and still had larger baskets on the floor due to lack of room! (We only filled two tables in 2018.) Check out the photos on our fleecebook page and see the variety. Plus, there were nearly 70 people in attendance. That’s not too shabby for a non-Polish parish! At the Saturday night Easter Vigil and Mass, we had 392 people in attendance. It lasted three and a quarter hours and that is without anyone receiving the sacraments of initiation that night. (I am grateful that Bishop Parkes encourages us to bring converts into the Church throughout the year when they are ready, rather than forcing them to wait for the Easter Vigil to receive their sacraments unless the timing works out.) I am astounded when I hear that other parishes finish in less time even with a group receiving baptism and confirmation, which can easily add on another 45 minutes. In 2018 we had 112 people attend and we started it, as the old ritual says to do, late enough that the Vigil Service is completed and Mass is beginning right around midnight. That year we began at 11:00 pm and ended after 2:00 am. The cleanup from that and the setup for the Easter morning Mass kept many of us there until shortly after 4. I got about an hour of sleep that night and the choir members, not living right here on the property as I do, only got about the same amount of sleep because most have long distances to drive, families to take care of to boot, and had to return for the 10:30 Mass! I think they all threatened to quit if we did it that way again. Or else, I threatened to quit. I was too tired to remember who is to “blame” for us reverting back to a starting time of “the fall of darkness.” This year I was in bed by 1:00 am, although there was still a group celebrating in the social hall when I finally turned in. I think they bring in their blessed Easter Baskets and share the foods they contain and hang out celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus and speaking of Holy things. Their small group is growing as well. Oh, and there were 708 people between the two Easter morning Masses, up nearly 400 from 2018! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Or, From Chat GPT?
I have heard a lot about Chat GPT and the “amazing” things it can do. It is artificial intelligence, which simply means that it is a computer program with access to a lot of information and it is programmed in such a way that it can spit back that information almost as if it were a human who was thinking and responding. Of course, being a computer program, it is capable of putting together information much quicker than a human can. The more complicated the response must be, the more apparent the time differential. With that simple explanation of Chat GPT, I now turn to what I did with it. I asked it to do a simple task and gave it very simple guidelines. I typed, “Write an article 700-900 words long welcoming Catholics to Mass on Easter.” That was it. Within a very short time (tens of seconds) it responded with the following 777-word article. Note well: this article is from Chat GPT, not from the pastor, and not from any human directly, but from a computer program. As Easter approaches, Catholics all over the world are preparing to welcome the resurrection of Jesus Christ. For many, this is the most important day in the liturgical calendar, offering a chance to reflect on the ultimate sacrifice made by the Son of God and the promise of redemption that it entails. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s celebrations will undoubtedly look different than usual, but the message of hope and renewal is as important as ever. If you are a Catholic who is planning to attend Mass on Easter Sunday, here are some tips on how to make the most of this sacred occasion. Firstly, it is important to remember that Easter is a time of joy and celebration. This is the day when the darkness of the crucifixion is replaced by the light of the resurrection, and we are reminded that no matter what challenges we face in our lives, hope is always possible. So, as you prepare for Mass, try to embrace this sense of excitement and positivity. Wear your best clothes, bring a smile, and be prepared to sing, pray, and celebrate with your fellow parishioners. In the current climate, it is important to be mindful of the safety precautions that may be in place at your church. Depending on where you live, there may be restrictions on how many people can attend Mass, or guidelines on social distancing and the wearing of masks. Some churches may require you to book a spot in advance, so check with your parish ahead of time to make sure you have all the necessary information. Remember that these measures are in place to keep you and your fellow worshippers safe, so try to be patient and understanding. When you arrive at your church, take a moment to soak in the atmosphere. Depending on your parish, the decorations and music may be different than usual, but the sense of reverence and holiness should still be palpable. As you find your seat, take a deep breath and try to quiet your mind. This is a time for reflection and prayer, and it can be easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the day. Take a moment to focus on the significance of the occasion, and allow yourself to be present in the moment. During the Mass itself, remember that the focus is on the celebration of the resurrection. The readings, prayers, and music are all geared towards reminding us of the miracle of Easter Sunday, and the hope that it represents. Listen carefully to the words of the priest and the scripture readings, and allow them to sink in. Pay attention to the words of the hymns and the responses, and try to join in with enthusiasm and sincerity. Remember that you are part of a community of worshippers, all of whom are there to share in this moment of significance together. After Mass, take some time to reflect on what you have experienced. Think about the messages that were shared during the service, and how they apply to your own life. Consider the ways in which you can incorporate the hope and positivity of Easter into your own daily routine, and how you might share this message with those around you. Take a moment to pray in your own way, and give thanks for the gift of renewal that Easter brings. Finally, remember that the celebration of Easter lasts longer than just one day! This is a time of year when we are invited to embrace the hope and joy that the resurrection brings, and to carry that message with us into the world. So, continue to seek out opportunities to celebrate and share this message throughout the Easter season. Attend Mass regularly, read scripture, spend time with family and friends, and find ways to serve your community. By living out the message of Easter in our daily lives, we can continue to spread hope and renewal long after the flowers have faded and the chocolate bunnies have been eaten. In conclusion, attending Mass on Easter Sunday is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ and to connect with a community of worshippers who share your faith. While this year’s celebrations may look different than usual, the message of Easter is as important as ever. So, as you prepare to attend Mass, remember to embrace the joy and hope of the occasion, be mindful of safety precautions, and allow yourself to be present in the moment. By doing so, you can experience the fullness of the Easter message and carry it with you into your daily life. With prayers for your holiness, (The computerized) Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: What Is Happening During Holy Week?
This week is Holy Week! On Wednesday evening, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday there are special liturgical celebrations, changes to the Mass schedule, changes to the confession schedule, and changes to the Adoration schedule. So don’t just come by at the “normal” times but check the calendar carefully! Yet be sure to come! First of all, we have three “Tenebrae” services scheduled. The first is held on Wednesday evening at 7:00 pm. For those of you new to the parish, Tenebrae is the name given to the service of Matins and Laudes belonging to the last three days of Holy Week. Holy Thursday's Tenebrae is traditionally "anticipated", or chanted the evening before the actual day. Matins and Lauds are the two early morning “hours” of the Divine Office or Breviary that is said (prayed) by all clergy, religious, and laity who use the 1962 Office. They roughly correspond to the Office of Readings and Morning Prayer in the new Liturgy of the Hours Breviary, although they are quite a bit longer. Because Holy Thursday is the day set aside by Holy Mother Church for the celebration of the Chrism Mass (where priests gather with the Bishop to renew their priestly vows or promises and the Bishop blesses and consecrates the three oils that will be used for various sacraments throughout the coming year) plus an additional Mass of the Lord’s Supper in the evening, it is often hard to find time to chant (or listen to others chant) Tenebrae that day. Therefore, it is chanted the evening beforehand. So on Wednesday, the first Tenebrae will be in the Church at 7:00 pm. It takes roughly 2 1/2 hours. Choir members will be doing the chanting and the congregation will actively participate by praying silently. I will be hearing confessions during that time. The second Tenebrae will be on Good Friday morning at 6:30 am and the third will be on Holy Saturday at the same time. Both of those will take approximately 2 1/2 to 3 hours and I will hear confessions as these prayers are chanted. Even if you cannot come to all three, come and experience at least one of them. If you cannot stay for the entire time, stay for as long as you can. It is a moving experience of prayer. Holy Thursday, as already mentioned, usually has the Chrism Mass in the morning, so there are no parish Masses. In our diocese, as is every arch/diocese of which I am aware, the Bishop has transferred the Chrism Mass to Tuesday, later in the morning. (It will be held at the Cathedral of St. Jude the Apostle in St. Petersburg at 11:00 am if any of you wish to attend in person or listen to it on the radio.) But the Church still does not allow morning Masses on Holy Thursday. There are, of course, people who do not remember this even after reading about it in the bulletin and still show up for the non-existent Mass, but that would never happen to you! We will have the Mass of the Lord’s Supper along with the Mandatum, or Washing of Feet, at 7:00 pm. At the end of that Mass, there is a procession with the Eucharist as we empty the tabernacle and bring Our Lord to the “Altar of Repose” for a time of Solemn Adoration lasting until midnight. After the procession and as Adoration is taking place at the altar of repose, the main altar of the church will be ceremoniously stripped and the church, emptied of Our Lord’s Presence, will be symbolically in mourning for the unjust arrest and mock trial of the Son of God. On Good Friday there are once again no morning Masses and no Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in the church. But as already mentioned, there will still be some people who show up expecting both of them! More fortunately for them than for those who show up on Thursday morning to an empty parking lot and locked church, at least there will be people inside as Tenebrae is being chanted. This year Good Friday falls on First Friday. The Adoration which we normally have on First Fridays is prohibited. But at 3:00 pm we will have the Traditional Latin Good Friday Passion and Veneration of the Cross. This includes a Communion Service as well. On Holy Saturday there is a break after the 6:30 am Tenebrae service ends and then, at 10:30 am we have the traditional Blessing of the Easter Baskets, a tradition which Eastern European cultures often have managed to keep alive even in many Novus Ordo parishes. See today’s bulletin insert for an example of what you might find in such a basket. The basket should contain a bit of everything which you will be preparing for the great Easter Feast, the big meal on Easter Sunday which breaks the arduous fasting of the past 40 days of Lent. Please don’t be late arriving for this blessing, because each of the food items gets its own special blessing and I won’t be repeating all of them each time someone new arrives after the blessings are underway. This blessing should take no longer than 30 minutes. There is no Mass at the normal 5:00 pm Saturday time slot, for the Easter Vigil and Mass should not normally begin before dark. Our Easter Vigil will start at 8:00 pm and flows directly into the Mass. The entire service and Mass will probably take about 3 hours. On Easter Sunday, the Mass schedule will follow the normal times of 7:30 am and 10:30 am. So mark your calendars and be prepared for a holy Holy Week! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Confession and Holy Communion
The end of Lent is coming soon. The Triduum (Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday) will bring a change of Mass times, extra confessions, extra liturgical services including reception of Holy Communion outside of Mass on Good Friday, and extra confessions. Don’t panic! Those are not happening this coming week but rather the following week. But before we get there, I believe that there needs to be a little written about the proper way to go to confession, plus one little bit of advice about receiving Holy Communion. To begin with, Sunday, when the confessions are listed as after Mass, that means that the confessions are after Mass. As in: not before Mass. Why? The two main reasons are, first, because I despise having to celebrate Mass without time to get ready. Running straight from the confessional to celebrate Mass makes for a very hectic Mass. The second is very much related to the first, in that I often have things of which I need to take care before Mass begins even if I am not the celebrant! If I am kept in the confessional until the last minute (or longer), I don’t have time for even such simple things as a potty break, let alone the things that much less obviously (to you) need to be accomplished. Paradoxically, the more confessions I could hear from those attending the 10:30 Mass before Mass begins, the sooner after Mass I could get out to bring Holy Communion to the homebound parishioners. But I would rather have a longer day than celebrate a Mass unprepared. For those of you confessing, a few simple reminders. Get in line. Prepare your conscience while in line. Know how to confess. Don’t wait for Father to invite you in, give you a drink, light a cigarette for you, offer you some hors d’oeuvres, and finally get around to “business.” Many of you, because you don’t say anything after kneeling down, have heard me ask, “Did you come in here for confession or to take a nap?” or “Do you know how to confess?” or something similar. I used to say, “Begin whenever you are ready” but then some people remained silent and I didn’t know if they didn’t hear me or if they were just then preparing! I cannot see who is on the other side of the screen, so for all I know Silent Bob may simply be finishing up a text conversation on his cell phone! Enter, kneel, make the sign of the cross, and say “Bless me, father, for I have sinned. It has been (this long) since my last confession.” There are other similar phrases or additional prayers that can be used. Don’t worry about which is “right.” Any of them are better than plain silence. Have your routine down pat and start as soon as you kneel. Then confess. That is, briefly list the sins you have committed and of which you are repentant. Don’t reveal other people’s sins. Don’t tell stories. Give just enough information so that Father knows what you did wrong but not too many juicy details to make it seem like you are bragging, making excuses, or blaming someone/something else for your sins. If the priest asks you to please stop telling stories and confess your sins, don’t say, “Oh! Yes, sorry Father!” and then continue with your story just where you left off. If you do that and he repeats the request, don't get mad and say, “But Father, I need to set the whole thing in context so that you will see...!” I can guarantee that Father is only telling you this because you are not telling necessary details but are rather telling stories to the detriment of your own repentance. These casual conversations rather than actual confessions are most certainly the result of replacing confessionals with reconciliation rooms. Those facilitate sitting down for a spell, encourage idle chitchat, and make it difficult to be brief and blunt about what sins you have committed and repented of. Instead, it leads to long, drawn out descriptions that dance around the subject, covering up anything too embarrassing to say as you and Father look at each other, and deflecting blame so that he still thinks you are a good guy when you are done almost telling him your sins, implying—though not straight out admitting—what they were, hoping he understands enough to absolve you but not enough that he thinks less of you for being a sinner. Sheesh! If you use a phone app or a paper pamphlet for your examination of conscience, you still need to examine your conscience before you get in, not after entering the confessional. For instance, Father should not hear, “Have I missed Mass on Sundays or Holy Days of Obligation? No, I have not missed Mass. Do I take the Lord’s name in vain? No, unless saying @#$%^ counts, but everyone does that. Do I...” If you have been in the confessional line, you should already have your list down pat. You don't have to tell the priest anything you didn’t do wrong, and you absolutely should not read the question and then give the answer for those things you did or did not do. Just confess the sin! Also, remember that mortal sins must be confessed both in kind and in number. The only thing I want to say about Communion is, if you have an impressive beard, please hold it out of the way of the paten that the altar boy will hold under your chin to catch any fallen particle of the Host. If you don’t, your whiskers will act like a brush and either collect the particles into the hair of your chinny chin chin or sweep them onto the floor. Neither is good. With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Laetare Sunday!
This past Thursday was the midpoint of Lent. You are now more than halfway done with your Lenten penances and it is time to rejoice! At one time Thursday was the big day of celebration but, as most people couldn’t make it to church in the middle of the week, Laetare Sunday began to take on the role of that midpoint mini-celebration. The violet liturgical vestments of Lent are allowed (not mandated) to be replaced with rose-colored vestments (they are supposed to be a somewhat light shade of burgundy or red, not Pepto Bismol Pink!) if the church is so fortunate as to have them. The organ may be used once again in order to bring a bit of extra solemnity to the milestone and give the people a little hope that they can indeed make it through the rest of the penitential season. Even flowers, after having been noticeably absent from the church for the whole of Lent up until now return and, because they have been missing for the past 3 Sundays, even the few that are put out should bring more joy and cheer than an extravagant display of flowers would at any other time of the year. We are to “rejoice” (which is the meaning of “laetare,” the first word of the Introit of today’s Mass) in realizing that Our Lord is willing to forgive even us if we but repent of our sins and return to Him, while not forgetting that we still need to do penance to “make up” for our sins in some small way instead of taking His forgiveness for granted as if it was owed to us. This is also the traditional day for the Pope to bless the Golden Rose. This was a special rose, made of pure gold slightly tinted with red or, later, decorated with rubies and other red gems. It was crafted by specially skilled artisans and given as one of the most cherished symbols of Catholicism that can be obtained on this earth. The Pope may have given it to a special parish, to a Catholic King, Queen, or other royal personages, to a distinguished military general (in the days when a Catholic military was seen as a good—even necessary—force for moral good in the world), to a city or government that was outstanding in promoting or defending the Catholic Faith, or to any other true Catholic that he wanted to honor in a special and unique way. Because the rose has both beauty in the flower and thorns in the stem, it is seen as a wonderful natural symbol of the middle of Lent. According to the online Catholic Encyclopedia, the golden rose was originally about 6 inches tall and carried easily by the Pope in his left hand, leaving his right hand free to bestow blessings upon the people as he rode his Popemobile (horse) through the crowds. But the size and weight of the rose varied tremendously over the years and sometimes twenty pounds of gold was used to produce what I can only imagine to be a spectacularly beautiful bouquet of golden roses. The last year the golden rose was bestowed was 1893, a gift from Pope Leo XIII to the Belgian Queen, Marie Henriette. I understand, though, that this year the Holy Father is bringing back this almost forgotten tradition. I was let in on the secret because, according to the rumors, at least, he will bestow it upon Epiphany of Our Lord parish as a token of his gratitude for the heartfelt prayers and support the Catholic Church has received from its parishioners. The only reason I am able to write about this without spoiling the surprise is that the rose will have been already delivered by the time any of you read this. I sure hope that the Pope’s horse can swim well enough to bring him to America. Getting out of fantasyland now and returning to reality, as I was perusing the old Catholic Encyclopedia for details needed to write this article, it struck me that in the “old days,” Sundays—even Laetare Sunday—were not exempt from the quite severe Lenten abstinence from all meat and “lacticinia” such as eggs, milk, and cheese, even though Sundays were exempt from fasting in the Latin Church. But the severity of the penance was soon mitigated, little by little. This 1917 edition says, after describing the relaxation of certain rules to allow earlier meals and more food to be taken (my emphasis), “Other mitigations of an even more substantial character have been introduced into lenten observance in the course of the last few centuries. To begin with, the custom has been tolerated of taking a cup of liquid (e.g., tea or coffee, or even chocolate) with a fragment of bread or toast in the early morning. But, what more particularly regards Lent, successive indults have been granted by the Holy See allowing meat at the principal meal, first on Sundays, and then on two, three, four, and five weekdays, throughout nearly the whole of Lent. Quite recently, Maundy Thursday, upon which meat was hitherto always forbidden, has come to share in the same indulgence. In the United States, the Holy See grants faculties whereby working men and their families may use flesh meat once a day throughout the year, except Fridays, Ash Wednesday, Holy Saturday, and the vigil of Christmas. The only compensation imposed for all these mitigations is the prohibition during Lent against partaking of both fish and flesh at the same repast.” In the 100 years since that was written, we have mitigated the Lenten observances even more, so that there is now not even a prohibition against eating both meat and fish at nearly every meal! I wonder if there will be any obligatory penance at all in another twenty or fifty years... With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Muskrat, Beaver, and Puffin for Lent
Some of you may read the following article and swear that you have read it before. You may be mostly correct. As promised a couple of weeks ago, I pulled this out of storage, dusted it off, adjusted the dates and a few other little things, and am presenting it to you once again. Of course, this comes from quite a few years back, and most of you would probably think it was all brand new if I wasn’t writing this opening paragraph, so I could have just passed it off as original, but I don’t want to be accused of plagiarizing my own writings! Several years ago as Lent was about to begin I wrote about a strange custom found in Michigan wherein Catholics could eat muskrat without violating Church laws on abstinence. [Hopefully, you all know that Catholics are, by Church law (rather than Divine Law, which cannot be “tweaked” in the same way) required to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and all Fridays in Lent. All other Fridays of the Year are considered penitential but we in the United States are allowed to choose a penance other than the traditional abstinence from meat outside of those days already mentioned. We don’t get off the hook, we simply get to choose our own penance. Really. Vatican II did not get rid of Friday penance!] This year another story has been making the rounds that beavers in Quebec long ago also received the honorary title of “fish” (like tomatoes being honorary vegetables though they are really fruit) so that they, too, can be eaten on Fridays in Lent. Our Michiganders have yet to start up a Lenten muskrat Friday “fish” fry, much to the disappointment of every other Epiphany parishioner, I am sure, but perhaps one of our Canadian snowbirds would be willing to bring down a truckload of beaver for the same purpose. Stories vary about whether the whole beaver or only the tail was allowed to be classified as “fish” for abstinence purposes, so I suppose we would need an official clarification before we start cooking. I don’t know much about the laws regarding trapping and butchering either critter but if they are both in season right now it is possible that we could even get both of them brought down here to put on our menu. Imagine the envy of the other parishes when they discover that we offer a choice of either beaver or muskrat! The hardest part might be determining the side dishes. Both rodents are northern animals so it would seem strange to fix them with cheese grits and collard greens but what else would be a suitable substitute? For some strange reason, most of the vegetable dishes we find in local restaurants all seem foreign to our friends from the north. Just mention “stewed okra” and watch their noses scrunch up. Even something as normal as “fried green tomatoes” produces a look of bewilderment among the part-timers around here. Of course, it seems all the more strange that they don’t eat those great foods when they are the ones bringing the rodents to the table! Not to be outdone by the crazy North Americans, though, people from other parts of the world have some unusual “fish” equivalents as well. Look at the Venezuelans. They are allowed to eat the largest rodent in the world, the capybara, for Lent. One website quotes a restaurant owner (who, presumably, has capybara on the menu though that is never made clear) as saying, “I know it’s a rat, but it tastes really good.” I wonder if people from Venezuela with such discerning palates would have the audacity to turn their noses up at grits the way our own Yankees do? Or how about some French cooking for Lent? France brings us stories about being allowed to eat puffins on Lenten Fridays. You know those charming little birds at SeaWorld which are found in the cold weather displays along with the penguins? Those are puffins. Like the rodents above, these birds are semi-aquatic and so probably taste like fish or duck rather than like chicken. Unlike articles about those “brave” souls willing to eat rodents, where reporters seem to revel in the “gross” factor of eating rat-like animals, the articles about those who eat puffins (yes, you can find them easily enough) show outrage that anyone would eat a cute little birdie. So it is probably best that, as far as I know, anyway, we don’t have any parishioners coming from northern France and we will keep the puffins off the Friday menu. Of course, now that I mentioned the controversial eating of puffins, I cannot go without mentioning that in some places whales, seals, and even (gulp) porpoises seem to have been allowed on some Friday Lenten dinner menus as well. Because our social hall only seats about 120 people around the tables and we would have to exclude way too many of you who would be clamoring to chow down on such delectable dishes, this year we won’t be able to host any of these Lenten dinners. But should we happen to have among our parishioners some avid muskrat or beaver trappers, puffin pursuants, capybara chasers, or seal stalkers willing to bring in a nice supply for next year, we might, with proper planning, be able to pull it off. Our Council of Catholic Women could bring back their tent for outdoor seating, the Knights of Columbus could do the cooking, the American Heritage Girls could serve, and, well, what a yummy penance! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka From the Pastor: Soup and Stations Q&A
I underestimated the number of people who have never been to our Lenten Friday Soup and Stations. A couple of questions have been brought forth which deserve to have the answers distributed more widely than just to the one asking the question. But there is something that I must address before I can get to the Q&A. A couple of weeks ago, either during the 10:30 Mass or during the social time afterward, one of our parishioners had his SUV’s catalytic converter stolen. These things cost up to several thousands of dollars to replace after they have been hacked off by thieves, who supposedly get a few hundred dollars for them when they take them to shady car repair shops. We have men who walk around looking for such dastardly evil-doers but this one slipped by. The car was parked in the parking spots back next to the rectory where there are no security cameras. We have stepped up the number of eyes on the lookout for guys just hanging out for no good reason. We are also installing security cameras back there and increasing the number and coverage of the cameras on the church and school buildings. What a shame that we have to spend hours and dollars just to keep people who obviously want a quick trip to hell from committing further mortal sins. And, yes, I believe that stealing from the Church, even from cars in the parish parking lot, is a mortal sin. And now we get around to the topic at hand, the Lenten Friday Soup and Stations. Question number one: Since Bishop Parkes has dispensed us from St. Patrick’s Day abstinence, can we bring in meat on March 17? Answer: Just because a dispensation is offered doesn’t mean that you need to take it! I imagine that his reason for giving the dispensation is to keep the many, many Catholics who would wilfully, purposefully, eat corned beef on St. Patrick’s Day even though it falls on a Friday of Lent, from incurring the pain of mortal sin from doing so. But we have our simple meatless dinner, not at a St. Patrick’s Day party but united to the Stations of the Cross. It seems to me that it would be much better for the soul to keep this as a penitential dinner. You will commit no sin by eating meat that day, but, is it really that important after the Stations? Another important question is, “Why do we have a 5:30 starting time? Couldn’t we start later for those who work or earlier for those who wish to avoid traffic and still have daylight in which to drive home?” Let me answer by telling you the history of our starting time. Our first Lent at Epiphany was in 2016. We started the Stations at 7:00 and got perhaps a dozen people to make the Way of the Cross. In 2017 we started at 7:00 but after the first two weeks, switched it to 6:00 and saw a slight improvement in the numbers attending, but an increase in complaints about traffic. In 2018 we started even earlier to avoid some of the worst traffic, and, with a 4:30 starting time, the numbers boomed. We even ran out of booklets. But we had been having monthly Friday Rosary and Family Game Nights and it seems that every family who normally attended those events also attended the Stations, plus the others who only attended the Stations. But the Family Rosary nights slowly lost their appeal and stopped and in 2019 the numbers at the Stations plummeted. We then had more people who asked if we could move the Stations to 5:30 so that they could come straight from work, and “Soup and Stations” was born in 2020 so that the family could meet dad here and share a simple family meal together after the prayers. For the 3 weeks before covid shut us down the church was packed and the hall was overflowing with crock pots and instant pots. Soups, salads, macaroni and cheese, and bread abounded. In 2021 we kept it at 5:30 and the people responded with the largest crowds ever. After the meal, I taught anyone who wanted to listen, how to use their Missal. The time stayed the same last year but I was in St. Augustine watching masked priests lead the Stations followed by take-out-only fish fries as covid hysteria still gripped the people up that way. This year we just kept the time the same as the last two years. Is it time to change it again? You tell me. As you can see, we have moved it from 7:00 to 6:00 to 4:30 to 5:30 all in a span of 8 years! The numbers at the first Soup and Stations this year (the second one will have occurred between me writing this and you reading it) were ok. Not great, not terrible. I forgot about teaching “How to Use Your Missal” until I went back through the calendar, but I am willing to do that again. Bring yours if you need help! With prayers for your holiness, Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka |
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