Bishop Cozzens Visits FSSP Minneapolis on the Epiphany

On Saturday, January 6th, 2018, the Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord, His Excellency Bishop Andrew Cozzens, Auxiliary Bishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis, celebrated a Solemn Pontifical Mass at the Church of All Saints, our apostolate in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In attendance were several seminarians from St. Paul Seminary and over 275 faithful.

The choir sang Palestrina’s Missa Aeterna Christi Munera (listen to the Sanctus on the left below), and the Mass included the chanting of the Noveritis (on the right below), that is, the Proclamation of Moveable Feasts, traditionally done on the Epiphany.

Our thanks to Tracy Dunne and Lucas Brown for their photos of the Mass.

Big Procession, Big Plans: Part II

In October, we published Big Procession, Big Plans: Part I, in which we told you about the beautiful procession at Mater Dei Parish in Irving, Texas in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun. We had more to write about this thriving parish, but we decided to do another post since there is just so much going on. We spoke once again with Adrian Montes, Parish Life Coordinator at Mater Dei, and his wife Mary Montes, who told us about the exciting projects in motion at the north Texas apostolate.

 

Married Couples’ Series

A new series of events for married couples is planned for this year at Mater Dei. Mr. and Mrs. Montes are excited about what this series will offer, and they shared the blueprint with us. The events will be monthly and will include childcare for those with children. Things will begin with a social hour and potluck for attendees to mingle and get to know one another, and will continue with a talk by one of the priests. A couple will give a testimony on a particular theme, and the idea is that there will be a core group of four or five couples who will contribute regularly in this role. Table discussions are also a probable component. The series is intended as a way for married couples to form friendships with other couples, to receive guidance and to share their wisdom, and thus for the marital and familial bond to be strengthened.

The kick-off for the series is a January 27th event on the four temperaments featuring Art and Laraine Bennet, who have written four books on the subject. They will give three talks and do a book signing as part of the all-day event.

Michael’s Miscarriage Ministry

We introduced you to this wonderful ministry in our post here about the Evening of Remembrance they held in November.

Safety Team

The Safety Team is a group consisting of men who ensure the safety and security of all those who attend Mater Dei. They are a valued presence at every Sunday Mass, plus other Masses, processions and events, the coordinator meeting with the group once a month to discuss matters of safety. The group also coordinates speakers to come to Mater Dei to give talks on safety issues, such as the recent talk given on cyber safety which provided information for parents about keeping their kids safe in the age of the internet and smartphones.

Servers Training Servers

An interesting initiative begun at Mater Dei is a program in which young men who grew up serving at the altar, but are now adults and no longer serve, train older men to serve. The older servers become necessary at early morning Masses and other special Masses where no regular servers are normally available. The monthly program will include a talk by a priest about the liturgy or a topic from Church history followed by the training sessions. This program is a way for young men to be involved in serving after they have grown up, and for men of all ages in the parish to stay connected with one another and share in this great and necessary work.

This is just a brief window into the extensive array of ministries and events that are taking place at this vibrant parish. You can find out more at their website, www.materdeiparish.com. Mater Dei has groups and projects for all ages, and they are doing a monumental job in ensuring a joyful and busy parish life to complement and support the sacramental life of their parishioners. If you ever visit North Texas, do join Mater Dei for Mass and be sure to check their schedule to see what’s happening!

Honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe at FSSP Mexico

The feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, December 12, on which we commemorate the appearance of Our Lady to St. Juan Diego in 1531, is a particularly joyous feast day in Mexico. On this day in 2017, our apostolate in Guadalajara honored Our Lady in a beautiful way.

Fr. Daniel Heenan, pastor of FSSP Mexico, led the Rosary in the middle of the Andares shopping mall where an image of Our Lady was enthroned. Afterwards, those in attendance renewed their consecration to Our Lady of Guadalupe and Mariachis serenaded her with traditional mañanitas. The event marked the conclusion of a year long campaign called “A Miracle for Mexico,” organized in honor of the 100th anniversary of Our Lady of Fátima. Participants, using an app, registered the rosaries they prayed, and the number of rosaries reached over 60 million.

To learn more about our apostolate in Mexico and find out how you can help, please click here.

Happy Feast of the Epiphany of Our Lord!

A most joyful and glorious feast of the Epiphany of Our Lord! Today we commemorate the visit of the Magi, who saw Our Lord’s star in the East and came to pay their humble homage to the King of Kings. They presented to Him gold, frankincense and myrrh, which represented respectively His Kingship, His Divinity and the death that He would die for our sins.

Omnes de Saba vénient, aurum et thus deferéntes, et laudem Dómino annuntiántes.

All they from Saba shall come, bringing gold and frankincense and showing forth praise to the Lord.

from the Introit for today (Isaiah 60:6)

FSSP Warrington Featured on National Catholic Register Blog

A blogger for the National Catholic Register recently took a trip to St. Mary’s Shrine, our apostolate in Warrington, near Liverpool, England. Read the article he wrote about his visit here!

St. Mary’s Shrine is where two of our North American District seminarians were ordained over the summer. You can read our post about that here.

Sing Joyfully to God, All the Earth

Vidérunt omnes fines terræ salutáre Dei nostri: jubiláte Deo omnis terra.

All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God: sing joyfully to God, all the earth.

from the Gradual of the Third Mass of Christmas (Psalm 97:3)

 

Christmas Across the District & Beyond

The Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord at Midnight, Dawn and during the Daytime, from the West Coast to the East, across time zones, international borders and the Atlantic Ocean.

 

FSSP Fresno

California

Holy Cross Chaplaincy at St. Anthony of Padua Church
Third Mass During the Daytime

 

FSSP Vancouver

British Columbia, Canada

Holy Family Parish
Midnight Mass

 

FSSP Calgary

Alberta, Canada

St. Anthony Parish
Midnight Mass

 

FSSP Cœur d’Alene

Idaho

St. Joan of Arc Parish
Midnight Mass

 

FSSP Minneapolis

Minnesota

Church of All Saints
Christmas Matins and Midnight Mass

 

FSSP Quincy

Illinois

Historic St. Rose of Lima Church
Midnight Mass and Second Mass at Dawn

 

FSSP Rockdale

Illinois

St. Joseph Church
Third Mass During the Daytime

 

FSSP South Bend

Indiana

St. Stanislaus Parish
Midnight Mass

 

FSSP Baltimore

Maryland

The National Shrine of St. Alphonsus Liguori
Midnight Mass

 

FSSP Little Rock

Arkansas

St. John the Baptist Church
Midnight Mass

 

FSSP Dallas

Texas

Mater Dei Parish
Third Mass During the Daytime

 

FSSP Fort Worth

Texas

St. Benedict Parish
Midnight Mass

 

FSSP Mexico

Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico

Nuestra Señora del Pilar
Midnight Mass

 

FSSP Rome

Lazio, Italy

Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini
Midnight Mass

Our thanks to Jacob Stein and Selina Fang for their photos from Rome.

Traditional Latin Mass Celebrated at Dallas Cathedral

On Saturday, December 30th, 2017, a traditional Latin Mass was offered at the Cathedral Shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe, the cathedral of the Diocese of Dallas, Texas. The Mass was celebrated by Fr. Thomas Longua, pastor of Mater Dei, the FSSP’s Dallas apostolate. What a blessing for this Mass to take place at the Cathedral, a Victorian Gothic edifice that was dedicated in 1902 by Bishop Edward Dunne and stands in the arts district of the booming metropolis of over 1 million residents.

Mater Dei expresses its thanks to Bishop Edward Burns, Auxiliary Bishop Greg Kelly and Fr. Stephen Bierschenk, Rector of the Cathedral, for graciously allowing this Mass to take place.

Octave-Day of the Nativity

Happy Octave-Day of the Nativity! On this day we particularly commemorate the Holy Name of Jesus, given to Our Lord at the Circumcision eight days after His birth. We will celebrate the feast of the Holy Name tomorrow on January 2nd. The latter feast is normally kept on the Sunday after the Octave-Day, except when this Sunday falls on January 1st, 6th or, as is the case this year, the 7th; on those occasions the feast of the Holy Name is kept on January 2.

Puer natus est nobis, et fílius datus est nobis: cujus impérium super húmerum ejus: et vocábitur nomen ejus, magni consílii ángelus.

A Child is born to us, and a Son is given to us, Whose government is upon His shoulders: and His name shall be called the Angel of great counsel.

–  from the Introit for today (Isaiah 9:6)

The image above is from the Christmas Mass During the Daytime at our apostolate in Rockdale, Illinois.

Incredible Video from St. Francis Xavier Mission Trips

We shared with you over the summer the adventures of two St. Francis Xavier mission trips to Piura, Peru. A montage of video from both trips has been released, including interviews with the missionaries, the Peruvians they assisted and the priests who were involved with the trips. It is amazing. We dare you not to be inspired by the joy and love for God shown by those who are so poor and who live under such harsh conditions, and the gratitude that the missionaries themselves felt for this opportunity to give their time in service to others.

One Peruvian said: “After all that happened we are alive, so what we have to do is to thank God for everything.”

Registration for the 2018 St. Francis Xavier Mission Trips is now open. Available trips include a trip to Mexico for families and individuals aged 16+, and trips to Peru and the Dominican Republic for youth 16-21. Please visit the St. Francis Xavier website to learn more and sign up!

If you cannot go on a mission trip but would like to donate, you can do so online here. May God reward you for your generosity!

A few statistics from the Peru trips (totals from both trips):

46 kids aged 16-21, accompanied by 3 priests, 3 seminarians, 3 adult chaperones on each trip. Fr. Eggleston, all 3 seminarians, and 3 of those kids stayed in Peru for a whole month, working both missions.
22 bamboo houses constructed particularly for those families who were affected by the floods.
1 classroom building, similar to the houses, but slightly larger. The missionaries were told that this would be used primarily for catechism, as it was attached to the back of a village church.
16 food deliveries, each of which entailed bringing non-perishable food items (large sacks of rice, pasta, etc.) to families in need. Each delivery served about 5-6 families, so at least 80 families were assisted.
16 house blessings, for which the priests would take a missionary or two to assist as the priest would bless houses in the villages. Each of the 16 ventures included over a dozen houses.
15 Communion calls, each of which included about 10 different houses.
7 clothing deliveries, which entailed bringing 6-7 large bags of clothing to churches in the villages. The mothers were invited to select about 10 items for their families, the lines for these deliveries normally stretching out of sight.
7 stove deliveries, which entailed delivering gas stoves and propane tanks to those in need. Each delivery helped about 5-6 families.
3 trips to teach English to students at a local school.

FSSP Minneapolis Hosts Cardinal Burke on Gaudete Sunday

by Karen Hastreiter, FSSP Minneapolis

For the apostolate in Minneapolis, this year’s observance of the third Sunday in Advent brought many reasons for rejoicing. The parish of All Saints welcomed His Eminence Raymond Cardinal Burke, who offered a Pontifical Mass at the Throne. Not only was this a momentous occasion for the parish to welcome a Prince of the Church, but it was also an act of generosity and sacrifice on the part of the Cardinal. He was in the upper Midwest in a non-official capacity, yet he graciously accepted the invitation from Fr. Bauknecht, pastor of All Saints, and Fr. Stewart, parochial vicar, to visit the parish.

It was a collaboration of many acts of sacrifice as the faithful took part in the preparations for the historic day: from the 14-year-old young man of the parish who built the throne to the woman who created the fabric coverings and drapes for it, from the two women who ironed the silk cappa magna (the voluminous cape worn by the cardinal) to St. Anthony who found special chairs on Craigslist for the visiting clerical dignitaries, from the photographers and ushers to the altar servers and choir members who gave their time and talents to make this day a memorable one.

There was also another significant cause for jubilation: the participation and attendance of local archdiocesan clergy and seminarians. His Excellency Archbishop Bernard Hebda of St. Paul and Minneapolis and the Most Rev. Andrew Cozzens, Auxiliary Bishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis were both in choir. Also present in choir were the Very Rev. John Ubel, Rector of the Cathedral of St. Paul, Fr. Michael Dirocco, diocesan priest of LaCrosse, Deacon Michael Nevin from the Archdiocesan Office of Divine Worship, and more than a dozen seminarians from St. Paul Seminary representing different dioceses from across the nation.

Taking part in the solemn liturgy itself were Fr. Peter Bauknecht, FSSP, Fr. John Brancich, FSSP, pastor of FSSP Nashua, Deacon Aaron Liebert, FSSP, Fr. John Paul Erickson, Director of the Office of Divine Worship for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Fr. Adam Tokashiki, PES, Fr. Alex Stewart, FSSP and four seminarians from St. Paul Seminary. The lovely strains of Palestrina’s Missa Papae Marcelli served as a musical backdrop fitting for the occasion.

Following the 2pm Mass was a wine and cheese reception for everyone at a lovely hall just one block from All Saints. His Eminence was again gracious in allowing a receiving line for all those who wished to greet him and have their photos taken with him. Archbishop Hebda and Bishop Cozzens were also in attendance and spent time visiting with everyone.

It was truly a Gaudete Sunday to be remembered.

Our thanks to Tracy Dunne and Lucas Brown for their photographs of the event.