Bishop’s Note
So much has happened over the last couple of weeks that my head is swimming as I try to decide what to write about in today’s “Note.” In fact, as I was reviewing all of the events and remembering who I’ve seen lately I found myself thinking, “Well, I haven’t seen this or that person at Mass for a while.” It took me a moment to realize that they haven’t been seen at Mass, not because they were absent, but because I was absent. The ten days away were good days filled with truly pastoral work, but St. Gertrude’s will always be home. It is so good to be back!
Firstly, the priest’s retreat in Seattle went very smoothly, thanks to your prayers. Fr. Ercoli and Fr. Romero worked very hard to put things together for all of the visiting clergy. In total, there were six priests and three seminarians present. It was nice to see our priests in a more relaxed environment. Life at St. Gertrude’s is often quite intense and there is no shortage of work to be done. Actually, it is harder to find time for a break than it is to stay busy. This makes a spiritual retreat all the more necessary for our clergy. A priest’s retreat is a little bit different from the usual seminary retreat inasmuch as a priest’s retreat includes some outings at which the priests are allowed to talk. This is done to encourage the clergy and to build up closer friendships among them, many of whom do not often get the chance to visit other priests. Fr. Ercoli planned a ferry ride out to an island, a barbecue, and a walk in the mountainous forests. The subject of the retreat itself was, for the most part, St. Paul the Apostle. Each day began with the singing of Prime, then each priest said Mass. We ate all of our meals in common, lunch and dinner including a reading from books on the Curè d’Ars and St. Vincent de Paul. Two conferences were given each day, and we prayed the Rosary and paid a Visit to the Blessed Sacrament together. At the end of the day Compline was sung.
At the end of the retreat, the last two minor orders, Exorcist and Acolyte, were given to one of our seminarians, Josè Santos Casas, who hails from Spain. The Order of Exorcist gives the power to exorcise demons; that of Acolyte, the duty of carrying the candle during Mass and of presenting the wine and water to the priest. Each order requires its own special virtues to be cultivated as the young seminarian approaches closer to the priesthood.
Right now we have three seminarians at our seminary, which is named St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, after the patron of seminarians. It was thanks to St. Charles that official seminaries were formed around the time of the Council of Trent. This was done because of the amount of false teachings going around, especially during the time of the Protestant Reformation. It was necessary that the priests know how to combat the errors prevalent at that time, so official houses of study were formed.
Confirmations were given at St. Joseph’s Church in Mt. Vernon, WA—also run by Frs. Ercoli and Romero. Following all of that, I was able to visit Fr. Peter Raleigh at Holy Innocents Church in Trinidad, Colorado, where ten Confirmations were given. Father has a lovely chapel which he has been steadily working to remodel since 2014. A lot of work has been put into the building, but it does look very nice. Hopefully, pictures can be provided eventually. I’m not much of a picture taker, so none are to be had at this time.
The Girl’s Camp was a hit! As always, we had a very good attendance and a very well-behaved group of girls. This year’s activities included a bike ride at a park in or near Loveland, a day of swimming, and Rosary Processions too! St. Philomena was this year’s patroness, so St. Philomena Cords were being made as well. The play which the girls do on the last day of camp was most excellent this year. The little ones marched to the tune of “The Ants Go Marching.” The ants who were marching two by two forgot to stop and tie their shoe, which caused a little confusion when the ants marching three by three came in! Things were quickly put back in order and the ants kept marching. The older girls put on a play that was inspired by one of Fr. Lehtoranta’s sermons in which he talked about Lady Jane. The play was well done, and the moral lesson at the end was most edifying. A big thank you to the Camp Committee for all the work you put into this year’s camp.
Tomorrow is the parish bonfire. I hope you will join us for the Solemn High Mass, barbecue, and the blessing of the fire. It is always such an enjoyable and edifying evening!
– Bishop McGuire