Monday, November 28, 2011

Everybody Having A Good Time?

Hey All!

GREAT NEWS:  I was fortunate enough to get to Mass on Sunday!  :D

BAD NEWS:  It wasn't the EF.  :(

DEPRESSING NEWS:  I heard from three different people the sermon by the Extaordinary priest included death.  :'(

WHY IT'S DEPRESSING NEWS:  I wanted a sermon with death!  >:(

RATIONALIZING NEWS:  Ah well, at least I was able to get to Mass....and assist with the new prayers, both for which I am VERY thankful.   ......Not all like the new translation, but, many do (ehehehehehehe, see what I did there...)  :P

COMPENSATIONALIST NEWS:  I already know that for the next four weeks that the entire Catholic Church will be praying for the end of the world during Advent, so I got that going for me.  :D

GOOD NEWS:  One of the reasons I wanted to go to Mass at St. Joseph's was to take pictures of the Stations of the Cross in the nave. I was HOPING to go to the Vigil Mass on Saturday so I could still attend the EF on Sunday (DEATH!!!!!!!), but, I will accept it as God's Will that it was better I go on Sunday...for the lighting.

IN OTHER NEWS:  I asked the St. Joseph's pastor after Mass if he ever thought about offering the Mass in Latin.  I asked him this because, I don't know how, but, somehow, this church survived the changes of the Spirit of Vatican II; it is very condusive to the Latin Mass.

As one will see from the pictures below, not all the pictures were taken on the same day.  A few were taken when I first moved here, most were taken on 11/27/11.  There have been changes to the church over the years.  I remember when I was younger that the back wall, behind the altar was painted blue with gold stars. It has since been whitewashed.


First and foremost, NO, your eyes do not deceive you!  That IS an altar rail in the foreground!!  ...It's not used, of course...  That would render the Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion out of the sanctuary.  We must keep the EMHC positions safe within the sanctuary.  Kneeling down is a step backwards.

Second, in both the picture above and the picture below, one will notice that there is a door behind Mary's side (the Gospel Side) of the church.  One may even notice that there are two lights, a green light and a red light.  This is the Reconcilliation Room.  If one is in the nave, one has to go up into the sanctuary to get to the RR.  There IS the option of a grille or face to face in that room (so, they do follow the rules).  Again, if one is in the sanctuary, one has to go beyond the Tabernacle to get to the RR.  I mention this for a reason.


Nobody notice that St. Patrick & St. Anthony switched sides.  They just wanted to see if anybody was paying attention.  Just ignore it and they'll switch back.



Sacred Heart of Jesus.  With Stigmata.  In the Orans position.  Would probably be more effective if not everybody in the parish prays the Our Father this way.

Oh look, it's The Last Supper. I cannot think of a more appropriate relief on an altar for the Holy Sacrifice of the Ma...


AHHHHHHHHHHGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH OH MY JESUS, HAVE MERCY ON US!!!! MARY, QUEEN OF ANGELS, HELP US!!!!!!!!  AHHHHHHHHHGGGGGGGGHHHH!!!!!

This is the relief on the front of the altar on the wall.  I happened to notice it one day when coming out of Confession.  I was VERY surprised (pleasantly surprised, but then a little disheartened because is obscured by the free-standing altar) to see it here.  There is nothing that would encapsulate the Faith more perfectly than this just below the altar, just below the Tabernacle, just below the Sacred Heart of Jesus.  One will note the gold flames contrasted against the black background, separated by the wall of roses.  Perfect.  One sees it, one sees Catholicism beautifully.  One sees this, one almost doesn't have to hear a sermon about death.   ...Not hearing about death is killing me. :(


The first third of it in detail.  Agony and petition and shame.  I don't know if we are supposed to imagine the Precious Blood from the Chalice that the angel is holding to lessen the flames or if the Chalice is empty for a reason.


More petitioning.  LOTS more petitioning.  Nothing BUT petitioning.  One may note that Our Lady is holding a Cross.  Seriously, look at this third of the picture -- everybody except one is looking at Her, but, he is looking longingly at relief from an angel.  All others are begging for Our Lady's intercession.  DESPERATELY begging.


Right third.  More naked and exposed petitioning!  Except the guy on the right.  He's looking non-plussed with his whole purgation process.  Apparently Rodin's masterpiece wanted in on the purifying flames.  (Do the flames burn away the black that covers them? Are they supposed to be cleaner the more exposed they are?  If so, the guy in the tunic just got there; the guy mooning us is nearer to Heaven.)


Back to The Last Supper.  Okay, so, Judas is the one leaving, right?  I mean, that IS Judas, he is wearing black, he's not facing Jesus, he has red hair...JUDAS!  But, if THAT is Judas, who is Jesus feeding?  Is that John?  But, if THAT'S John, then who is leaning on Jesus?  I thought John leaned on Jesus.  But, that CAN'T be John leaning on Jesus because John didn't have a beard at this point.  The Disciple Jesus is feeding doesn't have a beard, that MUST be John.  And, hey, there's another guy not looking at Jesus!  And another!  But, their heads are tilted towards Him.  So, is it Peter leaning on Jesus?  ...Wouldn't Peter be the older guy with the white hair?  The full head of white hair?  Wait, no, Mabye St. Peter is the one standing next to St. John because St. Peter asked St. John to ask Jesus something during the Last Supper, ergo, St. Peter has to be by St. John....unless some got up and moved about a bit during this Passover Feast.  And who is the guy who's kneeling and next to St. Jude?  Well of COURSE that's St. Jude!!!  He looks JUST LIKE Jesus!!!  Well, at least Jesus is giving Communion on the tongue.

Wait, what?  Oh.

"We lift them up to the Lord."


AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!  AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!
AHHHHHHHHHHH  (See?  No ambiguity.  I know what I'm supposed to be thinking when I see this)  AHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.................

Oh, look at that, Jesus is sharing!  See, it's because we are at the Lamb's Table when we go up to receive the Lord in our hearts in the Eucharist!  ...But, seriously, what's up with the visble background?  Wasn't this happening in the evening?  *squints*  Is that....IS THAT LEAVENED BREAD?!!!! 

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  *sob*

The message of the first one is, "And also with you."
The message of the second one is, "And with thy spirit."


I don't know how this managed to stay.  Maybe nobody noticed the non-English.  It is still, as one can see from the above pictures, front and center.  I was going to make fun of that fact, but, then I remembered churches in IL that I have been to where the Tabernacle is off to the side and there is almost a blank back wall.  I am so very happy that is NOT the case here.  I almost wish this was my parish for the aesthetics.  I hope the Viewer/Reader opens this to a larger picture and sees how intricately detailed it is.  This is where God SHOULD be housed!  Not some wooden and glass box with an abstract plus-sign.  Gold, with adoring angels.  This is what the laity NEEDS to see.


Crucifix at the front of the church.  There is a life-sized one off to the Gospel side, in the north transept (if I'm labeling that part correctly), but, I didn't take a picture of it.

And, yep!  That's an altar lamp!  Red and everything!

Oh yeah, have I mentioned, this church is shaped like a cross? 


View from the sanctuary.  It's not shaped like a space ship or nothing!  There's NO WAY to have Mass in the round!  And look, there's a chior loft!  And it's actually used by a chior!  And stained glass windows!!!  ...I'm beginning to think this may not be a Catholic church....


Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

 And speaking of Our Lady...

These are done in fairly large reliefs throughout the church.  The reason they are my favourite of all the Stations of the Cross I have ever seen is because the background, the sky itself becomes darker and darker.








St. Mary Alocoque and the Sacred Heart.  As one exits the church, this is on one's left.

Annuniciation.  In the crying room.



I'm guessing Magdalene is the one with her face covered in the following.


In detail: 



Wait for it.....







Look at the background of the First Station and then look at this.  They are inside a tomb after sun-set and it is so dark, it needs to be illuminated by torch.  One can, if one opens this bigger, see the Cross and St. Dismas' cross outside.  Look at the delicately tender and lovingly way the three place Christ in the sheet.  The one woman guides his body and The Beloved Disciple cradles his hand and holds the sheet so as not to let the body simply fall back on to the hard stone.  The Torch Bearer cradles and comforts Our Lady.  And the Stigmatazed Hand is visible for all to see.
If ONLY there could have been a sermon to match this!

No, no, I'm fine.  I'm over it....

And so, this is the church I have via a 5 minute drive, a 20 minute walk, but, because the way the Mass is said, I don't want to go there.

I also do not want any neo post modern abstract pieces influencing feng shui placements creeping their way into this church.

And, to answer the question, yes, the pastor has thought about offering the Mass in Latin, but, not any time soon, as he has to get used to the prayers the new way.