Patrick Kiernan – Church visit #1

Old St. Patrick's Church, Chicago

Church name: Old St. Patrick’s Church

Church address: 700 W Adams St, Chicago, IL 60661

Date attended: 3/24/16

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?

The Holy Thursday service was far more liturgical than what I am used to in the nondenominational church that I attend. Prior to the service, everyone received an extensive program that outlined all of the evening’s prayers, hymns, and other motions. The priest welcomed us at the beginning of the service dressed in a full robe indicated his status as presider over the congregation. There were clear times in which the church body was to stand, sit, and kneel (I have rarely kneeled in a protestant church). Much of the service’s events channeled themselves towards the Eucharist. Both the words spoken, and the body language of the priest and laity indicated the central meaning of communion to the mass. The kind of reverence that was given towards the Eucharist is a key difference between this church service and others that I am used to (we only have communion ~12 times a year in my protestant church!).

What aspects of Roman Catholic theology did you notice expressed in the service?

Throughout the service I was able to make clear connections to what we read in Vatican II’s Lumen Gentium. There was a group of special guests composed of Jews and Muslims who attended the service. The priest welcomed the guests and called them “our brothers and sisters.” This reminded me of Lumen Gentium’s respectful view of Muslims, non-believers, and non-Catholic Christians. Later, we prayed for all of the many social justice efforts of Old St. Patrick’s church. These included two dozen ministries including literacy programs, blood drives, interfaith dialogues, overseas missions, youth programs, etc.  I believe these ministries’ and our prayers for them reflect Lumen Gentium’s emphasis on the laity’s mission to bring God’s presence to the world. Finally, the focus that was placed on communion was obvious. The words and actions of the priest with regard to the body and blood were reflective of the belief that these elements were Christ’s literal body and blood and that taking them was how we receive life.

What aspects of Scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?

At the end of the service, the Eucharist was placed at the Altar of Repose for the night. Before this, there was a procession of the Eucharist around the church. The lights were dimmed and all was quiet. It was like we were trying to return to the Garden of Gethsemane and to be with Jesus. Though this time we would not be like the apostles who fell asleep. Rather, we were told to “pray to stay awake to the presence of the Lord’s love and healing in our lives.” This entire process brought to life the passage of the Garden of Gethsemane for me because I was taking part in a kind of ritual where we as a church body recounted together (and even acted out together) the night in the Garden and then prayed together that we would not also fall asleep.