Most Blessed Sacrament Parish - Wakefield Massachusetts
Most Blessed Sacrament, Wakefield, MA
I chose a local Catholic Church, Most Blessed Sacrament (MBS) for my first true entry of this blog. I thought I would start out where I am the most familiar.
It was very cold on this morning, after mass the temperature still read only 8℉. Normally I would have walked here, but not today. As I drove into the parking lot the sound of ice and compacted snow made that snapping and rubbing sound that all of us in colder climates know. The lot was largely empty, there was a breeze, and despite steady weekend traffic on main street, a sense of quiet. I was concerned at this point that the mass may even be cancelled as the atmosphere outside the church was desolate. Thankfully the door was open and I was greeted by a friendly usher, and a surprising amount of warmth considering the temperature outside. I made my way to the back of the church and took in my surroundings.
The building: The dark stained beam interior reminded me of Sacred Heart in Auburn Maine (where I was baptized and my parents were married) a little bit, however it is probably a little bit of a smaller church, it is entirely a wooden structure. I found myself looking at the pressed wood paneling that made the wainscoting and the way the sections of the walls were put together and connected with small pieces of trim. The craftsmanship, style and materials, is surprisingly similar to the inside of my own house where it hasn't been renovated, making me wonder if perhaps some of the same contractors were at one point involved in the construction of both. I struggled to find history on this church, but I did find a flickr page which says that MBS began as a chapel affiliated with another church, St. Joseph's in 1927. This actually gives credibility to my theory as my home is in the same neighborhood and was built in 1933.
The Parish: Beyond the superficial, who are the parishioners of MBS? On the last day of 2017 at the 9:00 am mass, I can say that it seemed family oriented, skewing to seniors. There were a handful of solitary individuals like myself who tended to be middle aged or perhaps a little bit younger. At first I was concerned that only 20 or so individuals would be there, but the mass seemed to probably start 5-10 minutes late, and if I had to speculate, there may have been 70 to 80 people there when all was said and done. MBS holds masses Saturday night at 4:00 pm, and then three masses at 7:30, 9:00, and 11:00 am on Sunday. If similarly attended this means upwards of 300 routine parishioners, and probably a certain amount more who attend on special occasions. My wife once went on Easter and said that all of the pews were filled.
Father Coughlin presided over the mass with a slight rasp in his voice at times, and a manner that calls on an elderly family member that tells you stories of the past. When he recounts portions of the gospel it was interspersed with "you know..." and vocal mannerisms that helped to make it approachable for his parish. It was as though he was saying Mary, Joseph, and Jesus, and those who they encountered weren't merely figures from the Bible and history, but rather people he knew, and he was telling us his audience about them and what they did. My first impression was a good one. He may not have been especially gregarious, but he had a means to reach out and relate to his people.
As a child we think of priests and ministers as authority figures, and certainly they are, but I think there is a certain comfort in the idea that they just fellow humans trying to find they way like everyone else. The perk is that they, hopefully, are focused on you, willing to give them some of your time.
Sermon: The ceremony, as many who have been to a Catholic mass, was very structured, and traditional. I have been to a couple Catholic churches that deviated a little bit, a Newman Center at UWYO comes to mind. MBS harkened to strict masses from my early youth when Catholic churches were still offering French masses in the communities I grew up in.
Father Coughlin took time to address and pray for the victims of the sexual assaults and harassment, citing the importance of family structure and how it can help mitigate these ugly behaviors. Beyond this the church requested prayers for soldiers, the disadvantaged, and for people and powers to help those without means.
As part of the mass, Father Coughlin spoke of Simeon, a devout man of faith from Jerusalem, who according to the gospel of Luke, was visited by the Holy Spirit and told that he would not pass away until he had seen Jesus, his savior. Simeon sees Christ during Jesus's ceremony of concentration at temple, shortly after being born. My understanding of the inclusion of this in mass is both an issue of timing, how it is an appropriate story to be told shortly after the celebration of Christ's birth, and a reminder of the Christian basis that all who accept Christ can be saved.
My Thoughts: Salvation for the sinners is a progressive idea. Is this controversial? Was it at the time of Christ? Has it been over the past two millennia? It strikes me that we as a society have moved more towards forgiveness than a punitive system but that we still have far to go. The death penalty is disappearing, and more and more we talk about criminal justice reform, and rehabilitation. Are Christians supposed to pray for all sinners that they may redeem themselves, or are some actually irredeemable? Being irredeemable actually strikes me as a rather non-Christian concept, and yet it seems to be the status quo.
Secularism perhaps adopts the ideas of Christianity to a degree, but it may cut out the theological deterrents. If we are to transcend to a reformative, forgiving, rehabilitating society, are we capable socially of doing so in our current state without some grounding in a spiritual or faith based environment? What does faith need to be in? Can it be different for everyone? Can it be different and ultimately the same?
What the parish does: As mentioned, I think it is important to take note of what these pillars and foundations, the churches do for their community. Beyond providing a place of solace and reflection, these institutions have a stated goal to help those outside their doors. MBS organizes various events through the year for the community including things like craft fairs as well as charitable dinners for those in need. Twice a month they hold a free dinner for the less fortunate in the community. The website details various groups that parishioners can contribute to. One of note is a Women's Guild that lists organizing shipments of feminine products to Africa and preparing donations for Toys for Tots.
To conclude, Most Blessed Sacrament has been there 90 years for those who share its culture, and for some looking for guidance and structure. But beyond this, the institution does not exist simply for itself alone, but it gives back and encourages its members to do so. Do we as people give back on our own as much as we should? Some do, and I admire them for it.
Text and photographs by George Parks
Sources are embedded in links
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