St. Leonard of Port Maurice Parish, Boston, MA

St. Leonard of Port Maurice Parish, Boston: Ash Wednesday Mass

Pillars & Foundations documents an exploration of communities, as well as faith through religious institutions. My intent is to share experiences, and spread the positivity that I observe. 



Building & History

Wikipedia is the primary source for my information on the church history, like some churches I've visited Saint Leonard Parish dedicates their webpage completely to support the current day activities and community. 

First it is important to note that St. Leonard is considered one of the oldest churches constructed by Italian immigrants in the United States. It was constructed beginning in 1885 in Romanesque style, with the upper church and a friary finalized in 1899. Frescos and craftsmanship shown in the photos were created by Italian parishioners through the church's history. The church is also known for its peace garden and a St. Anthony shrine. The namesake of the church, St. Leonard of Port Maurice, is known for popularizing the Stations of the Cross, featured prominently in Catholic practice.



Saint Michael

The Mass

The Ash Wednesday Mass was very busy, standing room only and I managed to just squeeze into a pew next to a pillar despite arriving several minutes early. This church in Boston's Italian North End seemed to have a young crowd, many people in their 20s-40s I would speculate, which seemed unusual. I can't help but wonder if it is a reflection of a convenient Catholic Mass for Ash Wednesday so close to the financial district, as well as the route home by North Station for anyone working in Cambridge or elsewhere. The Mass did not have music, and a guest priest Fr. Michael who was from nearby Boston College delivered the sermon with the Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18 reading which speaks of hypocrites and tells the faithful not to be boastful or show off about ones faith. Fr. Michael mentioned that the common practice of people wearing ash around outside of church isn't necessarily in line with original teachings or Catholic practice, that in the past parishioners would wash rather than exhibit it for the remainder of the day. The point being that the ash is a reminder to the individual of the importance of the practice, and it isn't intended to be something to announce to others. This was very interesting to me and was the first time I had heard this, despite having heard the themes of this sermon in past years.






The Peace Garden still shrouded in winter in early March



Outreach

In an example of the good will of St. Leonard, the offering of the Ash Wednesday was going fully to help feed those in need. Through parish activities as well as other organizing St. Leonard engages in various activities to enrich the North End and beyond. Looking at bulletins one can see various efforts taken by the parish such as raising money for schools. The church makes collections and pledges for the Boston Catholic Appeal which funds youth ministries and addiction recovery services amongst other areas of need.


Text and photographs by George Parks
Sources are embedded in links


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Kurukulla Center for Tibetan Buddhist Studies, Medford, Massachusetts

Image
Kurukulla Center for Tibetan Buddhist Studies, Medford, Massachusetts Pillars & Foundations was initiated as an exploration communities as well as faith through religious institutions. My intent is to share experiences, and spread the positivity that I observe. Faith centers embody a drive to make a difference which they deliver upon, regardless if it is with one person looking for hope & community, or a recipient of their expansive charitable work. I was lucky to find introductory courses available on Tibetan Buddhism at Kurukulla Center so close to me in Medford. The timing of the offerings was conveniently at 7:00 pm, leaving time to get there following work. However, I did make a special point to drive instead of riding my bike which tends to leave me in less than desirable condition to be in confined quarters with strangers. Before I get too much into details on this experience, I'd like to stress my level of ignorance of the details Tibetan Buddhism, thus ...
Read more

First Congregational Church, UCC, Melrose, Massachusetts

Image
First Congregational Church, UCC, Melrose, MA Pillars & Foundations was started as an effort to explore my surrounding communities through their religious institutions, and to share my experiences at them with my neighbors and beyond. These organizations that are both social and spiritual, leave lasting impressions on the communities that they are in, and I find in my experiences that I've taken them for granted, and I suspect I'm not alone. What strikes me what all of these institutions strive to do is make a difference, and they do, regardless if it is one person looking for hope & community, or a with recipient of their charitable work. Building & History People who pass by the low profile octagonal church in Melrose should not be fooled by the contemporary campus. This organization has a long history ( information on FCCM website ) in the community dating back to 1848. The new building was constructed in 1970 following a fire tha...
Read more

Saint Patrick Parish, Stoneham, MA

Image
Saint Patrick Parish, Stoneham, MA Pillars & Foundations documents an exploration of communities, as well as faith through religious institutions. My intent is to share experiences, and spread the positivity that I observe. The hope is to provide a window into these organizations allowing those who might not other wise venture in to appreciate these thoughtful, often intimate groups in our midst. Faith centers embody a drive to make a difference which they deliver upon, regardless if it is with one person looking for hope & community, or a recipient of their expansive charitable work. Building & History St Patrick Parish has a very different feel depending on which angle you are observing it from. The view above is the traditional front of the flower shaped window gives the feeling of a country parish. In spite of Stoneham's close proximity to Boston, their are still portions of the town that are very quaint, leafy and idyllic. Not far from a picturesque Ne...
Read more

Saint Athanasius Parish, Reading, MA

Image
Saint Athanasius Parish, Reading, Massachusetts I intend to explore and experience the services of many different churches, predominantly near where I live in Massachusetts. Discovering all of these different faith communities builds my knowledge of the neighborhoods around me and the people who live there. These institutions are important, often overlooked and even misjudged centers of our communities that seek to make a positive impact on their participants, as well as others through their generosity and public service. It is possible that through this activity I may eventually consider a long term relationship with one of these pillars and foundations of the community, however I am eager to do a lot of exploring first. History & Building I was pleased to find that Saint Athanasius has an excellent write-up on their web page about their parish history. The parish is fairly new when compared to many I have visited, establishing in 1960, and their unusual, modern ch...
Read more

National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette, Attleboro, Massachusetts

Image
National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette, Attleboro, Massachusetts Pillars & Foundations documents an exploration of communities, as well as faith through religious institutions. My intent is to share experiences, and spread the positivity that I observe.  Reflecting on my 2018 Journey Prior to discussing Our Lady of La Salette further, please humor me as I reflect. This blog has documented a year long journey that has taken me to over 50 different churches, shrines, temples and faith centers. Most of these I was privileged to attend a service and to mingle with community members. It has be a terrific experience exploring faith, religion, community, charity, and I am better off as a consequence. It is fitting that I write about the shrine of La Salette in Attleboro as my experience touring the lights in 2017 with my wife, drinking hot chocolate, warming ourselves by a fire, watching a candle light procession of Silent Night at a manger, and seeing families experi...
Read more