Right Place, Wrong Time
Veneration of the Holy Cross On the Feast of the Holy Cross I went to St. Mary the Virgin for Solemn Mass and veneration of a (supposed) relic of the True Cross. This relic was donated in recent years by someone who acquired it from the Vatican. We venerated the (very small) relic (in a nice reliquary however) in the Mercy Chapel after Mass and I did feel an awesome power from the blessing I received with it. It was also a delight to see and hear the little "sisters balcony" reopened and put to use for the first time in many years, with a small choir singing some antiphons during the venerations. It seems the rector paid a visit there during communions to check the setup and his body mike somehow turned on. As I was walking back from communion I was amused to hear him advising someone about something one learns the first week in seminary (apparently this was not to always know the status of your body mike).
After a little refreshment in St. Joe's Hall, steamy as always (a steampipe runs under it) we headed down to the San Gennaro festival for dinner at Il Fornaio (excellent as always) and then zeppoles for dessert. I hadn't been down to San Gennaro for about 30 years so it was fun in an "only in New York" kind of way. I got a rose scented rosary from one of the orders selling wares there but the rose scent didn't last very long.
Then on the following Wednesday I went back down to the Feast of San Gennaro at the Church of the Most Precious Blood to help Fishngrl with her mystery worship. DL also joined us and we even took communion (don't ask, don't tell!). There were the usual electric votive lights everywhere but I was rather horrified to see that the high altar candles were electric with amber candelabra bulbs. I loved the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes, and the statue of St. Jude was just ghastly but somehow I couldn't take my eyes off him. In spite of vigorous swinging of a very ugly modern thurible, there was hardly a whiff of incense (thank Jesus for that because it was one of those horrible Roman blends) and the choir was barely holding it together, but the procession at the end through the streets of Little Italy was worth the trip. I just loved the way they swayed with that statute of San Gennaro, behind the priest in scarlet cope blessing the crowd with a relic. The procession was so slow because of the large crowd and small streets that we were finishing dinner at Umberto's (fabulous red clam sauce) when they returned down Mulberry Street. Then we had zeppoles for dessert and I vowed to go on a starvation diet for a few days.
Meanwhile, my new rector was waiting for me at Pain Quotidien, calling my cell phone, wondering where I was. I had written down the next day at 6:00 pm as the time of my first meeting with Fr. Blume, as I was mortified to learn the next morning when I got the message. I could blame it on being sick and high on Nyquil and Grey Goose the night I entered that date, but in any event it was not a very dignified start to our acquaintance and I was grateful that he made time to see me the next night before he had to hie back up to Boston. It was wonderful to meet him and find that he is absolutely just what we need right now: someone who has a lot of energy and good ideas about our future as well as a wonderful personality. Blume time is indeed here!
Then on the following Wednesday I went back down to the Feast of San Gennaro at the Church of the Most Precious Blood to help Fishngrl with her mystery worship. DL also joined us and we even took communion (don't ask, don't tell!). There were the usual electric votive lights everywhere but I was rather horrified to see that the high altar candles were electric with amber candelabra bulbs. I loved the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes, and the statue of St. Jude was just ghastly but somehow I couldn't take my eyes off him. In spite of vigorous swinging of a very ugly modern thurible, there was hardly a whiff of incense (thank Jesus for that because it was one of those horrible Roman blends) and the choir was barely holding it together, but the procession at the end through the streets of Little Italy was worth the trip. I just loved the way they swayed with that statute of San Gennaro, behind the priest in scarlet cope blessing the crowd with a relic. The procession was so slow because of the large crowd and small streets that we were finishing dinner at Umberto's (fabulous red clam sauce) when they returned down Mulberry Street. Then we had zeppoles for dessert and I vowed to go on a starvation diet for a few days.
Meanwhile, my new rector was waiting for me at Pain Quotidien, calling my cell phone, wondering where I was. I had written down the next day at 6:00 pm as the time of my first meeting with Fr. Blume, as I was mortified to learn the next morning when I got the message. I could blame it on being sick and high on Nyquil and Grey Goose the night I entered that date, but in any event it was not a very dignified start to our acquaintance and I was grateful that he made time to see me the next night before he had to hie back up to Boston. It was wonderful to meet him and find that he is absolutely just what we need right now: someone who has a lot of energy and good ideas about our future as well as a wonderful personality. Blume time is indeed here!
Outdoor statue of San Gennaro
posted by Piscina at 9:28 PM
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