Bishop Sample "Crossing" the UP

To mark the beginning of the Year of Faith Bishop Sample of the diocese of Marquette will travel from North to South and from West to East this weekend.

Saturday morning he will celebrate Mass at Copper Harbor, Saturday evening at Menominee, Sunday Morning in Ironwood and Sunday evening at Drummond Island. He will travel over 1140 miles

as I place the diocese under the sign of the Cross, the symbol of our faith, in preparation for the New Evangelization. FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER (@BishopSample) as I make this historic pilgrimage. And pray the deer and moose stay away from my car!

Bishop Sample's facebook page can be found at http://www.facebook.com/bishopalexandersample.

More about Bishop Sample on the Year of Faith to follow, when I get some opportunities for blogging.

"A Consequential Election" - Bishop Alexander Sample

Bishop Sample of Marquette, Michigan, is contributing a 4-part series of articles in the diocesan newspaper The UP Catholic to guide his diocesan faithful in the November General Election.

His first article entitled "A Consequential Election" deals in general with the Church's social teachings describing her rich and well-developed social doctrine as "one of the 'best kept secrets of the Church'".

In his second article Bishop Sample writes about the Church's teachings on life. "From the very moment of conception, a unique and irreplaceable member of the human family comes into existence."

The UP Catholic, published twice monthly, is available free on line, and you can subscribe to receive a free email notification when a new edition is published by clicking on the enotify button at the top of the page.

Bishop Mark Schmitt Funeral Arrangements

The following details were communicated to the diocese by Bishop Sample today:

It is with extreme sadness that I inform you of the death of the Most Reverend Mark Francis Schmitt, Tenth Bishop of Marquette. Bishop Mark Schmitt died December 14, 2011, in DePere, Wisconsin. He was 88 years of age. Requiescat in pace!

The Most Reverend Allen H. Vigneron, Archbishop of Detroit and Metropolitan of the Province of Detroit, will celebrate the Funeral Mass on Tuesday, December 20, 2011, at 11:00 AM ET, in St. Peter Cathedral, Marquette, Michigan. Bishop Alexander K. Sample, and Bishop James H. Garland, will concelebrate along with other attending bishops and priests. Deacons in attendance are invited to dress in cassock and surplice and participate in the procession.

The schedule is as follows:
Monday, December 19, 2011:

• The body of Bishop Mark Schmitt will be received in St. Peter Cathedral at 10:00 AM ET by Bishop Alexander Sample, Bishop James Garland and clergy
• The body of Bishop Schmitt will lie in state in the Cathedral from 10:30 AM until 9:00 PM ET
• A rosary will be prayed at 3:00 PM ET
• The Vigil Prayer Service will be celebrated at 7:00 PM ET

Tuesday, December 20, 2011:

• Bishops, Priests and Deacons are invited to pray the Office for the Dead in the Cathedral at 9:30 AM ET prior to the Funeral Mass
• Following the Office for the Dead, Bishops are invited to vest for Mass in the Bishops’ Meeting Room in the Cathedral gathering area
• Priests and Deacons will vest for Mass in the Media Room on the lower level of the cathedral. Priests will vest in diocesan chasubles, but please bring your white diocesan stole in the event that we run short on the number of chasubles
• Knights of Columbus and the Knights and Ladies of the Holy Sepulchre will dress in the Pope John Paul II Meeting Room on the lower level of the Cathedral
• The Rite of Committal will be celebrated in the Cathedral Crypt immediately following Mass

Bishop Mark Schmitt was born on February 14, 1923, in Algoma, Wisconsin. He was the fifth of eight children born to Charles Jerome Schmitt and Anna (Netzer) Schmitt. He is survived by his sister, Marge Schmitt and numerous nieces and nephews.

Bishop Schmitt was ordained to the priesthood on May 22, 1948, in St. Francis Xavier Cathedral in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Following his ordination Bishop Schmitt served as pastor in several parishes before being consecrated as Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay on June 24, 1970. On May 8, 1978, Bishop Mark Schmitt was installed as the Tenth Bishop of the Diocese of Marquette in St. Peter Cathedral, Marquette, Michigan, where he faithfully served the people for 14 years. He retired on November 11, 1992.

Bishop Schmitt was beloved by his brother priests and deacons, his diocesan staff and the people of the diocese. He was a dedicated and loving priest, friend and bishop.

Please remember him in your prayers and at your Masses.
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Most Reverend Alexander K. Sample
Bishop of Marquette

Bishop Mark Schmitt RIP

Bishop Schmitt, bishop of Marquette from 1978 - 1992, died today. May he rest in peace.

Keys of the Kingdom on Fox UP Premieres Sunday Dec. 11th 11:30am

KinGdomLOWERHarbor from Gchild Productionz on Vimeo.

The above is a trailer. Kevin Branson is founder of "Claves Regni Ministries" and Father Ryan Ford is Associate Pastor at St Peter Cathedral, Marquette.

Church renovations at Crystal Falls, MI

Father Jeffrey Kurtz, pastor of Guardian Angels Church, Crystal Falls, MI in the diocese of Marquette has sent me these photos of the renovations currently underway at his parish church and has said he is happy for them to be published. A sign of the times...

 More pictures will be available on completion of the work. Father Kurtz has received

a bit of exciting news today. The parish is to receive a substantial bequest and the man's family has asked that part of the money be used to construct the "shrines" to the Sacred Heart and Blessed Virgin. Plan to go with the same company for the marbles and will consult with Affiliated Artists for the design of the decorative painting in those areas. We are truly blessed.

Father, you are! And may God bless you in your work of restoring beauty to your church and to the liturgy.

Bishop Sample shares his Vision and Program for the New Evangelisation

At the final session of the Convocation of Priests serving in the Diocese of Marquette, Bishop Alexander Sample spoke about his vision or program for the New Evangelisation. He summed it up by saying: It's the Gospel of Jesus Christ!

This is very much in line with Pope John Paul II's view: that there is no need for any new program. However, Bishop Sample highlighted two central themes that are, as it were, coming over the horizon:

• the renewal of the Sacred Liturgy
• the work of the New Evangelisation.

The Sacred Liturgy
Bishop Sample suggested that the new English translation of the Mass was an opportune time for the Church, for us, to set about the work of renewal and reform of the Sacred Liturgy, and that this is central to the work of the New Evangelisation.

The bishop placed himself clearly in the camp of Pope Benedict who spoke of the need for a reform of the reform long before becoming Pope. Some might say that the bishop just wants to take us back to the way things were before? The fact that he celebrates the Extraordinary Form of the Mass at the Cathedral every month has apparently created some waves. And the positioning of the Crucifix on the altar facing the celebrant has also provoked some comment. But there could be nothing further from the truth. Pope Benedict allowed a greater flourishing of the Extraordinary Form so that it would stand side by side with the Novus Ordo, that both forms might enrich one another.

It is a good time to take a step back and to examine: what has been good, what has been lost, what can we recover. "I'm following, I'm listening to Benedict XVI. I trust that the Holy Spirit guides our shepherd" Bishop Sample said.

Priests pray silently before Mass.

A forthcoming Pastoral Letter
Bishop Sample referred to a letter concerning the liturgy that he - with the help of others -  is working on. In this letter he will examine:

• The Essence of the Liturgy
  What is the Holy Mass? We do not create Liturgy. It is what it is. It has an objective and intrinsic meaning as both
  - Sacrifice
  - Sacred Banquet (as per St Thomas Aquinas - Sacrum Convivium).
• The Cosmic nature of the Liturgy
  Pope Benedict discussed this in his book "The Spirit of the Liturgy". The Mass has an eschatological orientation. In the Mass we celebrate and commemorate what already is but await what is to come.

The offertory

A clear understanding of these points informs the celebration of the Mass. In Pope Benedict's book "The Light of the World" the Holy Father reminds his readers that the liturgy is not the expression of the community. It is not to be tinkered with.

• Ars celebrandi
  The Mass is the Sacramentum Caritatis.There is an art - ars - to its celebration. It should be beautiful, reflecting the beauty and greatness of God. We should appreciate the purpose and meaning of the words, gestures, vessels, the Cross on the altar, the orientation of prayer. The East is connected very much with the Cross. Our gaze - especially in the Eucharistic Prayer - must be fixed on Christ glorified on the Cross as we await his coming.

• Sacred Music
  The renewal of the Sacred Liturgy is intimately connected with the renewal of Sacred Music and Bishop Sample will address this in his letter.

Also to be addressed are some practical points:

• some do's and don'ts;
• some things that need correcting;
• not to invent options.

The bishop advised us all to re-read the GIRM (General Instruction of the Roman Missal) and the rubrics. He quoted Fr Z's blog, What Does the Prayer Really Say, and Fr Z's motto: "do the red, say the black." Chances are that if we re-read the GIRM and the rubrics, we will probably notice something that we either had not known, had forgotten or had overlooked.

We must celebrate the liturgy well. Then it will be the Church's liturgy, celebrated with beauty, prayerfully, reverently. "If we don't have the Liturgy, what do we have?"

Bishop sample offering the chalice

The New Evangelisation
Bishop Sample referred the priests to his Holy Thursday Letter.

The letter of Pope John Paul II Novo Millennio Ineunte reminded us that the program for the New Evangelisation is contained in the Gospels. But there were seven pastoral priorities:

1. the call to holiness
2. prayer in the Church
3. Sunday Mass
4. Penance/Confession
5. the primacy of grace (not just our own efforts)
6. listening to the Word
7. proclaiming the Word.

As regards the call to holiness: Are we serious about prayer in our own lives? We must live what we proclaim. When he was elected bishop one of the priests of the diocese presented Bishop Sample with a poster of the movie "The Lord of the Rings" with the quotation of Frodo saying: "I wish the ring had never come to me." The bishop recalled Gandalf's reply: "So do all who live to see such times. That is not ours to decide, but ours is to do the best with the time that has been given to us."

Concerning prayer, the bishop commended the practice of the Holy Hour. "I beg you," he said, "to be men of prayer."

Confession:

1. go!
2. preach about it.
3. be available.

On the primacy of grace, it is less about numbers and more about fidelity. The Church is His Church. Novo Millennion Ineunte refers to the discouragement that can result with the instigation of yet another new program following on the heels of others that have either fizzled out or that have not produced results. It's not us. In other words, it's not a question of dreaming up new programs. The Lord does not want us to be successful but faithful.

Pope Benedict has established a Pontifical Council for the New Evangelisation and there is an upcoming Synod of Bishops on the New Evangelisation. Whilst we await guidance from these ecclesiastical organs, for us it is time to stop talking about the New Evangelisation and rather make it happen.

Whilts it is not about a new program we do need a strategic plan, and we need to develop it together. So perhaps there might be established a task force to focus on a diocesan plan, a strategy for the New Evangelisation, focussed on the 7 headings of NMI.

Our personal holiness really matters as priests. It makes all the difference in the Body of Christ. In the year of priests we were reminded that the effectiveness of the priestly ministry relies on the holiness of priests. If the priest is holy, the people are good. If the priest is good, the people are ok. If the priest is mediocre, God help the people!

We must be serious in our life of prayer, in our sacrifice, etc. The bishop confided to the priests that he prays and offers sacrifice for each priest in the diocese. His Friday Mass, fast, prayer, abstinence are all offered for the priests of the diocese. He asks Our Lady to pour out the Precious Blood and Water that flowed from her Son's side upon all the priests and that she would hold us close to her Immaculate Heart.

Bishop Sample also encouraged us to reach out to one another, to foster priestly friendships, to reach out to one whom we notice to be isolated, reclusive, etc. He encouraged support groups, and exhorted us to do all we can to be present at ordinations, the Chrism Mass, the funerals of our brother priests and of their parents.

Bishop Sample preaching on the feast of St Bruno

In his homily at the Mass that followed the final session, Bishop Sample, commenting on the gospel appointed for the Mass of St Bruno, encouraged us to serve the Lord with undivided hearts, to be men of hope. We are blest because we hope in the Lord, that we should teach our people to place all their hope in him.

On the previous day, Bishop Sample invited all the priests to make the following Act of Consecration after the homily:

ACT OF CONSECRATION TO MARY

Mary, Mother of Jesus and Queen of Peace
since Jesus from the Cross
gave you to me,
I take you as my own.

And since Jesus gave me to you,
take me as your own.
Make me docile like Jesus on the Cross,
obedient to the Father,
trusting in humility and love.

Mary, my Mother,
in imitation of the Father,
who gave His Son to you,
I too give myself to you;
to you I entrust all that I am,
all that I have
and all that I do.

Help me to surrender ever more fully to the Spirit.
Lead me deeper into the Mystery of the Cross and Resurrection
and the fullness of the Church.

As you formed the heart of Jesus by the Spirit,
form my heart to be the throne of Jesus
in His glorious coming.
Amen!

As a final thought, perhaps it is worth recalling Bishop Sample's coat of arms:

You can read about it at the Bishop's Page of the Marquette diocesan website. Concerning his motto, we read the following:

For his motto, Bishop Sample uses the Latin phrase, “VULTUM CHRISTI CONTEMPLARI” (“to contemplate the face of Christ”). This theme is taken from the writings of Pope John Paul II (Novo Millennio Ineunte and Ecclesia de Eucharistia), in which the Holy Father reminded us that it is the task of the Church to make the face of Christ shine before the generations of the new millennium. The Holy Father further reflected: “Our witness, however, would be hopelessly inadequate if we ourselves had not first contemplated his face.” 

So the New Evangelisation has been at the heart of Bishop Sample's vision: that all may be led to the contemplation of the face of Christ.

Yellow Dog River hike

It seems Spring has finally arrived. I left the house at 6am full of faith that the thunder and lightning would abate by the time I met with Chauncey Moran, Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors of the Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve, for our planned exploration of the Preserve, the Yellow Dog River being its highlight. Chauncey is also a member of the St Mary's Big Bay Catholic Community.

It was still stormy when we met but my faith was rewarded with a glorious day.

Photo slide show follows:

Reform of the reform?

The above pictures show the arrangement of the altar at St Peter's Cathedral, Marquette as it was for the Chrism Mass and as it has been since the Easter Vigil. (Seven candles lit only when the diocesan Bishop celebrates.)

The plan was...

... to spend a year on sabbatical here. Well, Bishop Sample has asked if I can stay longer and Archbishop Smith (the bishop of my diocese, Southwark) has agreed to an extension of my stay till Summer 2013.

Here in Marquette all the summer moves were made public today. As from July 1st I will be parochial administrator of the parish of St Anthony's, Gwinn.

A parochial administrator is, to all intents and purposes, the parish priest. In canon law, however, a parish priest (pastor) enjoys a degree of stability that a parochial administrator does not. Since I am not a priest of the diocese and the plan is to be here for only a short time, my appointment as parochial administrator rather than pastor makes sense.

Please pray for the people of Gwinn as they prepare for this change. They have had an excellent and dedicated pastor, Father Ronald Timock, for many years and there will be much thanksgiving to God for all that Fr Timock has done for the parish.

A number of youth from the parish attended the March for Life in Washington DC January last.

Marquette 40 Days for Life - March 26th with Dominican Sisters of Mary Mother of the Eucharist

We had an excellent turnout this morning for the 9am - 10am hour.

In the afternoon, there was an event for Middle Schoolers at the Care Clinic involving the Dominican Sisters of Mary Mother of the Eucharist from Ann Arbor, Michigan, the community with a vocations crisis of a wonderful nature! For more great pictures see Father Ben Hasse's Facebook page.

After some explanations by Dana Richards of the mission of Care Clinic and some brief comments about 40 Days for Life, the group prayed a decade of the Rosary outside.

40 days for life on St Joseph's feast

A great response this morning, with three of the above having travelled from Escanaba!

[UPDATE]: Jennifer Heikkila (she's in the picture above) writes up her experiences: What it's like to take a stand.

There was also a small group this afternoon.

Vigils will resume Monday.

Update to previous post: some of the above people thought they heard something metallic thrown from the passing car. Today they found a metal coat hanger shaped into an aborting device. What was the message: "we kill babies"? Or  "do you want to go back to back-street abortions"? I don't know. Either way it was pretty distasteful.

St Joseph can teach us men how to be more in awe of the mystery that each woman holds within her body.

Ash Wednesday Planned Parenthood Prayer Vigil

Here are a couple of photos of the group from St Peter Cathedral Parish at the end of our hour's vigil outside Marquette's Planned Parenthood facility. We were there from 3:45 - 4:45pm. There was no business going on but our main reason for being there was prayer. A good number of car drivers honked in support.

Times of vigils tomorrow and thereafter are being circulated to those who have indicated a willingness to participate. Let me know if you'd like to be included.

Music for the New Translation

The preparation for the new translation is underway.

In an effort to foster diocesan unity, Bishop Sample of Marquette, MI, has indicated that he would like to begin with one common Mass setting that can be used by the parishes/missions as well as for diocesan events. The musical setting chosen is Mass of Resurrection by Randall DeBruyan, published by OCP.

Listen to this Mass here. Or here are some of the various parts separately:

Glory to God; Holy, holy; We proclaim your death; Save us Savior; Amen.

These settings are elegant, simple, beautiful. Although rendered in these samples by a choir and a trumpet accompanying the organ, I think they are easily within the capability of a parish of modest means. The melodies will be easy to pick up by a congregation.

And if every parish in the diocese will have at least this setting as a standard, it will make for great unity at diocesan Masses.

Marquette Diocese Youth Encounter

Bishop Sample reflects on his recent visit to the Holy Land

Download the podcast here.

Conferral of Papal Honours at St Peter Cathedral, Marquette

 Bishop Sample pictured with our honoured members after the Solemn Vespers.

"If one part (of the body) is honoured, all the parts share its joy."

This was the sentiment taken from St Paul's first letter to the Corinthians and shared by Bishop Alexander Sample with all who were gathered at the Cathedral yesterday for Solemn Vespers during which took place the conferral of the papal honours of Knight Commander and Dame of the Order of St Gregory the Great upon Robert and Barbara Stebler and Prelate of Honour upon Monsignor Michael Steber, pastor of the Cathedral parish.

 With Jocelyn Basse, director of the Cathedral children's choir.

With Cassie Cram and Matthew Anderson.

With Father Tim Ekaitis, former Associate Pastor of the Cathedral and currently Pastor at Norway, and Dustin Katona, youth ministry co-ordinator.

 Msgr Steber with his brother Tom and sister-in-law Linda.

With the first lady of the diocese, Mrs Joyce Sample, the Bishop's mother.

That reading from St Paul also refers to the suffering of one part of the body causing all the parts to suffer with it. Msgr Steber's mother's funeral took place just last Monday. All joined in offering their prayers for the repose of her soul.

Christmas at St Peter Cathedral, Marquette

Like a young man marrying a virgin, so will the one who built you wed you

The Christmas Crib in the gather area of St Peter Cathedral, Marquette

GK Chesterton was a prolific English writer and a famous convert from Anglicanism to the Catholic faith whose life spanned the 19th and 20th centuries. In his book “The Everlasting Man” he presents a whole view of world history as informed by the Incarnation. Beginning with the origin of man and the various religious attitudes throughout history, Chesterton shows how the fulfillment of all of man’s desires takes place in the person of Jesus Christ and in Christ’s Church.

Christianity, he says, is no myth, nor can it be compared with any other religion for, unlike other religions, it unites the world of the spiritual with the material, without confusing the two. It unites Creator and creature. Creator and creature are no longer separated but made one.

He speaks of the first men who, it is supposed, lived in caves. These cavemen painted images of creatures and scenes of nature on the walls of their caves. And at the dawn of the re-creation of humanity, the New Man dwelt in a cave at Bethlehem. Much is made of the stable and the manger, but tradition tells us that the nativity of Christ took place in one of the many hillside caves near Bethlehem where shepherds used to shelter. You can visit these caves today. The one where Jesus was born has a huge Church built over it and you must descend below ground, to the crypt, to visit it.

Chesterton describes how a homeless couple crept underground among animals to find a place to shelter. It was in the cellar, on the very floor of the world, where the Savior Christ was to be born. Christ was born not only on the level of the world but below the level of the world, on a dark and sunken stage rather than on a stage visible to the world.

So God becomes a caveman. But the pictures he drew of mankind made in God’s image and likeness came to life again, unlike the images painted by the original cavemen that remained lifeless on the walls on which they were painted.

In this cave we contemplate a baby, whose unknown strength sustains the stars. We contemplate the paradox of the omnipotence of God united with the impotence of a baby. We marvel at the unity of the timeless and eternal divinity with the infancy that is destined to grow and mature and to die in time. Bethlehem, says Chesterton, is a place where extremes meet.

But in that place of extremes, in a cave below the level of the earth, a few shepherds discover what they had been searching for, the fulfillment of all their hopes and desires. In the Child, the shepherds find their Shepherd.

And now the cribs or crèches or nativity scenes, or the nativity plays performed in our schools and in fields and theatres around the world present the shepherds not in the costumes of those shepherds of Bethlehem 2,000 years ago but in the diverse costumes of all the different nations of the world, with the actors speaking in their own diverse accents, manifesting the truly Catholic and universal scope of this momentous birth.

According to Dom Hugh Gilbert, Abbot of Pluscarden Abbey in Scotland, the love of God in the incarnation is “over-whelming, mind-blowing, heart-ravishing”. The prophet Isaiah says: “Like a young man marrying a virgin, so will the one who built you wed you. As the bridegroom rejoices in his bride, so will your God rejoice in you.” (Is 62:5) So much does God want to be one with you and with all mankind. Abbot Gilbert continues:

This is love than which no greater can be conceived. There is a being, God, who is completely, infinitely, eternally, unassailably happy, blessed, joyful, in his own Trinitarian life. This Being decides, out of love, to create other, finite beings outside itself, centrally man, in order to share its happiness with them. And when it does this, it does it to the maximum conceivable, even though or even because, the human creature has refused the love. One of the Trinity in order to connect to each and every man takes to himself an individual human nature in a marriage than which there is no closer nor more intimate. Humanity is part of the Trinity: indissolubly and forever. By taking a human nature to himself, the Son of God has united himself in a certain way to every human being. Christ is part of every human’s humanity, more me than I am. Really, a clatter of genuflections at the Et incarnatus est hardly rises to the occasion! I only mention what most immediately astonishes me: this act of Incarnation, God marrying humanity. But then there’s the child, the teacher, the suffering One, the risen One, the One who gives the Spirit, the One who breaks the bread of his Body. They all speak the same love, and they are all, in the unity of his Person, one and the same, and present already at Christmas.

The only possible knock-on effect – though heaven knows how many Christmases it takes to come to it – is (an) enlarged heart. The heart of the Trinity is large enough for all humanity… What is it, after all, that the Lord wants (of us)? ... a wider heart, a heart widened by the Christmas love. (Unfolding the Mystery, pp. 42-43)

Our celebration of Christmas must have consequences. We must know that this Child will grow up to challenge us. We are not disciples of His unless we take up our cross and follow Him. We do not love Him if we do not keep His commandments, if we do not honor him every day of our lives and keep the Sunday holy by attending Mass. Salvation will not be possible for us unless we “give up everything that does not lead to God, and all our worldly ambitions,” seeking to be “self-restrained and live good and religious lives here in this present world, while we wait in hope for the … appearing of” the glory of our Savior Jesus Christ at the end of time. (Titus 2:11-14)

By becoming a man, the Son of God has made us children, sons of God. Contemplating the Child in the cave should move us to truly desire to be children before God, obeying His will as Jesus Christ obeyed the will of the Father in coming to earth.

However, as Chesterton writes: we cannot visit the Child without visiting the Mother. We cannot have access to the Child without going through the Mother. The holiness of the two mingle and cannot be separated. May the Virgin Mother and Holy Joseph assist us in being similarly holy and one with Christ.

I wish you all a very Happy and a very Holy Christmas.


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Examples of Chant to be used in the new English Missal

The diocese of Marquette has launched its website on preparing the people of the diocese for the new translation of the Roman Missal: One Banquet, One Sacrifice, One Voice. The new translation is scheduled to be in use from First Sunday of Advent 2011.

The website is still being updated but gives a clear programme of preparation and catechesis.

Of particular interest to me was the link to The Chant Cafe with its tutorial videos on the chants to be used in the English Mass. They are clearly modelled on Gregorian Chant.

Here's the Gloria, for example:



Do go and listen to the others. May we hope for an end to 'big music' in the Mass and a return to the sober intoxication that characteris the authentic Roman Liturgy?

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