At prayer vigil, Harvard chaplain reminds those gathered of “the call of veritas”

Some details of last night’s prayer vigil from The Harvard Crimson: 

Seats in St. Paul, which sits at the intersection of Bow and Arrow streets, were quickly filled as the crowd reached the church and the prayer service began. Among those in attendance were University President Drew G. Faust, Reverend Jonathan L. Walton, Pusey Minister in Memorial Church and Plummer Professor of Christian Morals, as well as clergy and laymen from around the Boston area.

Michael E. Drea, the pastor and senior chaplain at St. Paul, delivered a sermon emphasizing the importance of Catholic beliefs and responded directly to the planned black mass, which he described “as an act of hatred and ridicule toward the Catholic church and the faithful.”

Drea concluded his remarks by telling the crowd, “as we depart from this church into the light of Harvard Square…may we be reminded of our call to bring the presence of the living God into the world…. That’s the call of veritas.”

Those who attended the service spoke highly of its ability to bring together people of different beliefs and from across the area.

“I was just amazed at how many people even within and outside the Harvard community came together to just like acknowledge and celebrate the beauty of what Catholics hold very dear,” Chisom M. Okpala ’15 said.

Fr. Felipe Gonzalez from Boston’s Cathedral of the Holy Cross said he was “amazed” by the number of people who attended the service. Rebecca E. Tweedie ’14 said that she had “never seen [the church] so full.”

“It was the response we were hoping for,” Gonzalez added. “This is the sense of the community that we all are waiting for.”

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