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{"id":2520,"date":"2015-08-09T21:27:17","date_gmt":"2015-08-10T03:27:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/janetheactuary\/?p=2520"},"modified":"2015-08-09T21:39:29","modified_gmt":"2015-08-10T03:39:29","slug":"the-prize-for-best-vacation-church-goes-to","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/janetheactuary\/2015\/08\/the-prize-for-best-vacation-church-goes-to.html","title":{"rendered":"The prize for “best vacation church” goes to . . ."},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

$\"StPatStAnt\"$ <\/a><\/p>\n

St. Patrick St. Anthony Catholic Church<\/a> in Grand Haven, Michigan.<\/p>\n

I sent my husband and kids off to the Musical Fountain<\/a>\u00a0because I wanted to think about, and write about, this church (well, and search yelp.com for a good spot for my husband\u2019s birthday dinner; we\u2019ll be trying out J.W.\u2019s<\/a>, so if anyone\u2019s by chance been there, let us know!).<\/p>\n

We went to the 10:00 liturgy, and grabbed what seemed to be one of the last available pews a few minutes before mass started (well, there was additional seating in a balcony). \u00a0And after the first hymn, I already heard something I\u2019ve never heard a priest say before: \u00a0a thank you to the congregation for singing, because when you sing, it encourages those around you to sing, and God is tone-deaf and doesn\u2019t care whether you can carry a tune or not; He just wants you to sing. \u00a0And, indeed, at all the hymns (which tended toward the traditional \u2014 How Great Thou Art, for instance \u2014 but with keyboard rather than organ), the congregation sang<\/em>! \u00a0In fact, I found myself wondering whether the church was unusually full due to vacationers, since Grand Haven is a Lake Michigan beach destination \u2014 but, if so, the singing is all the more impressive.<\/p>\n

So that\u2019s already major points to their credit.<\/p>\n

But then we get to the homily. \u00a0And the already very dynamic priest \u2014 well, the homily was unlike any homily I\u2019ve ever heard. \u00a0Today\u2019s gospel was from John<\/a>,<\/p>\n

\u201cI am the living bread that came down from heaven;
\nwhoever eats this bread will live forever;
\nand the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

and I have never heard a priest give a homily in which the topic mattered so much<\/strong> to him. \u00a0He had an assistant bring out the monstrance with the consecrated host inside, and he urgently wanted us to understand just how important the Eucharist is, what a great gift it is \u2014 it was extraordinary. \u00a0He talked about spending the week thinking about how best to share this message. \u00a0And when you consider that so many homilies are perfunctory and businesslike, or hesitant (deacons especially seem to be afraid of truly making any grand statements; what they say is more along the lines of \u201cI read something that I thought might be worthwhile sharing\u201d), and more than a little \u201cmeh,\u201d this was all the more inspiring.<\/p>\n

Now, Lutheran husband in tow, I wished he might have caveated his statements about receiving the Eucharist, perhaps added a comment about \u201ceven if, for whatever reason, you don\u2019t receive communion, Jesus is still present in a special way with us\u00a0during mass,\u201d also in light of Francis\u2019s recent comments about welcoming the divorced\/remarried even though they may be unable to receive communion. \u00a0But still \u2014 wow.<\/p>\n

They\u2019ve also got perpetual adoration. \u00a0And they\u2019ve got a festival coming up next weekend; my middle son wants to go to the Euchre Party on Friday night and I\u2019m tempted to see if they have any treasures at the rummage sale. \u00a0And they\u2019re in the middle of a big fundraising campaign for a new parish center with offices, meeting rooms, etc. \u00a0From all appearances, they\u2019re a healthy and vibrant parish.<\/p>\n

The church has faced challenges: \u00a0after all, they have the odd double name of St Patrick St Anthony because they were a merged church<\/a>, due, according to the local news, to the priest shortage. \u00a0 And \u00a0according to the Grand Haven Tribune<\/a>, the beloved pastor has only recently returned from a 6-month leave after an \u201cinappropriate relationship\u201d with a woman. \u00a0(That article also reports that back in 2012, he was obliged to discontinue his prior practice of giving the children hugs \u2014 which was something we had witnessed on a prior visit and certainly seemed to be an indication of genuine affection between the priest and the children \u2014 because of fears someone would make a connection between this and pedophilia scandals.) \u00a0 And one does worry \u2014 he\u2019s two years away from retirement (that is, it\u2019s my understanding that the Normal Retirement Age for priests is 70, not 65); there\u2019s definitely a risk that this growth could be upended by a priest who comes in with new plans.<\/p>\n

But this morning, I felt in a wholly different world from all the reports of the decline of the Catholic Church. \u00a0Instead, I was\u00a0transported to a place where the Catholic Church was alive and well.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"