08 July 2007

Trouble brewing

Back home in Quincy trouble may be brewing over a decision to add St.Boniface church to the register of historic landmarks over the objections of the Diocese. It is an interesting scenario.

17 comments:

  1. Wow, it sounds like a soap opera drama is developing in your hometown! Just when you think things are settling down, poof, another controversy arises. Please keep us updated.

    Have things settled down for you at all? I hope so. I guess the papal motu is making more work for some. I have not made up my mind as to how I feel about it. I vaguely remember the Latin mass as I was one of the first classes of students at my school to make First Communion at a mass in English. While I think many people of my parents generation may like Latin mass, my generation and those after me, with the exception of some raise in "pre Vatican II" households may not embrace it since we are so removed from it. I don't think (and this is my opinion only) that it isn't going to have an impact on mass attendance.

    Well, I have thrown in my two cents worth. What do you think?

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think I'm with the town on this one. No diocese is going to be able to avoid concerns like these. I just wish St. John's were in the same position.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ellen, my own hunch is that the motu proprio won'thave a large immediate effect, but I fully expect that it will in, say, twenty or thirty years.

    Among the younger generation there is a growing desire for the extraordinary form and I expect this will grow a bit. I also fully expect there to be some "cross fertilization" of the two forms of the Liturgy; this seems to be the Holy Father's expectation as well.

    Jeffrey: I, too, side with the city on this one. Happily, St. John's was placed on the list some years ago, probably with St. Rose back in 1999 (I can't remember when but I know there is a sign on the church).

    ReplyDelete
  4. I hope it helps. Any word about the side altars?

    ReplyDelete
  5. I didn't know a building could have such protection if it was less than a hundred years old...

    It is a good idea, however.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hmmm... interesting. Does the listing come with any funds?

    Some buildings ought to be frozen and listed. Too bad they didn't have that before the 1970's when many masterpieces of architecture and art were brutalized, including my own parish.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Rhapsody: We Quincyans are very fond of our city and of our architecture. A simple walk through most any Quincy street will reveal architectural buildings - both residential and business - of most every architectural form, even a Moorish style villa. We want to preserve the Gem City and do what we can to see to it.

    Andrew: I don't think such status comes with any funding; we have too many buildings on the list to make that possible.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oddly enough, back in the 70's, there was a small amount of funding for buildings on the National Register of Historic Places, but it was almost impossible to get a church listed then. Now, churches are easier to list, but there's no funding. That was jettisoned by the Reagan administration. I believe Quincy has a National Register Historic District.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Quincy does indeed have a national historic district. It's just one of our many claims to fame.

    ReplyDelete
  10. It's certainly a beautiful town.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous9:15 AM

    I think that part of the drive to get St. Boniface listed is just a backlash to all of the closings. Some people think that it is just deserts that the diocese gets it "stuck to 'em" over the historic designation. I may be opening a can of worms, but I think St. Boniface is a cold church. Frankly, designed by someone who probably didn't understand much about Catholic liturgy to begin with. But then, I regularly attend Mass in a church that was built in the late 1800's and is full of statues and paintings of saints and beautiful, warm stained glass windows. Irregardless, I believe that St. Boniface should be respected for its place as a center of faith and the heart of a lot of people who worshiped within its walls for so long.

    Sharon

    ReplyDelete
  12. I've never been a huge fan of the exterior of St. Boniface, but I do like the color of the marble interior. The liturgical furnishings don't quite fit, though; I different set is needed.

    I have aways enjoyed the crucifix surrounded by the sacramental symbols, but in a cynical way. I keep waiting for Jesus' arms to move around the sacramental clock.

    That being said, I always thought St. Boniface, as the oldest parish in the Diocese, should remain open. Perhaps the Perpetual Adoration chapel at St. Peter's could have been moved to St. Bonfiace?

    ReplyDelete
  13. It may be a bit unfair to say it's part of a backlash. Whether one likes the design, or not, St. Boniface is an important piece of architecture. The town, quite legitimately, sees it as being endangered and wants to take steps to preserve it. I just wish more towns showed so much concern.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Here in Quincy we all pronounce it "St. Bonafuss". There is an NBA player by that name and the sportscasters all call him "BONNY FACE".

    Our Quincy pronunciation ruins this poem of prayer:
    Boniface, Boniface,
    help me find
    a parking space.

    ReplyDelete
  15. "St. Bonafuss"? That's how it's usually pronounce in western Pennsylvania, too.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous6:39 PM

    Oh, Jeffrey, you are probably right. If the glass is 3/4 full it looks half empty to me! Isn't that right, Fr. Daren?

    Sharon

    ReplyDelete
  17. Oh, earlier comment. My brain's about to turn into a pumpkin, tonight.

    ReplyDelete