World Meeting of Families 2

We departed some earlier today in order to arrive at Mass in time for co celebration today. I panicked upon arrival to see the priests processing in two by two. Fortunately, there is plenty of time to vest when their are 500 priests in procession. Highlights from today include hearing the confession of a homeless man on the street and listening to Cardinal Tagle speak. It would not surprise me to see him as Pope in the future. 

The big events of the day, however, took place after the conferences. The relics of St Maria Goretti are here, and we took time to pray with her. From there we hopped to the Cathedral to pray at the relics of St. John Paul II, Giana Molla, and the parents of St. Therese.  At the same place was a glorious grotto to Our Lady, Undoer of Knots. 

The insane traffic and closed streets required a short walk to get on the bus, but now, night prayer having been prayed, we are going to sleep. 

World Meeting of Families 1

It had not occurred to me that Rapid City should send a pilgrimage to the World Meeting of Families until Fr. Adam Hofer suggested it to me. A phone call to the Bishop later, and I was a pilgrimage leader. It was for this reason that I found myself gently shivering outside the Cathedral rectory at 4:30 AM on Tuesday morning, wondering where chauffeur Jackie was.  By and by, she arrived and deposited us Rapid City Regional Airport a few minutes after 5:00. Fr. Dillon and I checked in and waited for our group. Said group was apparently more eager than we were, as they had already cleared security and were wondering where the priests were. 

The flights were crowded but uneventful. Soon enough we found ourselves in Newark, NJ. there we were to catch a bus to the convention center with Archbishop Chaput. We waited.  Then we waited some more. We received a call that the bus was near. We waited still longer.  When we found the bus, we were too late to make it to amass. We headed to our hotel, and with the tour guide's help, we arranged to celebrate Mass at the Cathedral in Trenton which is only five blocks or so from where we are staying. 

This morning we loaded the bus with pilgrims from Sioux Falls, and prayed Morning Prayer on the way to the convention center. Arriving in Philedelphia, it quickly became clear that we would be too late for the priests to co celebrate the Mass. We sat in chorus. The keynote speaker after Mass was Cardinal Sarah, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments. He emphasized the importance of harmony between Church Teaching and Pastoral practice. From there Fr. Dillon and I went to the exhibition Hall to buy me a good manly rosary and to Speak to Courage (outreach to homosexual men and women, who will be in our diocese to address the priests next month). By then it was lunch time. One cannot go to philly and not eat a Philly Cheesesteak. So we ate a Philly Cheesesteak. 

The afternoon presenter was Helen Alvare. She emphasized Man's call to relationship, and his fulfillment of this call in the family. The family trains us to love our neighbor. 

Fr. Dillon and I spent most of the afternoon chasing down tickets to co celebrate the Papal Mass on Sunday. As evening drew on we made our way to the Shrine of the Miraculous Medal, a beautiful shrine dedicated to Our Lady. We sang Marian Hymns on the bus ride to dinner, and now we have all trundled off to our rooms. An early day tomorrow made earlier by a two hour time change. 

Our Group

Cathedral In Trenton

Evening Prayer outside the Cathedral

Curried Goat for supper last night

Scenes from this morning

Cardinal Sarah

New Rosary

Shrine of the Miraculous Medal

Flowers for Our Lady

Disasters of the Culinary Kind

After my mother began working away from home, I assumed responsibility for most of the cooking for my family.  Goulash, spaghetti, burritos, and basically anything that could be mixed with cream of mushroom soup were the typical fare.  These, however, rapidly became boring to cook and to eat.  I desired something more exotic.  Thus, I attempted stir fry in the deep fryer.  It didn't work.  I tried chocolate pancakes, adding cocoa powder to the pancake batter.  The result was less than satisfactory.  

High school required little cooking, and from that time until my arrival in Martin, I have been fed by others.  It has come as a rather pleasant experience, as a result, to begin cooking for myself again.  I fear, however, that my my inclinations toward alimentary experimentation have gone away.  It was for this reason that I decided I would attempt authentic New Orleans red beans and rice.  I followed a recipe, and for hours slaved over this dish.  The aroma was enchanting.  Until I added chorizo.  A word to the wise: When a recipe calls for chorizo, they mean Spanish chorizo, not the red slime masquerading as Mexican chorizo found in South Dakota grocery stores.  To make a long story short, after forcing myself to eat it for three meals, I was forced to send the remainder to that great kitchen in the sky via the garbage disposal.  It was a disaster.

So, here's to hoping that the sauerkraut soup turns out better.