St. John's EF Latin Mass Community Is Moving!
  • JulieCollJulieColl
    Posts: 2,465
    Wonderful news here in the Diocese of Brooklyn/Queens! Bishop James Massa has announced that our Latin Mass community located at St. John's Cemetery Chapel for about 14 years, is moving to St. Josaphat's Church in Flushing, NY, near the border of Nassau County. The cemetery is running out of space, and the chapel which is in advanced state of disrepair will be torn down and replaced by a mausoleum.

    Fr. Stephen Saffron, who is one of our celebrants, will be our pastor, and he will have a bi-ritual parish. Our Missa Cantata will be celebrated at 9:30 am on Sundays, and we will have the opportunity to celebrate the usus antiquior on Saints' Days and feast days. Holy Week will be celebrated in the old rite, as well as Christmas Midnight Mass. This will be the first parish of its kind in Queens and Long Island.

    We are so grateful to Bishops DiMarzio and Massa and to Fr. Saffron for making this possible! Our final Mass on the last Sunday of September at the Cemetery Chapel will be an EF Solemn Pontifical Mass with Bishop Massa celebrating and with four seminarians from our community in attendance.

    On Oct 7, the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, we will have a Solemn Pontifical High Mass at St. Josaphat's Church.

    Deo gratias!


    Thanked by 10HeitorCaballero noel jones, aago CHGiffen StimsonInRehab tomjaw rich_enough Casavant Organist toddevoss Salieri chonak
  • Liam
    Posts: 4,945
    http://www.nycago.org/Organs/Qns/html/StJosaphat.html
    Thanked by 1JulieColl
  • Chris Garton-Zavesky
    Posts: 6,902
    4 Seminarians from one parish?

    Impressive.

    Congratulations on the other stuff, too, but the seminarians are the future of the Latin Mass.
    Thanked by 2Carol JulieColl
  • JulieCollJulieColl
    Posts: 2,465
    Thank you, Liam for the info on the organ! It's a huge upgrade from my Yamaha keyboard. : )

    Chris, our young seminarians are the greatest blessing of all. We had one seminarian enter last fall, and three entering this fall. One is from the Diocese of Rockville Centre. We have been blessed with wonderful young priests from the Diocese of Brooklyn who celebrate Mass for us on a rotating basis and, of course, Bishop Massa has been like a father to us, so their example has no doubt been a great inspiration.
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • Chris Garton-Zavesky
    Posts: 6,902
    Serious part of comment:

    I'm very happy for you, that you have these seminarians. Could you identify what has nurtured these vocations within your parish? A former pastor (eons ago) said in his last sermon preached before relocation that the incoming director of vocations should take his advice, and "study success". So.... do tell: what is it?


    On the lighter side:

    Is it just possible that the decline of vocations elsewhere in the Church is also the design of those who push for women's ordination and all the rest of the laundry list?

    Thanked by 1JulieColl
  • StimsonInRehabStimsonInRehab
    Posts: 1,916
    Jules, I just need to suck it up and make reservations for a trip out there. I've been dying to meet you, Jenny Donelson (in her native habitat), and John Hetland.
    Thanked by 1JulieColl
  • toddevoss
    Posts: 162
    Glad you have a new home. Maybe I'll make a pilgrimage this fall even though I'm not a TLM devotee.
    Thanked by 1JulieColl
  • JulieCollJulieColl
    Posts: 2,465
    Thanks for all the kind comments. Stimson and Tod, it would be awesome to see you if you come to visit.

    Chris, I don't know exactly what it is that has inspired our vocations. Our community isn't large---around 100 regular attendees. The attendance goes up and down, but there's just something special about our little chapel community that brings people back, and the children love coming. It's something to see them running through the old cemetery grounds after Mass, laughing and playing. We're also blessed to have wonderful young priests who are very devout and enthusiastic. It's no doubt been a blessing to have these years tucked away in relative obscurity to grow slowly and have a chance to form a joyful, stable atmosphere with the guidance of good priests and lay people.



  • a_f_hawkins
    Posts: 3,372
    It's no doubt been a blessing to have these years tucked away in relative obscurity
    I agree. You will now have to face a larger community, some of whom will be hostile. I imagine the existing 10:00 am Mass at St Josaphat will be displaced, which will lead to distress among members of its present congregation.
    Prayers for you and your pastor, and for them.
    Thanked by 1JulieColl
  • tomjaw
    Posts: 2,704
    I agree. You will now have to face a larger community, some of whom will be hostile. I imagine the existing 10:00 am Mass at St Josaphat will be displaced, which will lead to distress among members of its present congregation.


    Those that are hostile in our experience will be a handful of middle and old age women, with a smaller number of beta males that follow orders from the wife and or mother-in-law. Also those that are distressed will have not produced a single vocation in the last 40 years.

    Quite a few of our detractors, that originally found our presence to be distressing now come to the TLM!
    Thanked by 1JulieColl
  • JulieCollJulieColl
    Posts: 2,465
    We're going to have a meet-and-greet soon with the people of St. Josaphat's, I believe. Someone also suggested to me that it might be helpful to provide EF Latin/Polish handouts since it is largely a Polish parish, so that seems like a really positive thing to do, along with our current handout. If anyone has information on that, I'd be so grateful. Fr. Saffron has some wonderful ideas to promote community-building, and your prayers are appreciated for a peaceful transition. Thank you so much!
  • a_f_hawkins
    Posts: 3,372
    There are certainly Polish TLM resources available this for example.
    Thanked by 2tomjaw JulieColl
  • chonakchonak
    Posts: 9,160
    Congratulations!
    Thanked by 1JulieColl
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,368
    4 seminarians from one parish?
    At Walsingham we have in the last several months ordained six priests from around the Ordinariate, will be ordaining three more just from Walsingham in several weeks, and currently have five seminarians from Walsingham itself studying at St Mary's Seminary.

    Congratulations to St John's and to all parishes from which come these dedicated postulants!
    Thanked by 1JulieColl
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