for I have sinned...I think?
Ok, so I have a minor confession to make here.
I just mailed an "anonymous" letter to my boss (a priest) which included the following items:
1. A photocopied page of the GIRM from the upcoming 3rd edition of the Roman Missal in which the following words were highlighted:
"the Most Blessed Sacrament should be reserved in a tabernacle in a part of the church that is truly noble, prominent, conspicuous, worthily decorated, and suitable for prayer. The tabernacle should usually be the only one, be irremovable, be made of solid and inviolable material that is not transparent..."
2. A printout of a picture I took of the front of the church several months ago, in which I photoshopped in a picture of a Tabernacle. I even played up to Father's "designer" side by making sure the wood of the stand it was on matched that of the ambo and the presider's chair. I mean, come on, I'm not completely classless!
In retrospect, I probably should have just saved the $0.44 and stuck it in his mailbox in the office workroom. But, I got afraid it would be "too forward," so, like a 3rd grader writing a love note, I addressed the envelope with handwriting resembling that of my immigrant grandparents, and mailed it from an anonymous USPS dropbox.
Anyway, I feel silly for doing this, but I was just trying to push things along. Father HAS brought up this idea before, but it has never been seriously pursued due to "location issues." Mostly because the organ case that was built [why? *sigh*] right behind the altar against the back wall presents a problem. To provide a bit of background...the structure of the church was "re-modeled" 20 years ago by a "well-meaning" hippie-type pastor. The relatively "new" priest holds more traditional views of things, but is trying to be "wise" about transition...not wanting to go in with guns-a-blazing and drive out the droves of "educated" folk at the parish. In fact, at our most recent staff meeting last we talked extensively about the building of a 24-hour perpetual adoration chapel! An anonymous donor has even set aside $1million for this very project! (crazy, right?) But again, the "obstacle" is..."where will it go?" Grr!
Anna,
ReplyDeleteYou are incredibly awesome. It's a great idea to mail it anonymously, since then Father could not be accused of favoritism by implementing your ideas.
You've got a donor for $1 million? Gulp. Praise God.
I find the "where will it go" comment amusing. It reminds me of when we were trying to start up Adoration at the local parish. One of the church council members stated, "It's so hard to get people to embrace something like this, just like with Kroger Bucks." Yes, adoring Our Lord has been compared to a grocery store fundraising program.
My prayers are with you always.
Wow Anna. That's fantastic. Go you.
ReplyDeletePerhaps I too shall send an anonymous letter. Perhaps then I can say what needs said without attaching my name to it. Hmm.
Haha! I love you both!
ReplyDelete