Prayer service lights the way to Sesquicentennial jubilee

Vivid banners rose up Eagle Street in Albany like the sun rising on a new day, as hundreds of Catholics from across the Diocese solemnly marched from Delaney Hall on Park Avenue to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.

They came with banners, candles and crosses to begin Sunday's opening ceremony marking the beginning of a year-long celebration of the Albany Diocese's 150th anniversary.

There was excitement on the steps of the Cathedral as a handful of greeters waited for the procession on Dec. 8, the feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. The burgundy, navy, yellow and white banners bearing the Sesquicentennial logo crisply contrasted against the greyness of a winter day in downtown Albany, as greeters spoke of the perfect weather, the medieval flavor of the procession, and the anticipation of what was to come.

"It's almost an out-of-body experience," said Alice McLoughlin from Christ Son of Justice in Troy. "It's a magnificent way to start the celebration."

Music and pageantry

The two-hour-plus ceremony, attended by more than 1,000 people, began as the procession made its way into the Cathedral up the three aisles to the sounds of a "Te Deum" (a hymn of thanksgiving sung on solemn occasions) first performed for the liberation of Paris in 1944 in that city's Notre Dame Cathedral.

The procession included Bishop Howard J. Hubbard; Bishop Matthew Clark of Rochester, a native of the Albany Diocese; Bishop Edwin B. Broderick, the eighth bishop of Albany; retired Archbishop Joseph Ryan of the Archdiocese for Military Services; priests, deacons, religious, laity from parishes and ecumenical representatives.

The majestic ceremony, patterned after the vespers service, consisted of six readings, a homily, prayers, and hymns performed by 200 musicians and singers. The readings told the history of the Albany Diocese, from the North American Martyrs and the official creation of the Diocese in 1847 to the centennial celebration 50 years ago.

Stories of past

The 1,200 people assembled in the Cathedral listened attentively to the stories of the first Catholics living in what is now the Albany Diocese. The accounts included the 17th-century Jesuit missionaries and martyrs, Saints Isaac Jogues, John Lalande and Rene Goupil, who traveled across the state and into Canada to bring the Good News to Native Americans; and the historic firsts made by Bishop John McCloskey, who besides being the first bishop of Albany was the first priest ordained for the Diocese of New York and the first American cardinal.

Listeners also learned of the persecution that Catholics in early America were forced to endure as all of the bigotries of Europe were carried to America. Catholics were taxed to support non-Catholic worship, could not hold public office, and were victims of other forms of persecution.

When Pope Pius IX founded the Diocese in 1847, it consisted of what are now the Ogdensburg and Syracuse dioceses; Dutchess, Ulster and Sullivan counties, which are now part of the Archdiocese of New York; and the 14 counties it encompasses today.

Bishop's words

In his homily, which ended with a standing ovation, Bishop Hubbard spoke of priests, religious and lay people of the Diocese who built the Church here through the establishment of schools, hospitals, orphanages and social service agencies.(View complete text of Bishop Hubbard's homily.).

He also spoke of native sons and daughters of the Diocese who went on to serve the Church in other parts of the nation and the world, including those present like Archbishop Ryan, who served as the first archbishop of Anchorage, Alaska, and of the Military Services; and Bishop Clark of Rochester.

Bishop Hubbard also addressed all that Catholics in the Diocese have endured and struggled with during the Twentieth Century.

"As a faith community, we have dealt for better or worse with the Abolitionist Movement, the Labor Movement, the Suffrage Movement, the Civil Rights Movement and the Peace Movement," Bishop Hubbard said. "We've wrestled with and continue to refine our position on the role of religion in society, the place of the Catholic school in a pluralistic democracy and the mission of the laity to be about the transformation of society."

Future of Diocese

After the review of the rich past of the Diocese, Bishop Hubbard reminded the worshipers that during the year-long Sesquicentennial celebration, it is just as important to look towards the future.

The mission that lies ahead for Catholics in the Diocese, according to Bishop Hubbard, can be found in the Gospel read during the ceremony: "To bring glad tidings to the poor,...to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord" (Luke 4:16-20).

"And this, my friends, is still our mission both now and for the future," Bishop Hubbard said, "the mission to show a preferential option for the poor by our service and advocacy; the mission to heal those who are spiritually blind through our programs of lifelong faith formation; the mission to free those who are oppressed by the materialism, consumerism, ageism, sexism, racism, homophobia, and narrow parochialism and regionalism of our day by refreshing and enlivening them with the living word of God and the liturgical and sacramental life of our Church; and the mission to proclaim liberty to those captivated by political correctness and the fickle and fleeting fads and fashions of the moment, by nourishing them with the time-proven and time-tested spiritual tradition of our ancestors in the faith."

Six goals

Specifically, he said, Catholics must address the six major needs surfaced during the recent pastoral planning process (and outlined by the Bishop in The Evangelist last week). Those needs include leadership training for the laity, comprehensive youth and young adult ministry, more innovative and creative adult faith formation programs, more effective models and approaches to evangelization, assurance that the Eucharist will remain the center and focus of life of Catholic Christians, and the development among Catholics of a greater awareness of social justice issues.

The Bishop said that through reviewing the history of the Diocese, Catholics can come to a better understanding of what they are called to do.

"Hopefully, the sharing of the stories of our ancestors during this Sesquicentennial observance will remind us powerfully that many of them were the poor and vulnerable of their day, who suffered great discrimination, intolerance and injustice and thus move us to a greater sensitivity to the plight of the poor and immigrants of our day, who unfortunately, are often being made the scapegoats for our current socio-economic woes," he said.

Jubilee year

During the homily, Bishop Hubbard spoke of this year being one of jubilee. As explained in the fifth reading of the day from the Book of Leviticus, a jubilee year happens once every 50 years is a year of favor and is considered sacred.

"During the jubilee year, we must stand in fear before the Lord," Bishop Hubbard said, "not fear in the sense of foreboding, but fear in the sense of awe and wonder at the majesty of God leading to a conversion of heart, that enables us to attune our way of life to God's way of life."

In accord with the traditional jubilee year, Bishop Hubbard announced a plan to forgive the debt of parishes, schools and institutions accrued through assessments and insurance.

Sharing the flame

After the formal proclamation of the Sesquicentennial year, the Sesquicentennial candle was lit and will burn at the Cathedral throughout the year of celebration.

Representatives from each parish processed to the foot of the sanctuary to receive the light to take back to their parishes where their own sesquicentennial candles will shine. The flame will serve as a reminder of the responsibility Catholics have to pass on the experience of Christ.

The representatives used a variety of candles to carry the light back to their parishes in the 14 counties of the Diocese. Candles ranged from traditional church candles, to glass globes filled with oil, to colonial lanterns, to simple votive lights.

Other voices

Near the end of the service, Sesquicentennial greetings were delivered by the Right Reverend David Ball, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Albany.

"It is a high honor for me to be invited to bring ecumenical greetings," said Bishop Ball. "I do so in thanksgiving for the very rich heritage of this Diocese. It is my prayer that God will continue to give His rich blessings on this great Diocese."

Rabbi Aryeh Wineman, president of the Capital District Board of Rabbis, offered greetings on behalf of the interfaith community. He said the presence of the interfaith communities in this celebration was of importance and should be noted.

He also spoke of the Diocese's role in the reconciliation between Catholics and Jews after a long history of anti-semitism. The Cathedral was the site for the first ceremony in the world of reconciliation between the two religions.

The Albany Diocese, according to Rabbi Wineman is at "the forefront of important issues of the day and raised its voice on behalf of the conscience of the human person, who is created in the likeness of God."

Final procession

After the congregation exchanged the Sign of Peace with hugs, kisses, smiles and hearty handshakes that reached across pews, the celebration concluded with the banners recessing out of the Cathedral followed by the Sesquicentennial lights being brought back to the parishes.

The entire congregation joined in singing a hymn to the Blessed Virgin as the service concluded.

(12-12-96)

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