Palms, Bagpipes, Supper

This Saturday evening we begin the most important week of the Christian calendar, a week for immersion in the central mystery of our faith: through suffering and death, we experience transformation and renewal. It culminates, of course, in Easter – a celebration of new beginnings and new life.

For us, it all starts with the blessing of palms on the steps outside the Chapel this Saturday, April 4 at 5 p.m. The weather is supposed to be overcast but fair and warm – mid-50s – and there’s only a 30 percent chance of rain. So leave the umbrella in your room and enjoy some time outside feeding your soul, so to speak.

After the blessing we’ll follow the music of bagpipes inside for the Vigil of Passion (Palm) Sunday. Bishop Michael Cote of the Diocese of Norwich will celebrate mass with us. Stay around afterward for soup, bread and fresh-baked hot-cross buns in the Hood Dining Room – a tradition for the Catholic Community.

We continue our observance of Holy Week with four special services. The first is a Service of Penance and Reconciliation on Wednesday, April 8 at 5 p.m. in the Chapel. After a communal service, Monsignor Richard LaRocque, a long time friend of the Catholic Community at Connecticut College, and I will be available to hear individual confessions. Why confess your sins to someone else? In a word, it is cleansing. To experience God’s forgiveness in this tangible way can be a powerful experience. Not sure what to say or do? This video walks you through the steps of confession.

We will observe the Triduum (Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday) with a series of services that explore the paschal mystery – the Passover of the Lord. Christ showed us how to live this mystery through his teachings and in his life and death. We experience it daily in virtually every aspect of our lives. God often asks us to give up our familiar ways, our old selves, in order to respond with grace and courage to a new reality. During Holy Week, we ask how we can more fully incorporate this lesson into our lives. At Easter we celebrate the new beginnings – new life – that emerge from suffering and death.

You can find a schedule for all the services of Holy Week and links to more information at our web site, http://www.conncatholics.com/. You can also pick up a schedule from the table at the back of the Chapel. Remember, there will be no 5 p.m. mass at the Chapel on Saturday, April 11. We will celebrate the Solemn Vigil of Easter at 8 p.m. with a joyous service that is rich in symbolism of life and hope. If you can’t be there, you are welcome to participate in the Easter liturgy at 9 a.m. Sunday in the Coast Guard Academy chapel.

If you find yourself struggling to comprehend the events these services commemorate, remember that there’s a reason it’s called the paschal mystery. As someone once said, “If I understand something, it’s no mystery.” Faith, so often, is more a matter of trust than belief.


Devotedly yours,

Father Larry