Last week, we were very happy to have some guests at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross.

Cardinal Mario Zenari, the Papal Nuncio to Syria, was visiting Boston with his niece Maria, and he stayed with us at the cathedral. Also, Father Simeon Gallagher, who gave the bishops' retreat here and has given missions in many of our parishes, has been visiting for a few days.



St. Anthony's

Thursday, I went to St. Anthony's in Cambridge for a reunion gathering of the archdiocesan group that attended World Youth Day in Portugal last month. They shared some of their experiences with me and then they presented a lovely slideshow produced by Ann Gennaro of images from the pilgrimage.

I was pleased to see that they are still coming together as a group and that so many were able to join us for the evening.



Mass for Hispanic catechists

On Saturday afternoon, I went to Holy Rosary Shrine in Lawrence to celebrate a Mass at a retreat for the Hispanic catechists from throughout the archdiocese. Sister Elsa Narvaez and Patrick Krisak organized the event.

During the program, the catechists received certificates for the various parishes that were represented there.

The role of the catechist is so important, and we are gratified that more people are coming forward to be trained for this very crucial responsibility in the Church.



Father Abishai Vase

That evening, I went to St. Mary's in Brookline to see Father Abishai Vase who was in town and visiting with friends. Father Abishai was at Harvard and then entered the seminary for the Diocese of Abu Dhabi. They sent him to study at St. John's Seminary here in Boston and now he is the rector of the cathedral of Abu Dhabi.



St. Patrick Parish

Sunday, I went to St. Patrick's Parish in Brockton for the installation of their pastor, Father Przemek Kasprzak.

There was great enthusiasm for Father Przemek's installation and there was a wonderful crowd with many parishioners and local officials, including the mayor, fire chief, and police chief.

We were also very happy to be joined by Father Przemek's mother and sister from Poland.

Though the majority of parishioners are Hispanic, it's a very diverse and inclusive parish. They have also made a lot of improvements to the parish; the church and the hall look beautiful.

It was quite a beautiful celebration and afterward, there was a luncheon.



Funeral of Mary Conway

On Monday, I went to St. Jerome's Parish in Hyattsville, Maryland, for the funeral of my dear friend Mary Conway. When I was a young priest, she was working at the Catholic Standard, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Washington, and she came with me to the Virgin Islands to start the first Catholic newspaper there, the Catholic Islander.

At the funeral, it was very good to see Father Al Bradley and Diana Parker who were friends of Mary's from the Virgin Islands.

There were also many people from the Catholic Standard, some of whom have been working there since Mary's time, all those years ago.