Father Hathaway’s Column — April 20, 2025

CHRIST IS RISEN, ALLELUIA, ALLELUIA!

“We are an Easter people and Alleluia is our song!” Pope Saint John Paul II

On behalf of Fathers Searby, Joseph, Peter, Noah and myself, I wish each of you a very Happy and Blessed Easter Season! The Mass of Easter Sunday is one of the most joyful in the Church calendar, commemorating the remarkable intervention of God into human history with the Resurrection of His Son and the foundation of our own eternal life. What a glorious day! It’s so glorious that we celebrate the Easter Season for 50 days, until Pentecost on Sunday, June 8. During this time, the liturgical color is white and the Alleluia (Praise God!) is used for the dismissal from Mass. Christ is risen – Alleluia, Alleluia!

CONGRATULATIONS & GRATITUDE!

Congratulations to the 42 adults who received the sacraments of the Catholic Church at our Easter Vigil. What better sign of the Resurrection than this new life in the hearts of those who believe? Please keep them in your prayers as they continue their life-long faith journey.

Newly Baptized (previously unbaptized people received into the Catholic Church, receiving all three sacraments of initiation — Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Communion): Kyle Dilley, Zembria Shellenberger Dilley, Nayaa Dobson, Jaden Dunn, Kayla Rubano Dunn, Alexandros Ehrlich, Soora Jawad, Jonathon Kent, Trey LaLonde, Ramiro Landa, William C. Leach, Teri Leventhal, Anna Love, Sydney Richter, Joseph Shook and Brittany Venneman.

Baptized Protestant Candidates (previously baptized non-Catholics, receiving Confirmation and Holy Communion): Adam Burlimann, Brittany Carey, John Crabb, Jarad Dahlkoetter, Sarah Donovan, James Figliola, Kevin Fornshill, Claire Gallagher, Paige Gilliard, William E. Leach, Richard Little, Monica Lundt, Kathryn McCormack, Jacob McCurdy, Samantha Mims, Bryan Morrow, Julia Pireaux, Sabin Sidney, LeeAnna Sparrow and Michelle Story.

Baptized Catholic Candidates (Catholics who received Confirmation and, in some cases, First Holy Communion): Ariel Coburn, Eleanor Leach, Evan Saddler, Tyler Tran, Chad Yelinski and Dominque Yelinski.

I am very grateful to our Religious Education staff, Susan Gray and Yunchong Boyle, and our OCIA volunteer team, for devotedly working with our priests to prepare these individuals for reception into the Church at Easter. Many thanks to the many, many people – volunteers and staff – who helped make our sacred Easter Triduum liturgies so reverently beautiful. Thank you, especially, to my brother priests, Father Searby, Father Joseph, Father Peter, Father Noah and Father Chris Goodwin, particularly for their additional hours hearing confessions in recent weeks, preparing souls to enter into the mystery of Easter with broken halos and wounded hearts mended. My gratitude to Deacon David Tines for preaching at Mass and performing baptisms during Lent. And, special thanks to Alex Solsma and Aaron Zanca, our Basilica seminarians (to be ordinated as transitional deacons on April 26; see page 7) for assisting during Holy Week liturgies.

Thank you to our ministers in the sanctuary, including the sacristans (especially!), servers, lectors, extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion and ushers. My thanks to our choir, cantors and musicians under the guidance of our Director of Music David Elliott. Many thanks to Christine Kleiber and the Mary Martha Guild for transforming the Basilica in the spirit of each observance. I am also grateful to all of you for uniting in prayer these past weeks. Together, with Christ, we are the Basilica of Saint Mary.

Copyright 2025 The Basilica of Saint Mary | Login