“From the Archives” A Parish Mission from 100 years ago

As we embark on our Saint Mary Parish Mission led by Fr. Wade Menezes this week, we can look back 100 years at a parish mission held circa 1920, as described in the Alexandria Gazette:

“Last night Saint Mary’s Catholic Church was the scene of a beautiful and impressive ceremony, the renewal of the baptismal vows by the whole congregation. Standing and with right hand uplifted they answered with strong and firm voice, the questions which are addressed to a candidate for baptism. This ceremony came as an appropriate conclusion to the services which have been going on in the church during the past week at which the people faithfully assisted and in large numbers received the sacrament of penance and holy Eucharist.

“Father Doyle preached an eloquent sermon on the church into which we are initiated by baptism. Many non-Catholics attended the service and were much interested in the sermon and the ceremony. The service every evening during this week will be for the special benefit of non-Catholics who may wish to hear a plain and thorough explanation of Catholic belief.

“Many erroneous opinions regarding the Catholic Church will be corrected and a clear statement of her true position on most vital questions will be given. A question box is placed near the church door to receive the written queries of persons seeking information on religious topics. Many questions were asked by Catholics during their week of mission, and now non-Catholics are especially invited to patronize the question box. The answering of questions each evening at the beginning of the service at 8 o’clock is a most interesting and instructive feature of the missions.  A cordial invitation is extended by the missionaries as well as the pastor to all non-Catholics to come and hear the lectures. Father Handley, O.S.P., of the Apostolic Mission House will preach this evening and Father Waters of Virginia, will answer the questions.”

In 2020, to commemorate the 225th anniversary of our parish, we started “From the Archives” as a weekly feature online and in our bulletin to spotlight the history of Saint Mary’s. Due to its popularity, we are continuing the series in 2021. An archive of the features is located here.