“From the Archives” Emily the Cat

About 15 years ago, a small gray cat frequently attended Mass at Saint Mary. According to her collar tag, she was Emily and lived nearby on Wolfe Street. She typically waited outside the church, patiently watching for an opportunity to slip through an open door as parishioners entered or exited. Once inside, she quickly learned the layout of the church and seemed to prefer the front pews.

Parishioners periodically reported to the sacristan on duty, “There’s a cat in the church.” So Emily was scooped up and carried to the Mary Garden outside the door of the north (confessional) transept. Often, however, she was too quick and remained to roam during Mass.

People got used to her being there; children loved it! When Emily was ready to go home, she simply exited with parishioners. On more than one occasion, the cat confidently wandered into the sanctuary and up to the altar while Mass was in progress. The priest celebrant generally ignored her presence, if he noticed her at all. She then continued through the open doorway into the sacristy, startling the sacristan on duty.

Emily’s appearance at the Basilica occurred during the papacy of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, known for his love of cats although due to tradition he was not allowed to keep one at his Papal apartment in Rome. More than one Saint Mary parishioner noted the Holy Father likely would have welcomed Emily’s visits to our church. There also was some light-hearted discussion that the since the cat attended Mass so regularly and we knew her name and address, we should register her as a parishioner and mail offertory envelopes to her home!

– Diane Maple, Bulletin Editor (and former Saint Mary sacristan)

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.