Three Years Later

It had been three years since I had attended mass at the Shrine of St. Anne. When we moved to Arvada in 1965, St. Anne became my parish and I was a parishioner until sometime in 2011 when I decided to move to Spirit of Christ Catholic Community. In the past, if I happened to miss mass at St. Anne's I would go to Spirit of Christ to the evening mass and always left the church with a good feeling. I liked the music, which was upbeat, but I could not get used to the people clapping and bouncing. It reminded me of when I was growing up and we would look in the door at a group we referred to as Holy Rollers. They waved their hands above their heads and yelled praises to God. Catholic churches were subdued and quiet. So when I would see the Spirit of Christ youth acting like the Holy Rollers, it was the one thing that bothered me.
 

On a tour to the Marion Shrines in Europe, I met some people from Spirit of Christ or as their t-shirts had printed: SOC. Little by little I switched my allegiance to Spirit of Christ. The homilies seemed to speak to me. The people were friendly. I joined the fifty-five and over group called Young At Heart and became their photographer. I enjoyed the camaraderie and before long I felt like I belonged at Spirit of Christ.

Last Sunday, I went to St. Anne's after three years and it had not changed much. I saw one familiar face and she happened to belong to Spirit of Christ.  A few people smiled at me. The atmosphere seemed as if everyone was in their own world. The homily about temptation was interesting and given by a visiting priest. The choir of three women and two men sang with gusto. The one thing I noticed different was a beautiful wooden niche for the picture of The Divine Mercy. (When Christ revealed to St. Faustine Kowalska His presence. She wrote in her diary describing Christ as having one red ray (blood) and one pale ray (water) coming from the area around Christ's heart. ABC is used to remind us to ask for mercy, be merciful and have complete trust in God.) Other than the wooden

frame, nothing else seemed different. The stained glass windows are colorful, especially when the sun hits them.

It is still a beautiful traditional church with statues of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Blessed Mother, Mother Cabrini, St. Joseph and icons of Our Blessed Mother. The large crucifix hangs in the middle of the altar. I noticed that pews in the rear of the church, that used to be in front of the confessional, had been moved. I often wondered if people in those back pews could hear someone in the confessional. Even though St. Anne's is a traditional Catholic church with traditional services, I lean toward the openness and friendliness of Spirit of Christ. But every once in a while, it is good to return to a traditional way of worshiping.