Sesquicentennial Anniversary of Consecration

O God, who year by year renew for us the day when this your holy temple was consecrated, hear the prayers of your people and grant that in this place for you there may always be pure worship and for us, fullness of redemption. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, you Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

On June 5th, 2014, St. Mary of the Assumption celebrated the sesquicentennial anniversary of the consecration of our present church building. Below are listed the many ways in which the parish celebrated this great moment in the life of our parish community.

Anniversary of Consecration Mass

Holy Mass for the Anniversary of the Dedication of a Church was celebrated on Thursday, 5 June 2014 at 7:00 pm. The Most Reverend Frederick F. Campbell, D.D., PH.D. was the principal celebrant along with concelebrating priests of the Diocese of Columbus. A reception followed on the parish courtyard for those in the congregation along with past pastors, parochial vicars, and consecrated religious of the parish.

“Wonderful are you, O God in your holy place. The God of Israel himself gives his people strength and courage.” – Entrance Antiphon of the Mass (Ps 68:36)

Corpus Christi – Exposition & Eucharistic Procession

In commemoration of the Solemnity of the Body and the Blood of our Lord, St. Mary of the Assumption hosted Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament for Adoration on Sunday afternoon beginning after the 11:15 Mass and ending at 4:00 pm in the evening with Vespers and a Eucharistic procession to the courtyard for Benediction.

Church Tours & Museum

Our parish celebrated the sesquicentennial anniversary by offering guided tours of the building to the general public. Tours highlighted our parish history, the rite of consecration, and the various architectural elements and liturgical appointments of the church.
Our parish also filled the two conferences rooms in the Rectory basement with various pictures, liturgical vessels, and appointments from the past 150 years. The Museum was open on Sunday around the Masses and also during Church Tours. To the right can be found some pictures of the different displays.

Parish Picnic – September 2014

Almost 400 parishioners gathered in the courtyard and parish grounds after the 11:15 Mass for our Parish Picnic. There was great conversation, lots of food, some music and games and activities for the little people.

Extraordinary Form Mass – Traditional Latin Mass

Our parish concluded her celebration of the sesquicentennial anniversary of the consecration of our present church building, by offering our parishioners the opportunity to pray the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite. At this point in history, the Roman Church has two expressions of the same Mass: the Ordinary Form or the New Mass of the Second Vatican Council and the Extraordinary Form the Mass or Traditional Latin Mass, according to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII. As you may know, the Mass of 1962 is prayed in Latin and is celebrated ad orientum, that is, with the priest and people together facing East in worship. We closed this year of celebration with this expression of the one Mass because it is the form of the Mass which has been celebrated the longest in our present church building.

The Solemn High Mass was celebrated on Sunday, 26 October – the Kingship of Christ. Fr. Matthew Morris, a recently ordained son of the parish was the Celebrant of the Mass. Dcn. Nic Ventura, another son of the parish who is completing studies and formation at the Josephinum to be ordained a priest this May, served as the Deacon. Dcn. Tom Carder of St. Catherine in Columbus served as the Subdeacon of the Mass.

Some 300 persons gathered for this historic occasion to worship God and to give thanks for the faith and dedication of our forefathers in building this beautiful house of worship to almighty God.

“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden entirely forbidden or even considered harmful. It behooves all of us to preserve the riches which have developed in the Church’s faith and prayer, and to give them their proper place.” – Letter of Pope Benedict XVI to the Bishops of the World to Present the “Motu Proprio” on the Use of the Roman Liturgy prior to the Reforms of 1970.