Nehemiah 8:1-10 Psalm 19:8-10,15 Ephesians 1:3-6, 11-12 Luke 1:26-38
Dear Friends:
We gather to open a new chapter in the history of St. Thomas More Parish. The dedication of this new church takes place on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is taking place within the Season of Advent.
Advent is a time to prepare for the coming of the Lord. It is a time to wait. The good parishioners of St. Thomas More Parish know a lot about waiting. You have waited a very long time for this day. Some waited patiently. Some waited with a measure of anxiety. Some waited with a sense of despair. Now, look and see for yourself. Something good has come to those who waited. You have a wonderful space in which to pray! You have a beautiful place to gather and worship!
This parish was erected in 1950. On this occasion I wish to name and to thank all those who served this community over the years as Pastors of Souls:
- Fr. George Wolf - Fr. Prosper Meyer - Fr. Clement Burns - Fr. Silvan Bromenshenkel - Fr. Blaise Schumacher - Fr. Elias Achatz - Fr. Gall Fell
These were the Benedictines (OSB). They were followed by the Scarborough Foreign Mission Fathers (SFM):
- Bishop Kenneth Turner - Fr. Gerard McKernan - Fr. Lawrence Beal - Fr. John O'Grady - Fr. Robert Ling - Msgr. Ambrose McKinnon
The Diocesan Clergy who served this parish are:
- Msgr. Alfred Culmer - Msgr. Simeon Roberts - Fr. Glen Nixon - Fr. Alain Laverne - Fr. Anselm Russell - Fr. Noel Clarke - Fr. Junior Calixte - Deacon Raymond Forbes - Deacon Dennis Mackey
and - Fr. Jude Muokwe of the Missionaries of St. Paul (MSP).
They all have our sincerest gratitude.
At the 50th Anniversary celebration of this parish which was observed on June 20, 2001, the Bahama Catholic announced that Garfunkel Auditorium would become the new St. Thomas More Church. Much had to be done to make that happen. First and foremost was the daunting task of re-locating Aquinas College. This was part of a much broader plan to renovate and renew the physical plant of all our parishes here in the capital.
This plan was initiated by Archbishop Lawrence A. Burke, S.J. He was transferred to Jamaica before the plan was completed. I inherited it and continued to bring the process to completion. Today, with this Dedication, that plan, that process, is substantially complete. Thanks be to God!!!
In a number of our parishes you can see the old structure in proximity to the new. That is the case with St. Francis Xavier Cathedral, St. Joseph, St. Cecilia and Holy Family. At St. Anselm you have a wonderful symbiosis of the old and the new. Now here at St. Thomas More also, we have the old church in proximity to the new. It is as if history unfolded right before your eyes.
One of the aspects of our faith is that we take what is given and transform it. Jesus took water and changed it into wine. In the Eucharist, the greatest of transformations occurs when Bread and Wine becomes the Body and Blood of Christ. Taking what was given and transforming it is precisely what we have done here. We took the aging shell of an auditorium and transformed it into a new parish complex. It includes the Church, Blessed Sacrament Chapel and Parish Hall, all embraced by a covered external narthex. There are bathrooms, parishes offices and a conference room and of course, a sacristy.
This transformation was possible because those who went before us built a solid foundation upon which we could build even more. On this occasion we remember with gratitude Mr. Joseph Garfunkel and Bishop Paul Leonard Hagarty, O.S.B. In honor of Bishop Hagarty I am using the ceremonial crosier from our Archdiocesan Archives.
This crosier was first presented to Bishop John Bernard Kevenhoester, O.S.B., Superior of the Catholic Mission of the Bahama Islands, at his Episcopal Ordination in St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York City, on December 21, 1933. It was also presented to his successor, Bishop Paul Leonard Hagarty at his Episcopal Ordination at Our Lady's Church here in Nassau on the 19th of October, 1950. That was the same year that this parish of St. Thomas More was erected.
Let us not overlook the works of art which adorn this space. The images in the circular stained glass window are those of St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher both martyred at the same time and sharing the same Feast Day, June 22nd. The 6 windows on either side of the Altar depict the six days of creation. The paintings from which they are made is the work of a local artist, Antonius Roberts. The originals are mounted in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel. The woodwork, beginning with the two main doors, the Baptismal Font, the Altar, the Ambo, the Chair, the Credence Table, the backdrop behind the Altar and the pedestal for the tabernacle are all the work of a local carpenter, Mr. Randolph Sands. So the beauty which surrounds you, blossomed in our own backyard.
The patron of this fine parish, Thomas More, was a layman. One writer describes him thus: "More was of medium stature, his complexion was fair and his eyes were bluish gray. Simplicity was his mark in food and dress. He shrank from nothing that imparted an innocent pleasure, even of a bodily kind. He had a speaker's voice and a memory that served him well for extempore rejoinders. "Born for friendship," he could extract delight from the dullest people and things. His family affections were warm yet unobtrusive. He gave freely and gladly, expecting no thanks. Exotic objects and curious animals graced his house and garden. Amid his intense professional activity, he found hours for prayer and for supervising his domestic school. Most of his charges were girls, to whom he provided the most refined classical and Christian education." (Marc'hardour)
More is the patron saint of Lawyers. Pope St. John Paul II included statesmen within More's patronage. Of them More is supposed to have said, "I believe, when statesmen forsake their own private conscience for the sake of public duties they lead their country by a short route to chaos." (Bolt)
More met a cruel end because he could not, in good conscience, do what the king wanted him to do. Another writer says of More ... "Here was an incredibly intelligent and witty man with a deep sense of spiritual awareness. He was a man for all seasons precisely because he was so vivid and complex a human being that he effortlessly took on all the games of the world at the same time as he knew them to be empty--at least in comparison with the next world." (Ackroyd)
Yes, your patron was a layman, an exemplary layman, a model for any layman or laywoman in any age.
The First Reading for this Liturgy is from the Book of Nehemiah. It is a required reading for an occasion such as this, the Dedication of a Church. It tells of Ezra the Scribe reading at length from the Book of the Law of Moses.
His audience is men, women and children old enough to understand. That is a rather comprehensive demographic. It could easily include all of us. Notice how the reading ends.
"Do not be saddened this day, for rejoicing in the Lord is your strength."
We have reason to rejoice today. The Dedication of a Church is a rare and joyful occasion. That is why we are here today. So let us dedicate this place! Let us do so joyfully!