THE TABLET
July 14, 2007
Feasts and Festivals of Summer

Our Diocese is the host to many summer festivals, some of which are connected to parishes.  They are opportunities for fund-raising, which is so necessary for the precarious position in which many parishes find themselves.  They are also opportunities for friend-making and, most of all, community building, especially when there is interaction between parishioners who work very hard to make these festivals successful.  The parish community is also strengthened by the necessary collaboration that festivals entail. 

During the years of my pastorates in Newark, I was involved in many festivals.  In Jersey City, at Holy Rosary parish, I became a champion zeppole maker.  My specialty was the zeppole with the hole in the middle.  It is a kind of doughnut that can be made by simply taking a wad of dough, putting two thumbs in it and forming a circle with the dough.  This allows the zeppole to cook evenly and there is no soggy part.  It was a thankless task of standing over the hot oil and dumping zeppole in to be fried.  Well, enough about zeppole making.  Community building is what festivals are about. 

I am aware of some of the festivals connected to our churches.  We have in our Diocese festivals in Williamsburg and Marine Park, to name just two.  They honor various saints, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, St. Paulinus, St. Rosalia and St. Anthony, to name but a few.  The opportunity to be involved in these festivals brings out the best in our parishes.  Although some of the festival activities are relegated to private contractors, many parishes use volunteers to the greatest benefit of the parish.  I take this opportunity to thank all those volunteers who work so hard on the summer festivals to make our Church a true model of collaboration. 

Recreation is certainly part of our festival tradition, although more important are the religious aspects which are intertwined in these summer festivals.  A lot has to do with tradition.  Many times I have heard people say, “I come to this feast every year because my grandparents used to bring me, or my parents and I made a promise to them that I would not miss this as long as I live.”  Perhaps it is nostalgia or other motivations that bring people to these expressions of religious piety.  Most importantly are the processions that usually take part at these festivals.  The Church, indeed, is a pilgrim people.  We are people on the move to our true home.  Our movement accompanies our prayer and spiritual desire to make our earthly pilgrimage something worthy of the Baptismal grace we have received. 

Every time I walk in one of our processions through our streets, it seems we are retaking territory that belongs to God and needs to be sanctified again.  Through the presence of people, processions can enliven our faith.  At the festivals there are also healing services, where prayers for physical and spiritual healing are offered.  All this leads us to the central part of any festival, the celebration of the Eucharist.  The primary goal of a pilgrim Church is to receive the food for the journey, the Eucharist itself.  Spiritual participation in various festivals must be the Eucharistic sacrifice.  The beautiful celebrations I have seen in the various parishes truly are inspiring, with so many people gathering to celebrate their faith and make intercession through the saints for the glory of God.

A festival and procession are ways of “putting out into the deep.”  We do not know what experiences they will bring.  Sometimes there are difficult moments in organizing the festivals and making sure the processions are kept safe from traffic and other obstacles.  We find our efforts to mirror the pilgrim people of God, the people who rejoice in God’s gifts and always pray for God’s mercy.  This summer enjoy our festivals and keep praying for God’s mercy always.

                                                           * * * * *