Massachusetts Audubon This part of the story is perhaps the most improbable and yet the most significant. In March, 1999, Catherine and I were at a volunteer appreciation supper at the Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary of the Massachusetts Audubon. The wondrous 2,000+ acre property is located ten minutes from our home, and we had been volunteers for more than ten years. The supper is set up by connecting folding tables in the barn so it looks like a long French picnic. There are actually two of these long tables and about 75 people were there. Everyone gets something from the buffet and chooses their own seat randomly. Sitting across from us was one of our friends, Beverly, a woman in her 70s. Beverly felt herself connected to the spirit world and believed that two spirits resided on her shoulders. She had entire histories for these two beings. She did not always share this information with others but she trusted Catherine and me not to judge her. The conversation of the people near us was about the connectedness of all life, a very appropriate topic in that setting. All of a sudden, Beverly looked at Catherine and me and emphatically stated that we should go to Easter Mass at the LaSalette Faith Community. “What is that?”, I asked. She said it is a faith community in the Catholic tradition that would appeal to both of us. The conversation then went on to something else. In truth, I completely forgot about her suggestion by the next day. We were not looking for a community and the idea of a Catholic community was not terribly appealing to me. For Easter, we usually visited Catherine’s parents but they were in Florida and would not be around this year. We had made plans to go to a Mass with a priest we knew and liked (actually from Camp Fatima), but that fell through right before Easter. The day before Easter, Beverly called to remind us about LaSalette. As we had no better offer, we decided to go. Elizabeth was home from college and we went as family. LaSalette Faith Community The LaSalettes are an order in the Catholic Church, like the Jesuits or Franciscans, each with their own story and history. In 1945, they purchased a large estate on 312 acres and started a seminary and shrine, located five minutes from our home. In the 1970s / 1980s, due to diminishing number of seminarians, the seminary was closed. The Shrine remained open and a group of lay parishioners as well as some LaSalette priests and brothers stayed on and formed a very supportive and loving community. The entire property was sold in the 1990s to a developer. The community that had been there since the 1970s wished to stay together, and they searched for a place to call home. They found a highly creative solution by renting the 4H building at the Topsfield fairgrounds for Sunday Mass. When Catherine, Liz and I arrived at the 4H building, we were welcomed by a friendly greeter and given a song sheet. We entered and took a seat to the side. The building itself was a cinderblock structure with no frills at all. The community had transformed the building into an inviting space with many flowers, Easter lilies and an folding table altar with a simple altar cloth. A community member came over to welcome us. She gave us the lay of the land (where the bathrooms were located) and thanked us for coming to join them on Easter. As the more than 200 people came in, it felt like a family wedding with lots of hugs and kisses. The risers at the front of the space were already populated with the choir dressed in formal black and white. A small procession of people walked down an aisle leading to the altar. The air was filled with expectancy. The Mass began and the entire congregation sang out loudly with the choir. I had been to other churches and this degree of enthusiastic singing was not always the case. We joined in with our song sheets. The Mass progressed in its usual manner which, by now, was familiar. At communion, several members of the community as well as the priest gave bread and wine. The priest announced that there were two types of “wine” offered – one with alcohol, one without. It occurred to me as a thoughtful gesture for those who, for one reason or another, could not drink alcohol. For communion, the choir sang a beautiful song, accompanied by several musicians including piano, flute, trumpet and violin. The communion song finished and all were in their seats, quiet. The choir then began to sing a Capello – no musical accompaniment. The words “I love you Lord and I lift my voice” were joined by the whole congregation. There was no such song on the sheet. For the first verse everyone sang the melody. Then, as the song continued, beautiful harmonies were added spontaneously. This, in itself, was surely lovely. However, the true magic was what I saw when people were singing. One after the next entered a state of trance, or better, a state of presence. They went inside themselves and it showed. Even the air felt electrified. I received this gift emotionally and drank it in. I saw that many had their eyes closed and the ones with open eyes were soft. I did not know what they were connecting to, but clearly, they did. I looked at Catherine. Both of us saw clearly what was going on. The song finished. The Mass continued till the final blessing. As we all filed out, people wished each other and us a good Easter. Then, as a final surprise gift, lovely yellow daffodils were given to all. Liz went back to college to finish her senior year. The following Sunday. I asked Catherine if she would like to go again. She agreed. This time, there were half as many people but still over 100. I liked it even more. It was more intimate, and at the end of the Mass, there was food and hanging out together. We went the following Sunday and every Sunday throughout the entire summer. We started to get to know the people in the community. I can’t remember if it was on Easter Sunday or the next Sunday when a lady named Vicky, who was a member of the LaSalette community and also the mother of one of Elizabeth’s friends from Bishop Fenwick High School, came over to us and said, “You both should do your Cursillo. “What’s a Cursillo?”, I asked. And that will be the subject of the next blog.
4 Comments
Judith
1/31/2021 02:00:23 pm
David, we had a similar “welcome” to LaSalette, Easter Sunday, 1980, at the Shrine. Our first of now forever years with eventually morphed into LFC. Thanks for sharing your initial experience.
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David Feldman
1/31/2021 06:02:19 pm
Thanks so much. Working on Cursillo
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Tom Kelly
2/1/2021 01:37:36 pm
Good job David Nice story of your venture to the LFC
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David Feldman
2/1/2021 02:25:47 pm
Thanks Tom
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