Looking Back: 2016

Christmas 2016
 

"Venite adoremus Dominum."
                           ~ Hymn, "Adeste Fideles"
  

Our first Christmas at home! The priests and faithful kept watch with the shepherds, midnight, dawn and day. as our two priests each celebrated the three Christmas Masses permitted by universal law. It was a special Christmas for Fr. Houck as it was his first as priest, but, for all of us, it was a chance to reflect on what it has taken to get here to this Christmas on this property, to thank the Lord for his many blessings and Mother Mary and St. Joseph for their constant intercession on behalf of the parish, its priests and families. A chance to cherish, once again, the Infant Christ, Our Savior.

At the top of the page under Photo Albums:
Midnight Christmas Mass, 2016



Fall 2016

The Event We Have All Been Waiting For
Blessing of St. Athanasius Chapel Hall
October 29, 2016
 

"Laetatus sum in his quae dicta sunt mihi,
in domum Domini ibimus. ...."
~ Psalm 121, Interior aspersion of church walls
  

Blessing the chapel doors

Five years of planning, praying, pledging, gifting, working and the moment arrived! October 29, 2016, 10 a.m. His Eminence Daniel Cardinal DiNardo blesses St. Athanasius Chapel Hall and Regina Caeli Parish officially opens its doors on its 40-acre property. Laus tibi Domine! 

Before construction of the chapel hall could begin, infrastructure for the parish complex and a half-mile entranceway into the property was required. That work began late December 2015 and construction of the building began three months later.  An unusually wet spring, including a flood-inducing storm system, caused construction delays and crews were working on the building even the day before the blessing ceremony. Much of the interior sanctuary work was done by volunteers led by Fr. Van Vliet, including the building of the altars, communion rail, installation of the pews, detailed painting of the niches and so on. Restoration of the antique crucifix over the main altar, undertaken by a parishioner, took over a year. Volunteers sacrificed many Saturdays to work on the grounds, installing fences to separate the agriculture acreage from the religious area, clearing the property and sowing seed to lay the beginnings of a park-like setting for the church. That work, and additional projects to complete the interior of the chapel hall, will continue.

Many other parishioners volunteered numerous hours to keep parish operations humming along, freeing up our priests to concentrate on more pressing areas. Families and faithful inside and outside the parish pledged significantly to the building program, sacrificing personal goals, so that we could have a place of our own. To all of them, the parish owes a tremendous gratitude.

And so it was that, on Saturday October 29, 2016, Cardinal DiNardo blessed St. Athanasius Chapel Hall, opening the first public building of Regina Caeli Parish. In procession with 18 altar servers, an escort of Knights

   
Procession during exterior blessing; Litany of the Saints prior to interior blessing

of Columbus, numerous priests and over 400 faithful, the Cardinal aspersed the exterior and interior walls of the building, dedicating it to God and the celebration of the Divine mysteries. A Solemn High Mass celebrated by our pastor Fr. Van Vliet immediately followed. His Eminence delivered the homily and discussed three major attributes of St. Athanasius that should guide the young parish; namely, that he persevered in orthodoxy in the face of persecution, never wavered in fidelity to Rome and had an abiding charity for widows and the poor. (A link to his sermon is provided below.)

In a Solemn Mass, the celebrant is assisted by the deacon and subdeacon in a rite that emphasizes, in a more visual way, the unity of the priest to the local ordinary. Fraternity priests Fr. Gerard Saguto, North American District Superior of the FSSP, and Fr. Michael Malain served as Deacon and Subdeacon, respectively. Our parochial vicar Fr. Joshua Houck was Master of Ceremonies, guiding the action at the altar. Fr. Malain is a Houston native and flew down from his current assignment at the FSSP apostolate in Minneapolis to be with us on this special day.

Also assisting at Mass were Fr. Jude Ekenedilichukwu Ezuma, Personal Secretary to Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, Fr. Stephen B. Reynolds, Pastor of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, and FSSP priests Rev. Andrzej Komorowski, Assistant to the Superior General of the FSSP; Rev. Thomas Longua, Pastor of Mater Dei Parish in Dallas; Rev. Joseph Terra, Pastor of St. Joseph the Worker in Tyler; and Rev. Robert Ferguson, Vice Rector of Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary in Denton, Nebraska.

At the end of Mass, jubiliant and hungy, the faithful enjoyed fellowship, a scrumptious BBQ dinner and homemade desserts under an open air tent. A perfect ending to a perfect day!

The parish is grateful to His Eminence for his constant support; to the Fraternity for establishing an apostolate in Houston; to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton for giving us a home for the first five years, and to all of the faithful who contributed time and money to the success of this parish.

To read Cardinal DiNardo's sermon, click here.

At the top of the page under Photo Albums:
Blessing of St. Athanasius Chapel Hall

Articles to help you understand the Solemn Mass:
Low Mass, High Mass, Sung Mass, Solemn Mass
Solemn High Mass: What is the Subdeacon Holding?
Items Used in Pontifical Ceremony

Texas Catholic Herald article on the blessing, click here

To see construction photos:
Site Development


Procession in Honor of
Our Lady of the Rosary
October 8, 2016
 

"Sing of Mary, pure and lowly ...."
 ~ Hymn, Sing of Mary

Normally the parish would honor Our Lady of the Rosary on the external solemnity of her feast day, which is the first Sunday in October. These past months, however, construction of St. Athanasius Chapel Hall and volunteer-led projects for the grounds and interior of the building were delayed due to a particularly rainy season. With our pending move rapidly approaching, it was deemed necessary to take advantage of every dry day to get the work completed. October 1, parish volunteers amassed on the property for a long work day of fencing and pew installation, among other chores. The work continued through-out the week, and on the following Saturday, October 8, we gathered for a rosary procession before hitting it again.

This was our fifth procession and the first with Fr. Houck. He mentioned that he was accepted as a seminarian too late to assist Fr. Van Vliet in the building of the seminary complex, but now he gets to join with him in building a parish.

Welcoming Fr. Joshua Houck,
Our First Parochial Vicar!
July 3, 2016

On June 5, our pastor announced at the Sunday Masses that Fr. Joshua Houck, FSSP would be our first parochial vicar.  With eager anticipation and great joy, the parish awaited his arrival, which came July 1. Fr. Houck was ordained to the priesthood on May 28, 2016, and this assignment is his first in Texas.  He is expected to be here for three years.  On Sunday, July 3, he celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiving for his ordination and gave first blessings to Fr. Van Vliet and parishioners. Later in the week, he gave Fr. Reynolds a private first blessing.

No sooner had Fr. Houck arrived than Fr. Van Vliet left for a family reunion that had been planned a year ago.  Following a brief run-down of who, what, when, where and how, Fr. Van Vliet waved good-bye and Fr. Houck took over without missing a beat for the eight days he was gone.  Fr. Van Vliet returned the evening of July 14 and, with both priests now here, many good changes are in store as we plan for, and move, onto the property.

At the top of the page under Photo Albums:

Fr. Houck Celebrates Mass of Thanksgiving

Celebrating Fr. Van Vliet's
20th Anniversary of Priestly Ordination
June 19, 2016

;

Fr. Van Vliet was ordained June 15, 1996 in Ottawa, Ontario by Archbishop Marcel Gervias.

 

External Solemnity of Corpus Christi
May 29, 2016

"Tantum ergo Sacramentum, Veneremur cernui"
~ Pange Lingua

May Crowning
First Communion
May 1 and May 8, 2016

"Roses of dazzling white ...
Crowning thy spotless brow"
 ~ Hymn, Queen of the Rosary
 

Every year, the parish looks forward to the first Sunday in May to crown Our Blessed Mother and patron satin, Regina Caeli, but this year our blessings doubled in that the crowning fell on the feast day of our second patron, St. Joseph. On May 1, the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker, the soon-to-be First Communicants led the faithful in placing flowers at the foot of Our Lady and crowning her Queen of Heaven. At the end of each Mass, the faithful recited the Parish Prayer to St. Joseph, invoking his powerful intercession for our families, the parish and the ongoing construction.

On May 8, sixteen children received First Communion on a beautiful Mother's Day. (The Mass was the Sunday after the Ascension.)  The largest group of First Communicants to date, the FLC overflowed with families and friends and it was standing room only, even in the hallways!  Congratulations to Abby, Andrew, Catalina, Clark, Elijah, Ethan, Gianna, Jonathan, Jude, Kolbe, Maura, Santiago, Sophia, Sophie, Thomas, and Thomas!

At the top of the page under Photo Albums:
2016 May Crowning
2016 First Communion

CCD Events in April

April 17, 2016
Confirmandi Celebration

Confirmation was on March 15 in the midst of Passiontide (see below) and a reception celebrating the event was delayed until Easter. Originally planned for the first Sunday after Easter, the reception was postponed and re-scheduled for April 17.  As the day approached, the weather forecast was for heavy rainstorms and possible flooding, but God had other plans for our confirmandi. By His great benevolence, the storms were delayed until the evening, giving us gentle winds and partly cloudy skies - perfect for an al fresco dinner of spaghetti with meatballs, caesar salad and lots of delicious desserts!

At the top of the page under Photo Albums:  Confirmandi Celebration 2016

 

First Communion Class on a Tour with Father
April 3, 2016

Triduum
March 24-27, 2016

"O felix culpa, quae talem ac tantum
meruit habere Redemptorem!"
~ Exultet, Easter Vigil

In late February, Fr. Van Vliet announced the signing of the contract for construction of St. Athanasius Chapel Hall.  The parish is expected to move onto its property in the fall, making this our last Triduum at SEAS.  Rev. Mr. Christopher Mahowald, FSSP came from the seminary in Lincoln to assist our pastor during the two-weeks that opened with Confirmation of our CCD class (see below) and ended on Easter Sunday. His presence allowed for a sung Good Friday liturgical service, which last occurred in 2012 when Fr. Crooker assisted our pastor.  In a sermon on Holy Thursday, Rev. Mr. Mahowald mentioned that foot washing is only discussed in John's Gospel and that his chapters on the Passion serve as a sort of last will and testament of Christ. Fr. Van Vliet continued this theme on Good Friday in connection with the seven last words.

At the top of the page under Photo Albums:
2016 Holy Thursday
2016 Good Friday
2016 Easter Vigil

Winter 2016

Confirmation
March 15, 2016

"Veni Creator Spiritus, Mentes tuorum visita ...."
 ~ Hymn, Veni Creator Spiritus

Congratulations to Aaron, Joshua, Frazier, Michael, Galo, Lauren, Mary, Annaliese, Mary Margaret, Grace, Makenna and Priscilla, the Confirmandi of 2016!  Theirs was the second Confirmation of the parish and the first in the Traditional Rite at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart!  His Eminence Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, using Sacred Chrism, confirmed the twelve candidates in the presence of over 150 faithful.  Assisting in the ceremony were Rev. Jude Ekendilichukwu Ezuma, Secretary to the Cardinal, our pastor Fr. Van Vliet, Rev. Joshua Passo, FSSP and Rev. Mr. Christopher Mahowald, FSSP.

In his sermon, which included questioning the candidates, HIs Eminence quoted St. John on the mission of the Holy Ghost to "teach and remind".  The Paraclete teaches us the meaning of the words of Christ and reminds us of His words so as to protect us from the "spirit of amnesia" prevalent in the world.  Sponsors have a special duty to walk in Faith with the confirmandi and pray for them daily.

Confirmation was in the evening of the first Tuesday of Passiontide and a reception celebrating the event was delayed until April 17 (see above). 

At the top of the page under Photo Albums:
Confirmation 2016
Article in the Texas Catholic Herald, click here. 
To learn more about the sacrament in the Traditional Rite, click here.


Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary
February 2, 2016

"Lumen ad revelationem gentium,
et gloriam plebis tuae Israel."
 ~ Antiphon, blessing of the candles

The feast days of Our Lady are special to every Catholic and our parish in particular, since as Queen of Heaven, Our Blessed Mother is our patron along with St. Joseph, whose protection we invoke.  This year was the first Candlemas since Fr. Van Vliet arrived in Houston in late 2011 that we were able to have a procession outside. Deo gratias!

January 15-18, 2016
A Visit from Elmhurst

Fr. Simon Harkins, FSSP, in his role as District Bursar of North America, accepted an invitation by our pastor to visit the property and learn more about the parish. He enjoyed meeting the faithful, seing the construction to date and getting a clearer understanding of  our operations. He stated that Elmhurst fully supports our efforts and he was personally looking forward to future visits. In connection with the Gospel reading on Sunday of the marriage at Cana, he discussed the intimate relationship between Jesus and Mary and her unique role in the salvation of mankind.

High Mass, Incensing priest and during the Credo

While here, Fr. Harkins was also able to visit with Fr. Terra, who was on personal vacation and staying at the Caretaker's House on the property.

Frs. Van Vliet, Terra and Harkins

Blessing of the Epiphany Water
January 5, 2016

"...currunt cum muneribus Magi ...."
     ~ Antiphon, Blessing of Epiphany Water
 

At the top of the page under Photo Albums:
Christmas 2015 and Epiphany 2016