MAPLE PARK—”It’s like coming home,” Msgr. Robert Sweeney said as he walked through the doors of St. Mary of the Assumption Parish the evening of June 25.
Spotting one gentleman, the former parish administrator, Msgr. Sweeney recalled the man as a young newlywed, then reminisced about the challenges of cold winters, hot summers and his weekend travels to the parish during his early years of service at the diocesan chancery.
Msgr. Sweeney was one of several visiting priests — including three others who had served at the parish: Msgr. William Clausen, Father Joachim Tyrtania and Father James McKitrick — as parishioners celebrated the 100th anniversary of the church building. They, along with St. Mary pastor Father Dennis Morrissy and Father Perfecto Vasquez – who takes the helm at St. Mary Parish as of July 1 – concelebrated the anniversary Mass with Bishop David Malloy.
Calling the church one of the “jewels of the diocese,” Bishop Malloy said that, in his review of the parish’s history, “Catholic activity actually began long before” the present church was built, about 164 years total. He mentioned a diocesan history book photo of Bishop Peter J. Muldoon right after the dedication of the church, noting that “already the First World War was about to begin.”
“How many time over (these) 100 years, has this (church) been the rock” where mothers and fathers came to pray for their soldiers’ safety during that and other wars, he said, or to pray for those who were lost to them in war and at home.
“You and I go back and are one with those of 100 years ago,” Bishop Malloy said as he reflected on the universality of the Church. “The bread (throughout those 100 years) still became the body (and) the wine the blood ... sins were forgiven here, marriages witnessed here ...
“We are connected ... and we are the ones who will be the connecting point for those who will sit in these pews 100 years from now.”
The “brick and mortar” are only part of the reality, he said, saying, “the true Church is you and me ... the deepest treasure is the faith that has (been) passed through this church year after year ... Each generation in its own way contributes” to the parish.
“Congratulations to the fidelity ... congratulations to this magnificent place, this House of God, and the living stones” that fill it, he concluded.
Chris Carrington and her mother, Perrene Klemm, assisted Ed Campbell in bringing up the gifts at the offertory. Her great-grandfather and his father helped build the church, Carrington said, pointing to stained glass windows across the sanctuary that bear the names of her church-building relatives.
Her mother had raised them in the Catholic faith, she added, and became a Catholic herself after her husband died, when then-pastor Msgr. Clausen invited her to join the church.
St. Mary of the Assumption Church and the rectory were constructed under Father John Whelan and dedicated by Bishop Muldoon on June 25, 1914. It is the third parish church. The first was known as the Barney’s “Hill Church,” built by farmers on the corner of Keslinger and Watson roads between 1850-1852. A larger church was built in 1861 just south of the current church and officially named St. Mary of the Assumption at a time when the town was called Lodi. It became Maple Park two years later.
A meal following the 100th anniversary Mass was held in the Novak Center. Three cakes were made for the celebration: one for the church anniversary, another to honor departing pastor Father Morrissy and a third to wish Msgr. Clausen a happy birthday.