Sundays 91

In Father McCarthy’s time Sunday Mass was habitually late starting, but the people grew quite accustomed to that and took it in stride. The delay came from the pastor’s hearing confessions and he was far too gentle to interrupt the flow until all were heard. It was not unusual to have Mass delayed a half hour or more. When Father McKenna came in 1952 punctuality was the order of the day and the people had to adjust. Moments before the start of Mass two altar servers would come to the choir gallery to ring the main bell. It was heavy to ring and at times its upward swing could lift the lads right off their feet. For the same reason the rope easily left its mark on tender hands.

Sunday Mass could be either low or high. If the former, only two short candles were lighted and no singing was required at all. However, a few hymns were normally sung and could be in English if so desired. Low Mass was shorter and was used in times of inclement weather or maybe during the summer. The norm for Sundays, however, was the High Mass. Here six long candles were lighted and everything was in Latin, all quite formal and beautiful. There was much singing required, mostly the inner parts of the Mass, with some Latin hymns added at will. The priest celebrant and the choir were the only ones singing and for the fifteen years without organ accompaniment things were a bit flat although respectfully done. Many altar servers were needed for High Mass and they had to be on their toes to perform well all the synchronized movements that re- quired considerable skill. At the beginning of Mass priest and servers went in procession through the congregation for the sprinkling of holy water accompanied by a special hymn for the occasion. During Mass incense was used in abundance adding extra dignity and the “odor of sanctity”. Since the altar was fixed to the sanctuary’s end wall, the priest offered Mass with his back to the people. At certain key times, particularly at the consecra- tion and just before Communion, the server rang a small bell to remind the worshippers of these important moments. At inter- vals the priest turned to the people to say or sing "The Lord be With you” (in Latin) and also to give his final blessing. At sermon time he would read again, this time in English, the Epistle and GOSPel. Father McCarthy always preached from the communion rail, but Father McKenna soon after his arrival used a fairly tidy Pulpit built with his own hands with three small steps leading Up to it. Since there were no printed bulletins, announcements Were made by the priest every Sunday just before the sermon. These covered a wide menu of community and parish activities