St. Patrick's Day & St. Joseph's Day

Like every year, the historically Irish parish of Most Holy Trinity will have a large celebration on St. Patrick's Day. The church normally fills up quickly with many police officers, firefighters, elected officials, etc. in attendance. This year’s celebration will honor Msgr. Russell Kohler, the longtime pastor who died last year.

+ MostHolyTrinityMinistries.org

The Solemnity of St. Joseph is normally celebrated on March 19th, but since that's a Sunday this year, the observation is transferred to Monday, Monday 20th. St. Joseph Oratory will celebrate the day with 15 hours of prayer and activities, including three Masses, opportunities for Confession, food, and a procession to/from Eastern Market.

+ Institute-Christ-King.org

Solemnity of Saint Joseph: March 19th

 Events in the Church 
6:30 AM:   Private Confession Available
7:00 AM:   Mass celebrated by Fr. Gregory Tokarski followed by
                      Saint Joseph Novena Prayers and Veneration of 
                     Saint Joseph Relic
8:00 AM:  Public Recitation of the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary and
                     Saint Joseph Novena Prayers
9:00 AM:   Classical Organ Recital
10:00 AM: Guided Tour of the Church
11:00 AM:  Solemn Exposition and Benediction of the Most Blessed Sacrament with
                     Saint Joseph Novena Prayers
11:00 AM: Private Confession Available
NOON:       Mass celebrated by Bishop Donald Hanchon with the 
                     St. Joseph Cappella followed by Blessing of Bread,
                     St. Joseph Novena Prayers and Veneration of St. Joseph Relic
1:30 PM:    Guided Tour of the Church
2:30 PM:   Public Recitation of the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary and 
                     Saint Joseph Novena Prayers
3:00 PM:   Stations of the Cross followed by the Divine Mercy Chaplet and
                     Saint Joseph Novena Prayers
4:00 PM:   Classical Organ Recital
5:00 PM:   Private Confession Available
5:30 PM:   Public Recitation of the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary and
                     Saint Joseph Novena Prayers
6:00 PM:  Tridentine High Mass celebrated by Fr. Robert Marczewski
                     with the St. Joseph Cappella followed by Saint Joseph Novena
                     and Veneration of Saint Joseph Relic
7:30 PM:    Guided Tour of the Church

 Events in parish hall 

1:00 PM to 5:00 PM:

Saint Joseph Homemade Pasta, Soup, Salad, and Dessert Meal in Parish Hall.  Tickets can be purchased at the door and are $10 per individual, $5 for children eight years old & under.

10:00 AM to 8:00 PM: 

Religious Items Store in Parish Hall including traditional Saint Joseph Statues, Pictures, Books, Medals, Blessed Saint Joseph Oil from Montreal, Rosaries, DVD’s & CD’s.

St. Joseph's Altar Display in Parish Hall is an Italian tradition for the purpose of giving thanks, providing food for the poor, and spreading devotion to the friendship of St. Joseph.  Traditionally, people offer fruit,  handmade breads, and meatless dishes.  Prayer requests and notes of thanks are also often placed on the  altar.  Sometimes loved ones are remembered as well.  If you would like to help create this altar by bringing baked goods, flowers, or canned foods, please call Michael at the telephone number listed below.  

For more information, call (248) 250-6005 or visit saint-joseph-detroit.org

O Blessed Saint Joseph, faithful guardian and protector of virgins, to whom God entrusted Jesus and Mary, I implore you by the love which you did bear them, to preserve me from every defilement of soul and body, that I may always serve them in holiness and purity of love. Amen.

"I know by experience that the glorious St. Joseph assists us generally in all necessities. I never asked him for anything which he did not obtain for me."

— St. Teresa of Avila

St. Patrick's Day in Corktown

Most Holy Trinity, established 1834, is a historically Irish parish. As such, they customarily celebrate a special Mass on St. Patrick's Day. Bishop Donald Hanchon will celebrate Noon Mass on Monday, March 17.

 

The celebration typically involves a lot of pomp and circumstance. They always have a pipe band, a Knights of Columbus honor guard, police & fire honor guards, and the church overflows with congregants. Below is footage, albeit shaky, of the closing procession from last year's Mass.

Most Holy Trinity is located at 1050 Porter Street, one block south of Michigan Avenue and just west of the Lodge Expressway.

A luncheon to benefit Most Holy Trinity School will follow Mass. The 1:30pm–4:30pm luncheon will be at IBEW Hall, one block west of the church. The luncheon includes a buffet of Irish food, complimentary beer & wine, and Irish music for a $30 donation. Tickets are available from the rectory and, the last time I went, also sold at the door.

Start your St. Patrick's Day celebration the traditional Irish way — with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass!

For more info, contact the rectory at 313-965-4450

Photos of the church: AOD Film Services & Sherlock Photo

Parish history: Landmarks of Wayne County and Detroit & Detroit in 1849
History of St. Patrick's Day: The History Channel 
Another blog post about the parish: Detroit Pilgrim

Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

This feast day, December 12, is a huge celebration for Mexican Catholics as Our Lady of Guadalupe is the patroness of Mexico. The large Catholic, Latino population in southwest Detroit had many celebrations at multiple churches throughout the day. I had the opportunity to celebrate the morning Las Mañanitas at Most Holy Redeemer. 

Las Mañanitas are traditional songs that Mexicans sing early in the morning on special holidays, including the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The celebration started with a group performance of traditional Aztec music and dance.

 

Afterwards, Auxiliary Bishop Donald Hanchon led a brief prayer service.

After prayer, the concert began. About a dozen Mexican folk music groups performed continuously for the next two hours. All of the songs were performed in a manner reminiscent of ad orientem, as the performers typically faced the altar.

I was pleased to see the church beyond capacity, to the point that hundreds of people had to stand in the side aisles.

Devotees commemorated the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe by placing votive candles and flowers at side altars. The high altar featured a large, decorated image of La Virgen.

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In the evening, I attended a Spanish Mass at St. Hedwig along with three friends. Many different flags were carried in the procession, including several representing Latin America, since Our Lady of Guadalupe is the Patroness of the Americas.

After the homily, parishioners did a representation of the Our Lady of Guadalupe apparitions.

Of course, images of Our Lady of Guadalupe were placed at the foot of the altar and many people brought flowers, prayed, and posed for pictures.

After Mass, everybody gathered in the social hall beneath the church for food, music, and dance performances. 

 

Here, we saw traditional Latin dancing, including more of the Aztec dances, but a majority of the dances had some Spanish influence.