GUIDED TOURS -

ESPECIALLY CHURCHES

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “Guided Tours - Especially Churches.”

NEW YORK CITY

Let me begin this way.

Years ago my niece Maryna invited me to go with her on guided tour in Manhattan, New York City. She was attending NYU at the time  - getting her degree in English literature and - she was asked to write a review for the school newspaper of one of 10 guided tours this company invited folks to make.

This one started at the Chrysler Building and ended up in Columbus Circle. Two hours in the morning - 10 till 12, then lunch, then 1 to 3 PM.

It didn’t include churches. Looking back, maybe one of the 10 tours was 10 churches or holy places in Manhattan or where have you?

I still remember a good bit of that day - and how enlightening it was - and for years later it gave me places I would take people who had never been to Manhattan before.

STATIONED IN LIMA, OHIO

When I was stationed in Lima, Ohio later on - in the 90’s - myself and a good priest friend of mine - were in a different parish  - preaching a parish mission - for a  week for about 20 weeks a year. We did that for 8 ½ years.

These were small parishes, so when we were there we began asking folks, “If you had visitors to this town, where would you bring someone?”

Annie Oakley

We went to Annie Oakley’s birthplace near Willowdell and Miamisburg, Ohio, and we went to Joe E. Brown’s birthplace near Holgate, Ohio and on and on and on.

Joe E. Brown

One place we preached was Delphos, Ohio. It was a huge church in the middle of nowhere, Ohio. The steeple was 222 feet high and you could see it from every farm for some 20 miles around or so.

The church was built in the 1800’s and it was in pretty bad shape when we first saw it. Different pastors raised money for a renovation - but a major fix up was rejected by parishioners down through the years. It was a big beautiful old German church with great wood carvings inside.

A Father Tom Gorman became pastor. He was a renaissance man and managed to get the church renovated. He didn’t destroy the treasures within - but enhanced and updated the church.

Surprise! The renovation that folks had rejected became honored. After all was finished, I found out that whenever folks had visitors from other parts of the country or what have you, the first place they brought folks to, was their church.

AN ASIDE

The following is an aside. Father Tom Gorman asked me once if we Redemptorists had a place in Manhattan, he would get a few overnights in - with two couples from his parish.

I called and asked our provincial house if 5 people could use the guest house there for 3 nights. A priest from Ohio wanted to visit New York City and see St. John Divine Church for the blessing of the animals on the feast of St. Francis of Assisi.

I got the rooms and they went. I was anxious to hear after they got back that they had a good time and received wonderful hospitality.

I met Tom at a meeting and he said it was a great trip and the Redemptorists showed him and his friends great hospitality.

The best news he told me went like this.

They wanted to get from Shore Road up to 4^th Avenue to get a subway car over to Manhattan. It’s a big hill and they were pointed in the correct direction.  However, when they saw a UPS truck they asked the driver, “Do you know how to get up to 4^th Avenue so we can get the R train.”  The UPS driver said, “Hop in.”

Then Tom said, “You’re not going to believe this. That evening when we got off the subway on 4^th avenue and 75^th street - Bay Ridge Avenue - they spotted a different UPS truck and they asked the driver if he knew how to get down to Shore Road. He said, “Yes, hop in.”

 I felt great. Not only did our house at Shore Road show great hospitality, but Brooklyn did as well.

NOW ST. MARY’S - TODAY’S FEAST DAY

Let me get to my last point.

Where do you take folks who visit you here in Annapolis?

My suggestion is St. Mary’s Church - Annapolis, Maryland.

Next suggestion: buy Robert Worden’s book - Saint Mary’s Church in Annapolis Maryland, A Sesquicentennial History, 1853-2003.

Since today is the feast of St. Martin de Porres, it hit me to make a visit to the statue of St.  Martin de Porres at St. Mary’s. It’s about 2 feet high. It was placed in the church in 1974.

By Reading Robert Worden’s book - taking notes - one could give a brief history of the Black Community in Annapolis. There was a St. Augustine’s church which lasted till 

I have to admit that I have not done my homework. So I have that on my agenda list.

Next one would have to do one’s homework on the life of Martin de Porres, a black or mulatto Dominican brother who worked in Lima, Peru. His dates are ….

I love the story that when there was a money shortage at the church he served he said, “Take me and sell me as a slave.”

CONCLUSION

So that’s a few thoughts about Guided Tours - especially of local churches. Amen.