Ordinariate Requiem Mass & Evensong at Knights of Columbus Founder's Church

At St. Mary's Catholic Church in New Haven, where Knights of Columbus founder Blessed Michael McGivney is buried, the Pre-Ordinariate Fellowship of Connecticut is holding a Requiem Mass and Evensong for the Faithful Departed in the Ordinariate form.

The Wed. Nov. 18th Requiem Mass, according to Divine Worship: the Missal is at 7:30 pm, and is preceded by 7:10 pm Evensong for the Faithful Departed from the Ordinariate's Office of the Dead.

The "OrdinariateCT" fellowship is made up of members and friends of the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, principally located around New Haven, Connecticut and Springfield, Massachusetts. It is one of the several pre-Ordinariate groups featured on the ACS Map.

In this ACS interview, Jackson Perry, an Ordinariate member and instituted acolyte, speaks about the OrdinariateCT's upcoming Mass and Evensong, future plans, and how to get involved.  

Can you tell me about the Divine Worship Requiem Mass you're having on Nov. 18th? What are some of the distinctive ceremonies and music involved?
On November 18^th at 7:30 PM, we’ll be having a Requiem Mass for all the Faithful Departed in the Ordinariate Use at St. Mary’s in New Haven. One of the Catholic practices which, during the Reformation had almost died out in Protestant England, was the practice of praying for the faithful departed. During the Anglo-Catholic movement, however, many began to reincorporate elements from the Catholic Church into the Church of England, identifying with their ancestors’ loyalty to the Roman Rite.

The Ordinariate, which many members see as completing the journey towards unity which drove forward the Anglo-Catholics, incorporates these same elements (that often impelled those involved towards further unity): the use of black vestments, the use of a catafalque, the chanting of the Dies Irae, and the offering of Masses not only for a single departed family member, but for all the faithful departed.

Of course, the ceremonial itself is Anglo-Catholic, and the texts are taken from earlier translations by those in and around the Anglo-Catholic movement. The translation of the Dies Irae, for example, is the Rev. William Irons’ 1849 translation.
 
Do you have more events planned for this year or next?
While this is our last in-person event in New Haven for 2020, we are working out some sort of Zoom event over winter break which we hope to announce at the event. We will likely restart the Zoom fellowship we had over the summer.

There is also a group of CT Ordinariate fellowship members just over the border in Springfield, Massachusetts, who will be continuing their wonderful Sunday Evensong Fellowship. Most of the Ordinariate members around New Haven are currently students, and therefore we will start back up with the Spring Semester, continuing weekly Evensong and, hopefully, more occasional Masses.

Where does the Pre-Ordinariate Fellowship of Connecticut meet? 
Currently, members attend local parishes, gathering weekly to pray Evensong as an enrichment of our local parish life. For those in the New Haven or Springfield area who are interested, come visit us one week!

Fr. Leo Camurati O.P., a Dominican priest near the New Haven area, has learned the Ordinariate Use, and hopes to be able to offer occasional Masses as well. Fr. John Paul Walker O.P., pastor of St. Mary’s in New Haven, where Blessed Michael McGivney [founder of the Knights of Columbus] is buried, has kindly offered St. Mary’s for these occasional Masses. We were thrown off by Coronavirus, but are hoping to do all we can!
 
Are you aiming to become an Ordinariate community?
As things currently stand, the Ordinariate CT fellowship can do the most good as a small ministry enriching local parish life. For this reason, it’s seemed best to focus on home Evensong, rather than aiming for a monthly Mass. In this regard, we are very hopeful for the Ordinariate’s forthcoming Divine Worship: Daily Office book — even reading it online, the provisional Office has been a great blessing for our families. For those members that are students, having a closer connection to the Ordinariate for a few years may bear fruit elsewhere. But for those permanently settled in Connecticut and Springfield, we'll see what God holds in the future.

How can a person get involved? 
Please like us on Facebook, let us know at [email protected] if you’d like to be on the email list for announcements, and tell us if you’re interested in attending or visiting our home Evensongs. And keep us in your prayers, that we bear whatever fruit God has in store!