A joyous day for "Rome of the West"

What a day! I am exhausted and dehydrated and I think I pulled a muscle in my left forearm - but it was AMAZING to be part of Archbishop Carlson's installation ceremonies. Seeing and hearing the Church of St. Louis come together to celebrate was literally awesome. I got goosebumps hearing the Cathedral echo with congregation responses like "Let us give thanks to the Lord our God." Today was a celebration for Catholic America in general; many other bishops attended the installation. There were also Knights of Columbus, Knights of Malta, Knights of Peter Claver, and a Russian Orthodox bishop.

My dear family was there in spirit, watching EWTN coverage for footage of my bell ringing. I was on TV twice! Sadly, the Archdiocese did not include images of us ringers in their installation photo gallery. Here are some other choir members, though. Just picture me in one of these robes.


I love this stunning shot of the altar during the entrance procession. (I also wish Theodora the camera was powerful enough to do this. I'll post my own shots of the Cathedral later.)


Here is our new shepherd! I met Archbishop Carlson at the reception after Solemn Vespers last night. He graciously stood for nearly two hours to greet everyone who wanted to meet him, and did the same thing again today.


Today's brief homily was well-said and inspiring. Unity and facing challenges were some of the main themes. Here are my favorite parts (emphasis mine.)

As the Holy Spirit is poured out upon us, we come to share ever more deeply in the life and mission of Christ — and His glory becomes our glory.
But the glory of Christ is the cross!

We will never compromise our commitment to life!

(Quoting Pope Benedict)" ...the message of hope we are called to proclaim and embody in a world where self-centeredness, greed, violence, and cynicism so often seem to choke the fragile growth of grace in people's hearts."

I will never ordain a man a priest that I do not know.

May your prayerful support and my hope in Jesus Christ fill my heart with compassion, allowing me to draw near to all those who suffer and allow me to bind up the wounds of the poor and build bridges with the alienated as I serve Christ as His disciple and a friend to all.

Let us never forget that, "In the Church there is a diversity of ministries, but there is only one aim — the sanctification of all.” (Blessed Escriva)