Dear Parishioners and Friends,
Although a forecast of heavy rain forced us indoors, this year’s edition of “Music Under the Stars” last Saturday, September 6th, was a resounding success. Over eighty parishioners, including friars, gathered in the Franciscan Center for a delicious dinner provided by Casa Mia on the Green, while enjoying the music of the Leslie Alexandra Quartet. Many thanks to Jim Moriarty and his crew of volunteers, as well as Alan Duverger, our maintenance manager, for taking care of all the arrangements. We hope you will plan to join us next year near the end of August for “Music Under the Stars 3!”
Patricia Curtis, Richard Kisiel, Paige Corral, Lucianne and Joe Patoka, Chris Kehoe, and Rod and Deb Pelletier.
Members of the Leslie Alexander Quartet and two aging rockstars?
This weekend the church celebrates the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The feast commemorates the dedication in the year 335 of churches in Jerusalem that were built on the sites of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.
As Christians, the cross is the preeminent symbol of our faith. We make the sign of the cross often: when we eat our meals, or when we enter or leave a church. We begin and end every Mass with the sign of the cross. You could say that we live our lives under the shadow of the cross of Jesus Christ.
The image of the cross on the cover of this bulletin is the so-called Cimabue crucifix. It is attributed to the Florentine painter Cimabue, who lived c. 1240 to 1302. The work was commissioned by the Franciscan friars of the church of Santa Croce in 1265. It is one of the first Italian artworks to break from the late medieval Byzantine style and is renowned for its technical innovations and humanistic iconography.
Standing over 14 feet tall, the crucifix features a painted image of Jesus after his death flanked by portraits of his mother Mary, the Sorrowful Mother, and John the beloved disciple.
In 1966, the crucifix was heavily damaged when the Arno River burst its banks and flooded the city of Florence. Thousands of art works were damaged or destroyed, and the crucifix lost 60% of its paint. The photo shows workmen carrying the damaged cross out of Santa Croce.
The cross of San Damiano which supposedly spoke to Francis and told him to rebuild the church (the cross which hangs above our altar) is often referred to as “the Franciscan cross” because of its connections with Francis and his vocation to serve the church in a unique manner as “the little poor one.” However, I feel that the Cimabue crucifix, commissioned by Franciscans, is more aptly a Franciscan cross. The body of Jesus, slumped in death while blood trickles from his hands and feet, emphasizes the humanity of our Savior in a realistic manner, in contrast to the more rigid or static image of Christ found on the San Damiano cross. A 13th century Franciscan meditation on Christ, which emphasized pathos and human interest in the suffering of the Passion, said: “Turn your eyes away from His divinity for a little while and consider Him purely as a man.”
Blessings on your week ahead!
Fr. Tim Shreenan, O.F.M.
Pastor