"The Lord had given her such a lively faith that, when she heard people say they wished they had lived when Christ walked on this earth, she would smile to herself, for she knew that we have Him as truly with us in the Most Holy Sacrament as people had Him then, and wonder what more they could possibly want."
{excerpt from "Theresa of Avila: Her Story"}
Austria has more holidays than any other country I know.
Due to their über Catholic history and the long intertwining of Church and State, most Catholic feast days are still recognized and celebrated in some way or another, even by those who aren't Christian
Which means...
most everyone has work off (except those poor souls that work in tourist-attracting venues)...hence those who aren't even Christian celebrate because they have a free day to relax and play!
all shops (even including most in the bustling first distric) are closed...including grocery stores...except two wonderful "Billa"s that are open on Sundays and holidays and save those of us who are more accustomed to 24/7 stores and forget/don't plan ahead.
the u-bahn and straßenbahns run less routes thus making you necessarily slow down your day and enjoy it
there is an extra beautiful celebration going on in a church near you
and if the feast day happens to be Fronleichnam, then that means you shouldn't be driving in a car because it is the day of the biggest processions for the Catholic churches in Austria. At the Stephansdom procession, you will even see the president of the republic and various government officials taking part as the Kardinal brings the Eucharist to the four altars outside of Stephansdom.
But today I was not at Stephansdom...I was at our home parish to celebrate with our friends and neighbors. Karmeliterkirche and St. Leopold Kirche are two parishes comprising the same Pfarrgemeinde (parish community). For Fronleichnam, a beautiful mass was celebrated here in Karmeliterkirche after which the Blessed Sacrament was exposed in the Church, and then led a procession through the neighborhood streets, stopping for some prayers and songs right in the center of the neighborhood's main square (Karmelitermarkt) and ending in Eucharistic Benediction in St. Leopold Kirche. The whole thing took 2.5 hours but no one ditched, no one complained about the heat. Tradition is so dear to the Austrians...they even still dress in dirndls and lederhosen especially for holiday masses (i.e. today). I just drank it in as I followed in the procession, singing the songs, looking ahead to the monstrance raised before us, then looking down at the ground at the petals strewn all over the street by the little children walking just ahead of the priest with the monstrance to prepare the way for the Holy of Holies. I couldn't help but think to myself...wow I wish we had the chance to do these things in America. Especially as a little kid...what a way to grow up...strewing petals before the Blessed Sacrament as its carried through your neighborhood and blessing every house and resident.
Anyways, wishing you a lovely and grace-filled Corpus Christi.
As always, we remained united in the Most Holy Eucharist
oh...and...check him out.
.so give it just a little time.
.share some bread and wine.
.weave your heart into mine.
No comments:
Post a Comment