Looking back at the weekly messages of Father Paul Counce, first published in The Carpenter, our weekly Parish Bulletin
Published: August 21, 2016
Last weekend certainly was an unusual one. The “500 year flooding” experienced in our area means no one was prepared for it and it caught us all by surprise. Many people who never thought they’d experience the anguish of losing property and being evacuated to shelters now have scenes of the tragedy seared into their memories. Both the news media and social media struggled to comprehend and share the sad story, which now is transitioning to a long, hard, expensive tale of cleanup and rebuilding. Elsewhere in the Bulletin is a short list of a few places where your donations can help!
One part of the story that needs to be remembered is how our entire community – of every background, ethnic group, race, language, social rank, economic class and religion – came together to help the victims. Even when their own families were being flooded out of their own homes, both “first responders” and volunteers with boats and muscles did heroic work in helping evacuees. Hospitality was offered not just to relatives but to everyone in need. Disaster was met with resolve not just to cope but overcome. This is the hallmark of a community with its values in the right place. Sure we have our problems – nobody is going to pretend that prejudice and poverty don’t exist, for example, and aggravation with our legendarily poor traffic is one universal constant! – but there is far more that is “right” with the people of the Baton Rouge area than many think. This gives us something to build on as everyone dries out and begins the slow process of recovery!
For the record, there was no damage or flooding on Cathedral Square. While the eastern “bluffs” above the Mississippi River in downtown Baton Rouge are not as spectacular as those up at Southern University, we’re significantly above the water level even when it’s at flood stage. And our recent “waterproofing” of the Cathedral building itself worked like a charm: not a drop inside despite all the rain!
No, the real “damage” to the Cathedral was, I suppose, to its people and their serenity! Attendance at Mass last weekend was pretty sparse – which was to be expected given how hard it was for many to get here and the fact that the bishop dispensed anyone in the affected areas from any obligation to come. I suspect that a good third of our regular congregation on weekends comes from communities along the Amite River in both EBR and Livingston Parishes: our thoughts and prayers remain with them. Perhaps another third were “high and dry” where they lived but unable to drive through water to get here. And just about everyone knows someone in their family or among their friends whose home was inundated. I’m not worried, though: since 1792 our Parish has survived and indeed thrived through hurricanes, wars, reconstruction, epidemics, depressions, and all sorts of other natural and man-made problems. If you’ll pardon the pun, we’ll “weather” the Great Floods of 2016 too!
One event coming up on our calendar that will surely take our minds off of the flooding problems, at least for a day, is our annual GRAND Day on Sunday, September 25. This is the day we honor all grandparents and grandchildren – since we’re all someone’s grandchild, that means everybody! The 12 noon Mass will be a special one, especially for children and grandparents, and after Mass we move over to our Hall, plaza, breezeways, parking lot and streets for a good old-fashioned party, with free hamburgers, hotdogs and icecream, softdrinks, pony rides, petting zoo, face-painting, balloons, caricatures, “Bubbles the camel” and this year a little train for children to ride! Be sure to mark your calendar, invite your grandchildren and grandparents, and come prepared for a good time in church and afterwards!
Yours in Christ,
Father Paul
