July 1989 Print

By the Editor

An account of the ceremonies and events of the Ordination Day

 

The Society of St. Pius X has four new priests in the United States. What a great and joyous day June 24th was in Winona! An absolutely splendid day was given by God, despite the fact the weatherman predicted rain. Some 400 faithful came to southeast Minnesota to witness the ordination of four Americans to the priesthood and two to the diaconate, and to see the wonders that God has wrought in our days.

The beautiful Seminary of the Society in Winona, Minnesota

The wonderful new seminary is one of the wonderful gifts God has given us. It's absolutely unbelievable. Two years ago it was an abandoned, decaying eye sore, and today, through almost a miracle, it has become a beautiful site for sore eyes. Though the materials and machinery bought to restore the seminary has been a heavy expense, the work that went into the structure and area surrounding it was almost completely donated by extremely talented laity and hard-working seminarians and brothers. Groves of trees and brush have been cleared, orchards and gardens planted, paths and ways made through the woods, grass trimmed and fields tended to make the outside of the seminary so beautiful that one hates to leave. If they're trying to give our boys an idea of heaven they're doing a good job, except now the boys are doing the work. Heaven will be like it—minus the work! One kind woman at the ceremony smiled, "If you can't pray walking on these grounds with such beautiful scenery, you won't be able to pray anywhere." What thanks we owe to God for His bountiful gifts—the Society has been given a jewel. As Fr. Schmidberger pointed out, "This seminary is the most beautiful house of the Society."

Before I get too carried away, let's go inside. The chapel is typically monastic with 82 choir stalls facing one another down the aisle of the nave. The floors are marble—there's a pipe organ in the church and another organ in the choir loft. On the wall is a huge crucifix and an image of St. Dominic kneeling before Christ. The church is kept immaculately clean, and one's heart rises to God when the Gregorian chant is sung. The acoustics are excellent, and the sunlight shines through the beautiful stained glass windows of Dominican saints. The chapel is just fine for the seminary, though in all honesty, there is not enough room for the faithful, and the huge crucifix is far from inspirational. Nevertheless, nothing need be changed, for the chapel accommodates the faithful at the two Sunday masses and the crucifix might not be very devotional, but it's not bad and it is huge. They have several smaller chapels upstairs, and though Our Lady's chapel is not quite complete, St. Joseph's chapel on the third floor is very beautifully done. The seminarians' rooms are small but compact—equipped with built in book shelves, dresser, closet, and sink. On each of the three floors there is one wing with rooms like this. The other wing has the priests' rooms that come with their own bath, though they are also small compared to Ridgefield's rooms for professors. At the end of each wing are classrooms that have finely crafted tables like the refectory. All through the seminary one is amazed at the amount of craft-work that has been accomplished. There are pieces of fine woodwork seemingly everywhere and I was continually told it was built by one of the men who've donated their labor.

An aerial view on Ordination Day.

The beautiful ceremony was another gift from God in many ways. Rain had been predicted for June 24th and the bishop suggested all pray fervently for fair skies; otherwise the outdoor services would be quite uncomfortable for the over 400 in attendance. But as Saturday dawned bright and sunny, we were given the first of God's many gifts to us all that day.

The ceremony began just after 9:00—the bells of the church tolled and the chant of the well-trained choir filled the morning sky. Out of the church and across the lawn came the long procession of servers, priests, ordinands, and finally the bishop and his ministers. The sight of the bishop in his full regalia was striking. Normally Bishop Williamson wears a simple black cassock like any priest; the only sign of his episcopal dignity being his pectoral cross and ring. Fitted out in sparkling gold vestments, white shoes and mitre, he slowly made his way to the red and white tent carrying his golden crozier. The procession was quite an impressive sight, but what probably made the greatest impression on the crowd were the faces of the six ordinands; solemn, humble, steady, but perhaps a bit fearful of the great dignities about to be entrusted them. They took their places at the front of the tent holding a lighted candle in their right hand and the vestments of their future office over their left arm.

In his sermon the bishop reminded the young men who were soon to be priests that they ought to imitate the virtues of St. John the Baptist (whose feast day it was) by practicing humility and self-effacement. As a matter of fact, one could say the sermon was a lesson in humility, for the bishop was quite strong at times in his words to drive his points home.

Fr. Paul Tague gives his first priestly blessings.

Following the sermon, Fr. Schmidberger called up the ordinands to the altar. The deacons were to be ordained at this point, but all ordinands first prostrated on the ground to invoke the help of the saints. The Litany of the Saints was chanted by the cantor of the seminary and by Fr. Couture. The faithful all responded. Following this the priests-to-be were dismissed, and Todd Angele and Thomas Scott were ordained to the diaconate. Next year these two, God willing, will be ordained priests along with Scott Allen and Ken Dean; two other Americans studying in Ecône.

Now came the greatest of God's gifts and wonders to us this day—the ordination of four young men to the priesthood. Following the deacons' ordination, the Gradual was sung and then came the call of those to be ordained priests. As their name and hometown were called, each of the four answered "Adsum," that is, "I am here, ready to do Thy will, O God." Fr. Schmidberger, the assistant priest, then requested that these four be ordained. "Do you know them to be worthy?" the Bishop asked in Latin. And Fr. Schmidberger answered that in so far as human frailty could know he thought them to be worthy. "Deo Gratias" responded the Bishop, and he then proceeded to admonish the four candidates: Paul Kimball of Higganum, Connecticut; Paul Tague of DeWitt, Iowa; John Young of St. Louis, Missouri; and John Timothy Pfeiffer of Boston, Kentucky.

 

In every sacrament there are outward signs or external actions performed along with the essential or necessary words said by the minister. The external sign is called the 'matter', and the words are called the form. In the sacrament of Holy Orders the laying of the hands by the bishop is the matter. One by one the four knelt before Bishop Williamson for this sacred laying of hands. After the bishop laid his hands on each of them, all the priests present also laid their hands on the ordinands. But the young men are not yet priests, for the essential words have not yet been said by the Bishop. These words are said by the bishop during a Preface that is sung at this moment in the ceremonies. While the four men knelt before him, Bishop Williamson sang the Preface. And then coming to these sublime words, he lowered his voice and recited the form of the sacrament:

"Grant we implore Thee Almighty Father to these Thy servants the dignity of the priesthood. Renew within them the spirit of holiness that they may keep the rank of Thy service which they have received from Thee, and by their conduct they may afford a pattern of holy living. May they be worthy fellow workers of our order, and may every kind of righteousness shine forth in them. So that hereafter giving a good account of the stewardship committed to them they may obtain the reward of never-ending bliss."

Bishop Williamson lowers the chasuble over one of the new priests. Pictured to the right of the Bishop are Fr. Delallo and Ed McDonald.

They are now priests, but there are yet several beautiful ceremonies that emphasize the duties and powers of the priest. The first of these is the vesting of the new priests. Their stoles as deacons were worn from one shoulder across the chest. As priests the stole is now crossed in front to remind them that the sign of the cross of Christ and all that it represents is to be their lot in life. Afterwards the chasuble is placed over them, which reminds them every time they wear it that they are temples or houses of the Lord, where He deigns to come and dwell so regularly. While the aesthetic hymn, "Veni Creator" is chanted the priests' hands are anointed with sacred chrism. Then they touch the chalice and the paten while the bishop says, "Receive power to offer the Holy Sacrifice."

Another beautiful ceremony that shows their priestly powers is the one that takes place following Communion. The bishop intones the hymn, "Jam non dicam"—"I will no longer call you servants, but friends," and then later he lays both his hands on the heads of the new priests, saying, "Receive the Holy Ghost. Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven..." The power to absolve sinners is thus shown, perhaps the greatest gift the priest has after the privilege and power to say Mass.

From the Offertory to the Last Blessing, the new priests con-celebrate the Mass with the bishop. This then is actually the first Mass they say. Each of the new priests had an older priest assisting them. Fr. Snyder assisted Fr. Timothy Pfeiffer; Fr. Couture was with Fr. Paul Tague, Fr. Tam helped Fr. John Young, and Fr. Delaplace assisted Fr. Paul Kimball.

At the end of the Mass all six of the ordinands were given a penance. The deacons were to say the Office of Matins while the priests were to say three Masses; in honor of Our Lady, the Holy Ghost, and for the Poor Souls.

The ceremony ended gloriously with the singing of the "Te Deum" and the chiming of the bells—thanksgiving to the good Lord for all the wonders and gifts of this Ordination Day.

The new priests received their assignments from Fr. Schmidberger, and to the great joy of Americans, they're all being stationed here in the United States. Fr. Timothy Pfeiffer will become a professor at the Seminary; Fr. Paul Kimball will join the staff at St. Mary's College and Academy in Kansas; and both Fr. Paul Tague and Fr. John Young will receive training under Fr. Lafitte at the Retreat House in Ridgefield, Connecticut.

"Receive the Holy Ghost whose sins you shall forgive they are forgiven."		Ordained priests impose hands on the ordinands.
The call of the ordinands		Bishop Williamson gives the kiss of peace to Fr. Tim Pfeiffer.
The candidates prostrate during the Litany of the Saints.
(L-R) Fr. Schmidberger, Fr. Aulagnier, Fr. Witra, Bishop Williamson, Fr. Laisney and seminarians.
The deacons: Todd Angele and Thomas Scott		Bishop Williamson distributes Holy Communion as Fr. Ward assists.
Fr. John Young concelebrates the Mass assisted by Fr. Tam.		Fr. Paul Kimball says his first Mass.