CCCATHEDRALATHEDRALATHEDRAL N N NEWSEWSEWS March 2011 Volume 16 Issue 7 Tulsa, Oklahoma
Holy Family
Photo: Cathy Nelson
Dear Parishioners of Holy Family Cathedral:
Lent is upon us and we are commissioned by the Lord to look closely at our lives and seek ways to improve our
response to God. We are called to deeper prayer, serious fasting and generous alms giving. Hopefully all are possi-
ble right here at Holy Family Cathedral.
Our Mass and confession schedule encourage us to deeper prayer. We are adding a third Mass on the Fridays of
Lent so that we can continue our practice of Mass, Adoration, Benediction and Stations of the Cross. In order to do
this our school has graciously moved the weekly all school Mass to Wednesday so that Fr. Van and I only have
three Masses to cover on Friday instead of four. Certainly the Stations of the Cross are a very proper and traditional
way to pray during the Lenten Season.
Fasting is of course very personal and should not in any way endanger your health. However a little less to eat for
the sake of an awareness of the needs of others is certainly in order. Our Lenten dinners are a great symbol of this
Lenten practice.
Alms giving can be accomplished by contributing to our Holy Family Cathedral Outreach, our Adopt a Student
Program for our school, or even finding that “Over the Hump” Envelope someplace on the desk. I am sure Catholic
Charities would not turn down and extra payment on your annual pledge as well. Looking beyond ourselves to the
needs of others heightens our awareness of the generosity of God that we celebrate during Holy Week.
Pray, fast and give alms, our most traditional means of deepening our spiritual lives.
Identification Statement The Cathedral News is published ten times per year by Holy Family Cathedral located at 122 West Eighth Street, Tulsa, OK 74119. This is Volume 16 Issue 7. Periodicals Postage Permit 022-729 is Paid in Tulsa, Oklahoma. POSTMAS-TER: Send address changes to: Holy Family Cathedral, P.O. Box 3204, Tulsa, OK 74101-3204.
Let us Pray, Fast and Give Alms,
Msgr. Gregory A. Gier
Rector
From the Rector
Three-Year Renovation Pledges update:
$69,146.00 is currently outstanding on the
pledges for the Renovation Fund.
Thank you for your continued generosity.
Fasting and Abstinence: Catholics, age 14 and older abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and all the Fridays of Lent. On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, Catholics - age 18-59 - abstain from meat and limit them-selves to one full meal each day. Prayer: Catholics are encouraged to pray more during Lent, especially with Scripture. Lent is also an ideal time to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation in preparation for the celebration of Christ’s Passion, Death, and Resurrection.
Holy�Family�
Cathedral���Tomato�Soup�and�Grilled�Cheese�Sandwiches�� � Mar.�11�
Gourmet�cheeses�melted�inside�delicately�toasted�bread�complemented�by�tomato�soup�makes�this�a�Lenten�classic.�
�Soup�and�Vegetable�Lasagna�� � � � � � � � Mar.�18�
�Soup�of�the�Day�is�Chef’s�Choice.��Potato�Soup� � � � � � � � � � � � � � � Mar.�25�
This�simple�and�delicious�meal�is�served�on�the�Solemnity�of�the�Annunciation�of�the�Lord.��Macaroni�&�Cheese� � � � � � � � � � � � Apr.�1�
Tender�pasta�meets�rich�creams�and�cheeses�in�this�variation�of�grandma’s�old�fashioned�recipe.�Served�with�warm,�toasted�bread.��
Pizza�� � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � Apr.�8�No�Lenten�fast�is�complete�without�Cheese�Pizza.�Choose�from�a�variety�of�meatless�pizza�pies.��
Pasta�with�Marinara�or�Alfredo�Sauce�� � � � � Apr.�15�Classic�Italian�pasta�cooked�al�dente�topped�with�your�choice�of�red�marinara�or�creamy�white�Alfredo�sauce.�
Holy�Family�
Cathedral�����
Lenten�Fridays��
5:05�Mass�5:35�Adoration�6:00�Dinner�
6:45�Benediction�7:00�Stations�of�the�Cross��
�
By�Reservation�only!��Make�reservations�by�Wednesday�for�each�week’s�dinner.�Call�Monika,�582-6247�ext.�18,�with�the�number�of�people�in�your�party.�
Lent at Holy Family
BY THE RCIA MINISTRY TEAM
On March 6th at the 10 AM Mass
our parish celebrated the Rite of
Sending in preparation for the Rite of
Election on March 20th. The group
has been hearing about Lent and
how we use that time to prepare for
Easter. With this Easter
Vigil being such an im-
portant event for those
entering the Church, this
Lent is also one of the
more dramatic times of
their lives. They’ve
come to realize why it
takes months to become
Catholic. It is more than
learning the tenets of the faith, or
even believing what the Church
teaches. It is an internal conversion
of life that can only happen over
time…and it continues for a lifetime.
Catechumens & Candidates Focus on Essentials of Being Catholic
Then on March 20th, catechumens,
candidates and their sponsors from
each parish in the diocese come to
Holy Family to be introduced to the
Bishop who welcomes them as they
continue their studies. The Bishop
accepts and signs the book of the
elect from each parish’s representa-
tive and speaks with encouragement
to those who’ve spent the last few
months experiencing the personal
conversion through prayer and study.
Upcoming classes will concentrate
on the sacraments of Penance and
Eucharist. The first of this series of
lessons, Last Things: Heaven, Hell
and Purgatory, is pre-
sented by Monsignor
Gier on Ash Wednes-
day, and is an appropri-
ate lead-in to Lent.
Those entering the Faith
will be invited to partici-
pate in the important
rituals of Holy Week, in-
cluding carrying the oils
to be blessed at the Chrism Mass,
the washing of the feet on Holy
Thursday, and the dressing of the al-
tar on Good Friday.
“It is more than learning the tenets of the faith, or even believing what the Church teaches. It is an internal conversion of life that can only happen over time…and it continues for a lifetime.”
Catechumens and candidates will
be individually interviewed by a
member of our clergy to assure that
the basics are understood and any
concerns can be addressed. We
can be assured that each new
Catholic will be fully prepared to
join our community. They will
know more about the faith than
many of us who’ve been Catho-
lic for years, but have not kept
studying about it, and thus have
lapsed into some misconcep-
tions. Especially in this part of
the country, it would be benefi-
cial for all of us to study some
apologetics so we can know the
common ground and differences be-
tween Catholic and Protestant teach-
ings.
The hospitality branch of the RCIA
team changes our refreshment fare
in keeping with the penitential em-
phasis during Lent. Refreshments
served are now likely bread,
pretzels, or crackers with herbed
olive oil, perhaps some cheese
or vegetable trays rather than
cookies and cakes. Our class on
Ash Wednesday had no food,
just some liquid refreshments,
as it was a day of fast and absti-
nence. We encourage our class
to enter the Catholic way of life
with an understanding of why we
fast and how it benefits our spiri-
tual life.
FOR LENT, REFRESHMENTS SERVED ARE NOW MORE LIKELY BREAD, PRETZELS OR CRACKERS...OR VEGETABLE TRAYS.
Holy Family School continues to thrive The Cathedral School may be Tulsa’s
oldest Catholic school, but it doesn’t act
a day over twenty.
The school’s leadership has found a
healthy balance between maintaining
more than eleven decades of traditions
and leading the school in new directions
as it continues to evolve.
Earlier this month, the students took
part in a Walk-A-Thon, a fundraiser for
the Home and School association which
in turn funds field trips and other student
activities. Parents sponsored students
who walked around a quarter-mile track
in the parking lot. This fun, outside activ-
ity gave the students an kinetic outlet
following a week of learning and testing.
Maintaining an aging building is one of
the inconvenient realities of running a
school with a long history. The school’s
roof has four large flat spaces where
water pools and penetrates into the
classroom ceilings. Principal Jay Luetke-
meyer challenged the students to save
coins towards repairs. If the students
donated more than $5,000, Mr. Luetke-
meyer promised to spend 24 hours on
the roof. The students donated
$5,586.30. The principal kept his prom-
ise, posting nighttime photos of the Ca-
thedral on the school’s facebook page.
The school’s mission has remained
the same: to educate Tulsa’s children.
The mission’s emphasis has changed
several times over the years. Saint
Katharine Drexel, the school’s early fin-
ancier, insisted that the school was
named “The Saint Therese Institute for
Creek Indian Girls.” The school’s focus
changed when it opened its doors to both
girls and boys and to children of every
ethnic background. It changed again
when the current building was built, pro-
viding much needed space for a lively
high school.
In the 1960s, Bishop Kelley High
School opened. Our school agreed to
close its high school to bolster the enroll-
ment of BKHS. Closing the high school
brought our student population from over
300 students down to less than 100.
The most recent decades have chal-
lenged the school’s mission again. A
changing downtown Tulsa provides new
opportunities for growth. Principal Jay
Luetkemeyer is working with enthusiastic
parents and supporters - perhaps the
most involved in the school’s history.
They are exploring the school commu-
nity’s needs and desires. The leadership
recently created of a three-year-old pre-
school, scheduled to open this Fall.
Continuing growth. There’s something
about Holy Family.
STUDENTS COMPLETE LAPS AROUND THE PARKING LOT IN THE WALK-A-THON.
STUDENTS DROP CHANGE INTO COUNTERS TO BENEFIT THE ROOF REPAIRS.
Notes from the Knightstand
Lent! It finally arrived!
Aah, March! You have arrived -
more like a lamb and let us hope that
your exit is not like the lion! Poor
March! Originally the first of ten
months (later twelve) it was rele-
gated to third place by jolly King
Numa Ponpilius circa 700 B.C. Along
with its demotion it also lost the New
Year Day celebration as New Year's
Day has always been the prerogative
of First Month. That honor now went,
as I am sure that you are aware, to
January. So March sort of lan-
guished as a cipher month - a wait-
ing room for Spring so to speak. That
is - until the Christian era when Lent
made its appearance which made
March a month to be respected, to
say the least, for its preview of
Easter.
I recall the dread with which I
would look forward to March for Lent
meant the draconian sacrifices of no
movies, no comics, and restricted
Holy Family Council 10388
radio for six weeks! Nothing moved
slower than the 40 days of Lent!
The only reprieve was that ap-
proximately mid-way there was St.
Patrick's Day which was not only not
a day of Lent but also no school -
which meant a movie at 1 p.m. and
radio programs until Early Evening.
Had it not been for St. Patrick I doubt
that I would have survived childhood!
And then there is Lent itself: if it is
40 days why are there actually 46
days? Nell, the Church never consid-
ered Sunday as a Lenten day so 46
days less 6 Sundays gives one 40
days. Except in our household: there
were 45 days of Lent. Period! 45
days? Well, there was St. Patrick's
Day and to mother, being Irish, that
day was sacrosanct and thereby
ends the tale.
Jumping ahead now to the current
comings and goings found a coterie
of Knights along with sundry kith and
kin at Clear Creek Monastery on the
5th. for the annual cut, clear, and
cast into the fire centuries of brush
and bush. Backs ached, hands cal-
loused, but spirits never waned. The
pay was meager-a free lunch-but
they all said it was great!
Meanwhile, the truck is gassed,
storage rented, and the phones are
open for collection of your garage
sale donations. Certain restrictions
apply: no appliances, mattresses,
clothing, or construction material for
various legitimate reasons. Heavier
items may require a later scheduled
pick-up. Look for a mendicant meal
prior to Stations each Friday circa
5:30-6:30 p.m. It is free but dona-
tions always accepted - and pan-
cakes & sausage on the 20th. It ain't
free but is really cheap! So, allow me
to say, "Slan agus beannacht
leat!” (Goodbye and Blessings with
you!) Síocháin! (Peace!)
BY MARTIN REIDY
While others shoveled cleared and raked
at Holy Keep for God-ness sake
I awaited the phone to ring
to come by and get those things
That you so searched both high and low
for that "junque" that's gotta go!
Holy Family Cathedral
P.O. Box 3204
Tulsa, OK 74101-3204