It was a larger-than-normal morning Mass crowd at St. Lawrence Church in Alexandria. Parishioners arrived early to celebrate the 55th anniversary of the church, and to witness the blessing of the new stained-glass window of Our Lady of Guadalupe Dec. 12.
Usher Lou Santone’s mind drifted back to the exact date in 1970, when he was a 10-year-old altar server for the church dedication.
“This is my church and it always will be,” he said. “We’ve had marriages and funerals for many family members here. It means a lot to see how it’s grown, how diverse the community has become and all the good things that this parish is involved in.”
In his homily, Bishop Michael F. Burbidge talked about the significance of the large stained-glass image of Our Lady of Guadalupe being positioned over the main entrance to the narthex.
“It’s placement is so important as we depart church after celebrating the Eucharist to go out into the world,” he said. “That window will help us to look up and to remember that we never go out into the world with these challenges and these crosses alone. As we go out, Mary is with us. She’s accompanying us, she’s walking with us. She’s there to protect us. And so we have every reason to rejoice.”
After Mass, Bishop Burbidge blessed the new window with holy water, along with other stained-glass images that have been added in the last five years, including that of Pope John Paul II, the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Michael the Archangel and St. Charbel. An empty window awaits a St. Faustina image that will complete the upper reaches of the narthex.
But it’s the newest stained glass that is the stunning focal point. “It’s 6 feet in diameter and the inscription reminds parishioners that the church was dedicated on Dec. 12, 1970,” said Father Ronald J. Gripshover, pastor. “It has a bunch of roses, as we all know that the roses came out of the tilma of Juan Diego when he presented himself to the bishop.”
Now home to 1,600 families, St. Lawrence boasts many longtime parishioners who turned out in big numbers for the blessing. “It’s phenomenal,” said Dawne Deaver, whose family sponsored the window of Pope John Paul II. “The folks in this parish and the priests are extremely faithful and dedicated and the church is never empty. We have a deep faith and dedication to the church.”
It was an emotional event for Doris and Emmett O’Hare, who were the principal donors for the new window. “Oh my goodness, it’s a wonderful day,” said Doris with tears in her eyes. “We’re constantly praying for her intercession.”
“Our Lady was the one who guided me to her,” said Emmett, as he looked at his wife. “This is just something we wanted to do and when Father told us about the special day on Dec. 12, we said, ‘That’s perfect.’ It just fits so well with this church. It really does.”
