Week Eighty-One - Guardian Angels
5:00 Saturday afternoon mass, Guardian Angels. Weather conditions made travel to the other side of town less than ideal this weekend, but travel we did. It was that same persistent and, occasionally, heavy rain, however, that made for the most interesting part of the trip. More on that later. First, "GA."
The Guardian Angels complex is prominently situated on Beechmont Avenue in Mount Washington, directly across from McNicholas High School. You can't miss either. Guardian Angels definitely falls into the Big Church category. It's tall, it's wide, and it's deep. Even though the pews were only about half filled at this particular mass, there were a lot of people in attendance. After returning to my own seat after receiving communion, I was astonished by the number of people still in line after me - and that was just a fraction of the congregation.
Guardian Angels has a lot of pews, pews as far as the eye can see, pews so close together that it's difficult getting into a kneeling position or rising from one. Sections of pews surround the altar on all four sides. The sections are not all of the same size, but combined, they're a force to be reckoned with. I sat on the front side of the altar, the largest of the seating areas. Two areas of pews on either side of the altar were smaller but still substantial. The smallest of the sections was positioned behind the altar. Ironically, it was also the fullest. Not sure what the draw there was - a longing for pre-Vatican II days or quick access to the closest door to the parking lot.
GA isn't really much to see - if you can see it. The sanctuary was kept ridiculously dim (and cold) until just before mass began. Maybe they were saving on those electric bills - admirable - but I was personally worried about My Husband the Heathen nodding off before the show even started. From the Let's-Be-Literal Department, both the altar and the lectern have angels on them. I'll take a leap of faith here and say they are guardian angels. Yeah, the focus here is definitely on function - seating - over aesthetics.
I did immediately notice something different at Guardian Angels which now has me thinking back to many of the other churches I've visited. From my perspective at GA, the statue of Mary was on the right of the altar, and the statue of Joseph was on the left. It didn't look right, and I kept wondering during mass if it was, in fact, "right." Back at home, a quick bit of research revealed that there are no set rules about placement of statues in a Catholic church, including statues of Mary and Joseph. However, I also found out that it is traditional to place Mary at Jesus' right hand; that is, from the perspective of Jesus on the cross, Mary should be on his right and Joseph should be on his left. Based on the location of GA's crucifix, it looks like these east siders are going non-traditional. So, there you go. I bet you'll look next time you go to mass to see where the statues of Mary and Joseph are placed.
Meanwhile, back in the car . . . Given the substantial rains over the past few days, my husband took advantage of our location to turn our drive home into something of a sight-seeing tour. After an unnvering drive over a bridge spanning the Little Miami River (OH. MY. GOSH. THE. WATER. IS. RIGHT. THERE.), we drove past one of Cincinnati Public School's newest buildings, Riverview East Academy in the East End. We always refer to the school as the "school on stilts" because it is, very literally, on stilts. Although situated just a short distance from the banks of the Ohio, the pavement below the school was still flood-free. A final stop in the parking lot of Saint Rose Church evoked additional disbelief as we marveled at the increased breadth and height of the Ohio River. I always take for granted the fact that we live in a river city (wait . . . you mean, every city doesn't have a river?). Oh, I'm sure the folks who live and work next to the Ohio weren't too happy over the weekend, but, deep down, I think they would have to agree - having a river here really is something special.
ATTENDANCE: About half-full
The Guardian Angels complex is prominently situated on Beechmont Avenue in Mount Washington, directly across from McNicholas High School. You can't miss either. Guardian Angels definitely falls into the Big Church category. It's tall, it's wide, and it's deep. Even though the pews were only about half filled at this particular mass, there were a lot of people in attendance. After returning to my own seat after receiving communion, I was astonished by the number of people still in line after me - and that was just a fraction of the congregation.
Guardian Angels has a lot of pews, pews as far as the eye can see, pews so close together that it's difficult getting into a kneeling position or rising from one. Sections of pews surround the altar on all four sides. The sections are not all of the same size, but combined, they're a force to be reckoned with. I sat on the front side of the altar, the largest of the seating areas. Two areas of pews on either side of the altar were smaller but still substantial. The smallest of the sections was positioned behind the altar. Ironically, it was also the fullest. Not sure what the draw there was - a longing for pre-Vatican II days or quick access to the closest door to the parking lot.
GA isn't really much to see - if you can see it. The sanctuary was kept ridiculously dim (and cold) until just before mass began. Maybe they were saving on those electric bills - admirable - but I was personally worried about My Husband the Heathen nodding off before the show even started. From the Let's-Be-Literal Department, both the altar and the lectern have angels on them. I'll take a leap of faith here and say they are guardian angels. Yeah, the focus here is definitely on function - seating - over aesthetics.
I did immediately notice something different at Guardian Angels which now has me thinking back to many of the other churches I've visited. From my perspective at GA, the statue of Mary was on the right of the altar, and the statue of Joseph was on the left. It didn't look right, and I kept wondering during mass if it was, in fact, "right." Back at home, a quick bit of research revealed that there are no set rules about placement of statues in a Catholic church, including statues of Mary and Joseph. However, I also found out that it is traditional to place Mary at Jesus' right hand; that is, from the perspective of Jesus on the cross, Mary should be on his right and Joseph should be on his left. Based on the location of GA's crucifix, it looks like these east siders are going non-traditional. So, there you go. I bet you'll look next time you go to mass to see where the statues of Mary and Joseph are placed.
Meanwhile, back in the car . . . Given the substantial rains over the past few days, my husband took advantage of our location to turn our drive home into something of a sight-seeing tour. After an unnvering drive over a bridge spanning the Little Miami River (OH. MY. GOSH. THE. WATER. IS. RIGHT. THERE.), we drove past one of Cincinnati Public School's newest buildings, Riverview East Academy in the East End. We always refer to the school as the "school on stilts" because it is, very literally, on stilts. Although situated just a short distance from the banks of the Ohio, the pavement below the school was still flood-free. A final stop in the parking lot of Saint Rose Church evoked additional disbelief as we marveled at the increased breadth and height of the Ohio River. I always take for granted the fact that we live in a river city (wait . . . you mean, every city doesn't have a river?). Oh, I'm sure the folks who live and work next to the Ohio weren't too happy over the weekend, but, deep down, I think they would have to agree - having a river here really is something special.
ATTENDANCE: About half-full
DURATION: 50 minutes
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