5:00 Saturday afternoon mass, St. Teresa Benedicta. I had never heard of Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, the saint or the parish, but with nothing on the agenda - on my birthday, of all things (51, thank you) - it was time to cross state lines and see what STTBOTC (seriously, that's what they use on their website) was all about. A pleasant drive to Bright, Indiana, brought us to the newest church I've been to thus far. First, though, a bit of background.
It seems to me that I had vaguely heard of Edith Stein, but I couldn't have told you anything about her. I especially couldn't have told you that she and Saint Teresa Benedicta are one and the same. Born to Jewish parents in 1891, Edith Stein converted to Catholicism at age 30 and eleven years later, entered a cloistered Carmelite community. Having been strongly influenced by the autobiography of St. Teresa of Avila, Edith chose the religious name of "Teresia Benedicta ac Cruce" or "Teresa Blessed by the Cross." In 1942, when the Nazis arrested all Catholics of Jewish heritage, Edith was transported by cattle train to the Auschwitz death camp where she died one week later in the gas chambers. Pope John Paul II canonized St. Teresa Benedicta in 1998.
And so, we have a recently canonized saint, and if a church promotes a recently canonized saint as their patron, it's naturally going to be a fairly new church. Exhibit A: St. Teresa Benedicta. STTBOTC is indeed very new. Unfortunately, I can't tell you exactly how new because it wasn't until I got home that I realized my daughter, who had accompanied me, and I had read the cornerstone two different ways - I thought it said "2000," but she thought it said "2009." Either way, you're not going to find a lot of history here. What you will find is the Ryan Homes version of a church - a lot of drywall on the inside and a lot of aluminum on the outside.
Going to mass at St. Teresa didn't really feel like going to mass. It was kind of like going to mass in a hotel conference room - a perfectly square room of minimal decor, nothing fancy but attractive and well-kept nonetheless. It was kind of like going to mass in someone's remodeled family room - with new carpeting and a dropped ceiling with inset lighting fixtures. It was kind of like going to mass in an airport, not because of the size - it's not a big place at all - but because of the seating, i.e., interlocking upholstered plastic chairs. The result is, in effect, continuous rows of seating made up of individual chairs. The chairs are really only detectable as single units because of the individual kneeler attached to the back of each one. These kneelers were definitely the highlight of the trip. Not your standard "up-or-down" kneelers, these babies unfolded from their upright positions - "ka-chink." The Kneel-O-Matic 2000. Noisy little devils, but definitely amusing the first few times you get to use them.
There are a few candles, two statues - Mary and Joseph, a nice tabernacle, and a beautiful crucifix. Teeny tiny stations of the cross line the blank walls. There are exactly six small paned windows, three on each side, and an additional door on each side. Everything is so new and so . . . purposeful. It's easy to imagine someone going to the "church store" and picking out everything you need for a church - "I'll take one of those . . . and two of those . . . and I'm required to have one of those . . . and I'll probably need a few of those."
Clearly, this was a church built on a budget, built to meet the need for a Catholic church in the area, and based on attendance this particular Saturday, St. Teresa seems to be a success. In a time when so many churches are closing, I like the idea of a brand new parish. It must be exciting to work in this fledgling community, trying so hard to generate interest and enthusiasm, trying to make it work. It must be a challenge for the pastor of STTBOTC as well. The celebrating priest at this mass seemed happy enough, even with his arm in a sling (following arthroscopic surgery, as he explained). The fact that he was operating at only half-capacity with one hand may have slowed things down though. That and his homily which drove home a point over and over and over again. Things started out so well too - I was really enjoying listening to him and what he had to say . . . until he said it for the umpteenth time.
Overall, St. Teresa Benedicta gets an A for effort. It's hard being the new kid on the block. If nothing else, I like Bright, Indiana, mainly because of the name. It has such a positive connotation. Speaking of the positive, in the flurry of activity last week, I forgot the best part of the visit to Sts. Peter and Paul - one of the ushers. How adorable is it when, at the end of mass, this guy not only stocks the "bulletin holders" with the weekly bulletins but counts out the appropriate number for each pew and hands them out - you know - "take one and pass it on." Now that's service. Then, as my son and I were exiting the church, I hear him calling after us and turn to see him hanging his head out the door, "You guys come back next week! We're gonna have a whole new show, and it's gonna be a good one!" How can you not love that? Maybe I should be writing about the parishioners and not the churches!
ATTENDANCE: Half full
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