Flight Path

Week One Hundred and Eighty-Two - Mary Queen of Heaven (Erlanger)

4:00 Saturday afternoon mass, Mary Queen of Heaven.  And we're back . . . well, at least, for a while.  In spite of enjoying my travels over the past three years, it's getting more and more difficult to schedule a visit to the remaining churches on The List - most of them aren't exactly around the corner.  It is also with great reluctance that I must admit I've found a church that I've grown quite fond of.  Not just the church, but the mass, the priest, and the very convenient schedule.  Because I don't play favorites, I'm not going to name my new favorite, but I will toss out this bit of irony:  Now that I've finally settled  into a fairly consistent routine at a local church, I've also learned that this same parish will be merged with another parish . . . in July.  Are. You. Kidding me. I might be back on the circuit much sooner than I expected.

I was on the circuit last weekend.  A lazy Saturday set the stage for a drive to Erlanger, Kentucky and Mary Queen of Heaven Church.  They have a "world-famous" fish fry there.  Mary Queen of Heaven occupies a nice flat parcel of land just west of St. Henry High School and just east of the airport.  My husband and I took a few wrong turns finding the church, but we still managed to arrive in time, although later than we might have under ideal circumstances.  As a result, we may have gotten not only the last parking spot in the lot but the last seat in the church.  To be fair, there seemed to be another event going on at the parish, boys' basketball, no doubt, which may have accounted for the strain on parking, but I didn't expect the church to be quite so full, especially with a 5:30 Saturday afternoon mass not far behind. They have a famous fish fry during Lent. 

I suppose the size of the church may be somewhat to blame for the crowding.  Surprisingly, for what appears to be a fairly sizeable parish, it's not a very big church at all.  It's also not very fancy.  Their famous fish fries start this week.  Truthfully, the only thing I remember is what My Husband the Heathen termed the "poor man's stained glass windows."  No intricate details here, just solid panes of colored glass.  I can't say they were particularly attractive, and one really has to wonder why they even bothered.  Fish fry, fish fry, fish fry.

Kudos to a visiting priest from Mount St. Mary's Seminary for his excellent homily on God's sacrifice of His son.  After 52 years, it really gave me a new way to look at the core of my faith during this Lenten season.  Did I mention they have a fish fry?

Mary Queen of Heaven is a harmless enough church.  If I would happen to be in Erlanger again at the right time, I might stop in for mass . . . or, perhaps more importantly, a fish sandwich.

ATTENDANCE:  SRO

DURATION:  One hour