Need suggestions!
August 13, 2009
Ten days from today, I’ll finally be leaving the desert to start my freshman year at the Catholic University of America. While there are obviously ample opportunities for Catholic worship on campus, since I’ll be in a fairly large city I’m hoping to branch out and “sample” Masses at different parishes. Please share any suggestions you may have of Masses in the DC area that I should try to attend. I tend to prefer more “traditional” liturgy, so if you know of parishes that offer the Tridentine Mass, the Novus Ordo in Latin, the Divine Liturgy, etc., etc., let me know! Much appreciation in advance.
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“Traditional”? Which “tradition”?
Here is a parish that incarnates its faith in the black Catholic tradition: http://www.saintaugustine-dc.org/
http://kidane-mehret.org/
Ethiopian Catholic– this is one I still plan to go to sometime; if a group of people in the DC area want to go sometime, let me know. I think it would be good for many of us to go together!
http://holytransfiguration.org/ Holy Transfiguration Melkite is in VA, but it is one of the “big” Melkite parishes for activity.
http://www.stgregoryofnyssa.net/pages/Welcome.html
St Gregory of Nyssa, Byzantine Catholic. My parish.
http://www.stmatthewscathedral.org/ St Matthew’s Cathedral has some good liturgies.
http://www.ucns-holyfamily.org/ Ukrainian Catholic
That should give you a good number to visit.
St. Mary Mother of God parish in Chinatown has the traditional Latin Mass. The Ukrainian Catholic church that Henry lists is just on the other side of the Basilica, right off CUA campus. The liturgies at the Basilica itself might not do much for you, but the building is beautiful and they have a lot of Confession times.
Mickey,
Here’s a suggestion. Find a priest who says early morning daily mass at a small chapel somewhere on or around CU and serve as an altar boy. Dominican House, maybe? I did it for ten years and it beat any experience I’ve had since.
I would encourage you to worship at the 12:30 Mass at St. Augustine, as suggested. You would also be welcome at the 10:00 (English) or 12:30 (Spanish) Mass at Sacred Heart. The 10:00 at St. Matthew’s (Latin) is good, as is the Dominican House.
I may take Henry up on the Ethiopian. I used to be on their mailing list.
The Franciscan Monastary of the Holy Land is there in Brookland. I usually took a bus from CUA but it can be walked, in theory. They used to have a daily Mass at 6 and 7.
Definitely check out the Franciscan Monastary, as Lizzy mentioned. It is right next to campus and is a wonderful place to pray (or study) outside. It has some of the most beautiful grounds in D.C.
Dominican House and Holy Transfiguration are both wonderful — in particular DHS’s Holy Week and All Saints liturgies are not to be missed!
For a more intimate experience of the Traditional Latin Mass than you will find at Old St. Mary’s downtown — which is certainly beautiful but can be a bit hard to process for a first experience — I would recommend the community at Old St. John the Evangelist, convenient to Forest Glen metro. The church is small enough that you can get a much closer view of what’s going on and follow more easily. No matter where you go for it, try to attend a High Mass or a missa cantata first, and then a Low Mass — I personally found that the former is easier to learn at first and then, when you have been to a few, you’ll find it easier to understand what’s happening at the latter.
Dominus tecum! Enjoy the city. :)
Come to the Latin Novus Ordo at 10am at St. Matthews’– that’s where I serve every week!
Plus one more: somewhere near Walter Reed, I know there is another Eastern Catholic parish, a Maronite one. Unfortunately I’ve never been myself, but I am interested in going someday, and it’s one more sweet Eastern Catholic rite to experience.