By Nathan Worcester
Strolling through the Near West Side and Little Italy area on a warm August evening, you might hear it on the wind: a few dozen voices, joined together in song and prayer. The sound’s source is tucked behind a brick wall in the garden of Our Lady of the Holy Family Parish.
Away from the nearby bustling streets and expressways, but within earshot of residential areas, the Rev. Peter B. McQuinn and Our Lady of the Holy Family Parish’s faith community participate in a series of outdoor Masses every Sunday at 6 p.m. at 1334 W. Flournoy St. The summer’s final outdoor Mass will be held Sunday, Sept. 12. The following Friday, Sept. 17, the garden will host the dedication of a garden chapel under the patronage of medieval mystic Saint Hildegard von Bingen coinciding with her Sept. 17 feast day.
The event also will serve as the formal rededication of Our Lady of the Holy Family Parish, a move delayed by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
While the outdoor Masses may be a perfect fit for those concerned about disease transmission, the pandemic did not specifically motivate their launch. Fr. McQuinn felt inspired to try the outdoor format when he was assigned to the newly formed Our Lady of the Holy Family Parish, created through the merger of Notre Dame de Chicago and Holy Family Parishes.
“I thought that doing something with the garden area would be great,” explained Fr. McQuinn. “We decided to get that area in order.”
Good attendance
He estimates the Masses, which started in June, have attracted an average of 30 people per Sunday.
Before the outdoor Mass on July 18, Pat Andrews, the church’s sacristan, was setting up folding chairs and the altar. Andrews came to Our Lady of the Holy Family with Fr. McQuinn from Bridgeport’s All Saints-St. Anthony Parish, which, like Notre Dame de Chicago and Holy Family Parishes, is one of many Chicago parishes shut down or merged as part of Archbishop Blase Cupich’s Renew My Church program.
“She came from All Saints-St. Anthony,” said Andrews, pointing to a large statue of the Virgin Mary near the garden wall.
As she prepared the garden for the Mass, Andrews worked alongside Catherine Foreman, who directs both operations and music for the church. During the service, Foreman played an electric keyboard and sang. Afterward, she explained that, on rainy days, attendees perform the musical liturgy a cappella.
“We’ve had bigger crowds than any of us expected,” added Foreman. “Random people will stop by with their dogs and see what we’re doing.”
One pair of attendees, Eileen and Tim Richardson, said they actually were encouraged to bring their dog, Sox. “It’s a great thing to do on a Sunday evening,” said Eileen as she held Sox’s leash.
“I like visiting a variety of churches in the city, and I was really excited to hear they were doing an outdoor Mass,” said North Side resident Maggie Bahler, another attendee at the July 18 Mass.
‘We love it’
“We love it,” said Andrews. “You see the trees and the birds and hear the music outside. People are more comfortable—like now, I’m not sitting in a church sweating.”
Church leaders note Our Lady of the Holy Family Parish’s interior is comfortable in all seasons, as the church is air conditioned.
If it rains, the church moves the Sunday evening Mass indoors. Regularly scheduled weekend Masses occur Saturday at 5 p.m. and Sunday at 9 a.m. in English and 11 a.m. in Spanish.
Monday offers Mass at 6 p.m. in the church, followed by the Rosary. On Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, Mass is at 8 a.m. in the chapel. Friday Mass is at 6 p.m. in the church, followed by Holy Hour and confession.
Our Lady of the Holy Family is open at full capacity. In accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Archdiocesan guidelines, masks are no longer required to attend Mass, but church personnel encourage masks for non-vaccinated individuals.
Individuals interested in serving as a lector, Eucharistic minister, or music minister should contact Foreman at [email protected].
For more information about Our Lady of the Holy Family Parish, call (312) 243-7400, email [email protected], log on to www.olhfchi.org/, or follow parish information on social media.