An Easter letter to his sister in France from the first bishop of St. Paul and a one-minute Easter radio message to the faithful from Archbishop William Brady are among treasures in the archives of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis that touch on the most important celebrations in the Church.
Allison Spies
Bishop Joseph Cretin wrote in 1853 to his sister in France that he was fit though fatigued from fasting and only two hours of sleep the night before the Easter Mass. But he was comforted by the zeal of the faithful in St. Paul, who gathered throughout Holy Week in the church, which was on the second floor of a multipurpose building, said Allison Spies, archives program manager with the archdiocese’s Office of Archives and Records Management.
Bishop Cretin wrote at a time Minnesota was not a state, and in which the territory had only seven churches, 10 priests and one school, and Masses were celebrated primarily not in English but in French or one of four Native American languages, Spies said.
Spies was talking with Patrick Conley, host of the “Practicing Catholic” radio show that airs at 9 p.m. April 2 on Relevant Radio 1330 AM. Conley asked about Easter traditions through the years in the archdiocese.
More than a century after Bishop Cretin sent that letter, Bishop Brady in 1958 spoke on the radio about Easter being much more than a springtime festival. He noted that Easter is a sacred time commemorating Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection, Spies said.
It marks God’s sacrifice, which ‘“transforms life, explains death and interprets everything,’” Spies said, quoting the bishop. “’Christmas and Calvary and Easter are not three, but one. They explain God to man and man to himself.’”
Many traditions celebrating the central mysteries of the faith date to apostolic times, including fasting, reconciliation and the rites of initiation, Spies said. Others have been introduced over the centuries, such as blessing the Easter fire and candle, and in the last five years Pope Francis broadening washing of the feet at Holy Thursday from men to include women, young, old, sick and healthy, she said.
The Church also encourages local and family customs and traditions as ways to promote full participation of the faithful in the mysteries, Spies said.
She asked Conley what some of his family’s traditions have been at Easter. To hear his answer, tune into “Practicing Catholic,” which also airs at 1 p.m. April 3 and 2 p.m. April 4.
Produced by Relevant Radio and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, the latest show also includes interviews on the importance of Catholic communicators with Julie Craven, director of communications and strategic initiatives at Our Lady of Lourdes in Minneapolis, and living out social teachings of the Church with Jason Adkins, executive director of the Minnesota Catholic Conference.
Listen to all of the interviews after they have aired:
soundcloud.com/practicingcatholic
Practicing Catholic on Spotify
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