the Creed which acknowledges the hicarnation.rnAt Marquette during the petitionsrna gentleman complete withrnpounding fist pleaded that we “labor tillrnour dying day to eradicate the awfulrnracism that permeates our world.” Andrnat Old St. Mary’s the elaborate “OldrnWorid atmosphere” touted in the bulletinrnseryes as an unwilling backdrop forrnthe Sunday folk guitar Mass. All thernwhile a renegade Franciscan offers thernTridentine Rite without permission inrnan inner-city shack reminiscent of arnQuonset hut.rnTwo years ago, seeking a sanctionedrnLatin Mass in Milwaukee, I called thernchancery. The pained voice on the otherrnend informed me that ArchbishoprnWeakland had approved the TridentinernRite once a month on Saturday eveningsrn”for those members of the Archdiocesernwho cannot accept change.” That numberrnof us not blessed with the eighth cardinalrnvirtue, “open-mindedness,” isrngrowing. Consequently, the Latin Massrnis now offered weekly on Sundays in arnmore central location.rnNevertheless, the Archbishop continuesrnquietly to pacify us while marchingrnahead with his agenda. He is currentlyrnconsidering a plan to unionize Milwaukee’srnCatholic schoolteachers. The letterrnthat accompanied his appeal for annualrndonations provided a checklist by yhichrnI could indicate those issues I consideredrnimportant to the Archdiocese. “Socialrninjustice,” “racism,” and “the rolernof women” are all evidently more importantrnto the Archbishop than abortion,rnwhich did not make the list. I keptrnmy money—the role of women has beenrndefined and requires no further funding-rnChristopher Check is a captain in thernMarine Corps serving a nonfleet tour inrnMilwaukee.rnWintering Overrnby Gloria WhelanrnA shriveled blackberryrndangles useless as a single earringrnI had its cousins for my kettle,rnthat greedy steel mouthrnthat cats the countryside.rnThe leafy days are gone;rnsummer is Victrola musicrnyou won’t hear again,rnthe garden a graveyard;rnonly the parsnipsrnsurvive the freezernto stand one foot in the grave,rntheir white bones sweetening,rnsucking on green memories,rngame as the row of old menrnat the nursing homernI visited today,rnall their growing over,rntheir sugar smilesrnsplitting toothless mouthsrnwhile they flirt a littlernwith the frosty nurses.rn42/CHRONICLESrnrnrn
January 1975April 21, 2022By The Archive
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