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July 30, 2022Feast of St. Mary of the Angels-Aug 2nd
The first bishop of Buffalo, Most Rev. John Timon, commissioned the Franciscan friars to build both a college and a seminary along the Allegany River in the mid 1800’s. Olean became one of the first communities where the friars helped the diocese to maintain various mission churches through-out the area on a regular basis. The leader of the Allegany Franciscans was Rev. Pamphilus who assumed the role of pastor of the mission church in Olean entrusted to the friar’s care. While the first structures were being built in the college in Allegany, he took the initiative to build the first substantial church, replacing a wooden shanty building on the first block of West Henley Street. Rev. Pamphilus named the church St. Mary of the Angels after St. Francis’ beloved church in Assisi, Italy. The saint called his Assisi church Porziuncola (Italian for “little portion”). Being the most sacred place of the Franciscans and the first church of their Order, the name is most fitting for the littleness of the beginning of our church and the parish community of which the church was born. (Kane, J., A Worthy and Capable Clergyman, 2016)
Like the church in Assisi, we celebrate our feast day on August 2nd under the patronage of St. Mary of the Angels. The wooden structure that was originally built in the 1850’s eventually became the Gothic style structure that currently exists and was built in 1915 by Rev. Edward Rengel. In 2017, St. Mary of the Angels was named by Pope Francis as a minor basilica.
All minor basilicas, like our own, are forever connected to the Papacy and to the four major basilicas in Rome, and therefore, all minor basilicas are also blessed by their title and their naming of a sacred space as a basilica by a Pope with certain rights, duties and privileges. One of the four major and the most famous and beautiful basilicas in Rome, St. Peter’s, was built over 120 years (April 8, 1506 to November 18, 1626). During this period in building of the new church, twenty-eight popes, numerous architects and artists, and thousands of workers participated in the construction and the development of the majestic St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. (Justice, 2011) One of the privileges associated with a minor basilica through its attachment to Rome is the ministry of indulgences. According to church history scholars, the ministry of indulgences allows a person to remit some of those effects even before death by participating in pious or charitable works. Contrary to popular myth, indulgences were never “sold” by the Church, but abuses by some clergy in medieval times who sometimes offered indulgences for charitable donations resulted in reforms to the practice. The reformed practice of obtaining indulgence is seen in our basilica to this very day. Despite the corruption and scandal that ran parallel to its great vision, artistic genius, and a determination by many finally saw its completion in 1626. In the end, and in spite of the avarice that permeated several decades of its construction, Rome and the Church had a basilica with “the ability to inspire awe—to make the heart stop and the soul soar—with art triumphing over politics ” (Justice, G., The Role of Indulgences in the Building of New Saint Peter’s Basilica, 2011). Many members of our parish family at the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels would agree that our beautiful and magnificent structure does the same in “making hearts stop and souls soar with art and its sacred qualities helping us triumph over politics and the cares of the world.
The reception of a plenary indulgence is one of the blessings and graces bestowed on the faithful who visit a minor basilica on certain days and under particular circumstances in the relationship that the basilica has to the Holy Father and to Rome. The Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels celebrates with greater reverence and solemnity those feast days that demonstrate a clear connection between the Church and the ministry of the Holy Father which are listed on page 2). One of the designated days chosen for reception of a plenary indulgence is our patronal feast day of St. Mary of the Angels, August 2nd. Please join us for our celebration of our feast day in which we celebrate the name of our Basilica and our dear patroness, our Blessed Mother at the 12:15 p.m. Mass.
