Restored Baptistry at St Stephen’s in Portland, Oregon

The church of St Stephen in Portland, Oregon, recently received on indefinite loan the old baptismal font and Paschal candle stand from the cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, also in Portland. (They had been kept in a warehouse for decades.) In order to house them, a space within the narthex that had formerly been the baptistery, but was then decommissioned, has been set off with a nice wrought-iron gate, and the font and stand installed. Here are some before-and-after photos, starting with a long shot across the narthex from the entrance to the bell tower/choir loft; our thanks to the pastor, Fr Eric Andersen, for sharing these with us. As Fr Z likes to say, brick by brick!

The Pietà statue seen above in front of the window was removed from this space, and the font, candlestick and gate brought in.

The gate has now been installed, and the space restored to use as the baptistery.

The original blueprints of the church show that the baptismal font was planned to be at the back of the nave, but it evidently was never installed there. There are old photos of baptisms being carried out in various places around the church, but at one time, the part of the narthex seen above was used as the baptismal chapel, as evidenced by holes in the terrazzo floor where an old gate used to be. This is where the new gate seen above has been installed. (The Pietà has been moved into the nave, in the location where the blueprints showed the original baptismal font was supposed to be, as seen in the lower right part of this photograph.)

Fr Andersen adds that when he first arrived at St Stephen’s, there was a very large baptismal font which doubled as a holy water stoup; the water recirculated through a pump, and he soon realized that it could not longer be used, since the the water could not be kept pure for baptisms, and there was no sacrarium in it. It was decommissioned, eventually removed from the building altogether, which permitted the reclamation of the church’s main aisle. The first photo here was taken during an Easter vigil a number of years ago, the second shows the restored space.

Pontifical Vespers Celebrated by Abp Sample

On Wednesday, March 20th, at St Stephen’s Parish in Portland, Oregon, His Excellency Alexander Sample, Archbishop of Portland, celebrated Pontifical Vespers at the throne according to the 1960 Antiphonale Romanum. Vespers was of the Wednesday of the second week of Lent; since there was no Solemn Mass being sung the following day, the attending ministers wore simple choir dress instead of sacred vestments. St Stephen’s celebrates traditional sung Latin Vespers every Sunday at 5 pm.

Tradition will always be for the young!

The Magnificat alternatim trium vocem by Christoph Dalitz (2018) was sung with a robust faux bordon, directed by 17 year old Coulter McIntyre and the schola of young men and seminarians.

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Rorate Mass at St Stephen’s in Portland, Oregon, December 22

Thanks for Shawn Natola from the congregation of St Stephens in Portland, Oregon for alerting me to the following! There will be a Rorate Mass on Saturday, December 22nd at 7 am at the church.

A Rorate Mass during is the Votive Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary for the Advent season, celebrated in the early morning while it is still dark. The church and the altar are only lit by candlelight, so many candles are used to illuminate the darkness. Christ is the True Light, and we keep watch for His coming at Christmas; the Mass begins in the dark, and the light begins to come into the windows about the time of the Consecration.

The schedule on the day is as follows:

Rorate Mass by candlelight starts at 7:00 a.m. 9 (Sunrise at approximately 7:45 a.m.)
Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament after Mass, until 9:00 a.m.
Confessions from 9:30 to 10:45

The photographs below are of the previous Rorate Mass, celebrated last Saturday, courtesy of James Mears Photography.

Photopost: December 9th Rorate Mass at St Stephen’s Church in Portland, Oregon

Thank you to Daniel Page, the Director of Sacred Music at St Stephen’s Catholic Church in Portland Oregon. The celebrant is Fr Eric Andersen

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Advent and Christmas Liturgy Schedule for St Stephen’s Church, Portland, Oregon

For anyone within striking distance of St Stephen’s Catholic Church in Portland, Oregon, here is the church’s liturgical schedule for Advent and Christmas. This is an ambitious and upgraded program, reflecting the fact that the church has just appointed a new musical director.

Sung EF Mass for Candlemas in Portland, Oregon

The church of St Stephen in Portland, Oregon, will have a Sung Mass in the Extraordinary Form tomorrow at 7pm for the feast of Candlemas, with Gregorian chant and the music of Palestrina and Arcadelt. The church is located at 1112 SE 41st Avenue.

EF Mass and ‘24 Hours for the Lord’ at St Stephen’s in Portland, OR, Dec. 9 & 10

St Stephen’s parish in Portland, Oregon, is hosting a 24 Hours for the Lord as an Advent penance service, beginning at 6 pm on Friday the 9th with supper, followed by all-night adoration, and an EF Rorate Mass at 7 am on Saturday the 10th. There will also be sung Lauds and Vespers, confession, adoration and a recitation of the rosary and Litany of Loreto.

Following the Holy Father’s call for a such an event during Lent of this past year, St Stephen’s parish held one which was quite successful; Shawn Natola from the parish tells me that “many of the parishioners were so inspired by this that we have asked for another 24 Hours for the Lord.”

Report from the Sacred Liturgy Conference in Portland, Oregon

Here is a report from Fr Eric Andersen of the Archdiocese of Portland, Orgeon, on the recent liturgical conference held at the church of St Stephen. Below are some photographs of an OF Pontifical Mass celebrated in connection with the conference by Archbishop Alexander Sample, and a video of the talk which His Excellency delivered on “The Bishop as Guarantor of the Liturgy.”

One hundred people, including priests, seminarians, religious sisters and laity, gathered at St. Stephen Catholic Church in Portland, Oregon for a Sacred Liturgy Conference held from October 30th – November 2nd, 2015, organized by Lynne Bissonnette-Pitre MD, PhD and sponsored by Schola Cantus Angelorum (http://cantusangelorum.org). Five sung Masses were celebrated at the high altar in both the Ordinary and the Extraordinary Form, with Gregorian Chant and other sacred music. Participants sang various hours of the Divine Office in choir, with the men seated opposite the ladies and alternating verses between high and low voices. Sung Offices included Solemn First Vespers and Lauds for the Solemnity of All Saints. We wish to thank Fr. Samuel Weber, O.S.B., of the Benedict XVI Institute for Sacred Music, who prepared the Office booklets for the conference. His Excellency, the Most Rev. Alexander K. Sample received a spontaneous standing ovation for his lecture on “The Bishop as Guarantor of the Sacred Liturgy” (see below), and celebrated an exemplary Solemn Pontifical Mass in the Ordinary Form for the Solemnity of All Saints, featuring the combined musical talents of the parish choir and Schola Cantus Angelorum. The conference was considered a great success! (Photography and video by Marc Salvatore, reproduced here with his kind permission.)

Archbishop Sample’s Talk

OF Pontifical Mass on the Feast of All Saints

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Podcast on the Upcoming Sacred Liturgy Conference in Portland, Oregon

The website of Mater Dei radio, based in Portland Oregon, has made available an interview with Fr. John Boyle, the pastor of St. Stephen parish in Portland, and with Dr. Lynne Bissonnette, the director of Schola Cantus Angelorum, in reference to the upcoming Sacred Liturgy Conference to be held next weekend at St Stephen’s. Click here to listen.