January 2009

Dear Dominican friend,

First of all, I send you my best wishes for the coming year. May God bless you and your families and
make fruitful your continued efforts on behalf of the Dominican Foundation.

As you know, 2008 turned out to be a banner year as we exceeded our fundraising target of $5M—and
we have set the same goal for fiscal 2009. With God’s help, we can accomplish all things according to His Will!

I hope to greet many of you personally next April 17-19, at the formal inauguration of the new Academic Center and
Theological Library at the Dominican House of Studies. The weekend will be a joyful celebration of the fruits of your
contributions of the past few years.

Please see below for the latest update on the building project—although that term is no longer appropriate, since professors
and students have begun using the facilities full board. Additionally, please keep an eye on future editions of the Monthly
Missive for details on the various inaugural events.

Let’s take a little time this month, with gratitude in our hearts, to look back at the past year and ahead to the one just begun.
Sample the Christmas homilies from New York’s St. Vincent Ferrer Church, and enjoy the season’s decorations that graced
the churches of our beloved Province of St. Joseph. And one upcoming date to make note of in particular is the next Vocation
Weekend, Feb. 13-15, at the Dominican House of Studies: think of some of the young men in your communities who might
benefit by exposure to the unique Dominican way of life.

Our cup runneth over, indeed!

Prayerful good wishes.

Sincerely in Christ,

Fr. John A. Farren, O.P.

Vicar Provincial for Advancement

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Message from Ray Clark, President

Dear Colleagues:

A month from now a group of young men will spend a weekend at the Dominican House of Studies
discerning their call to the Dominican Order. They will be the first such group of ‘inquirers’ to witness the
growth and vigor of the Order that is evident in the now completed Academic Center and Theological
Library. This ambitious undertaking speaks to the Friars’ commitment to the bright future that the increasing
number of new vocations represents.

At the start of this new year of promise, I want to thank you for your efforts large and small on behalf of the Friars through
your work on the Foundation. And I thank you in advance for your continued dedication which is vital in helping them realize
their vision and live out their mission of preaching the Gospel.

Please keep these young men in your prayers as they take this bold step in faith, in service of the Church.

Sincerely in Christ,

Ray Clark
President

SAVE THE DATE: GRAND OPENING IN WASHINGTON, D.C.

The formal dedication of the New Academic Center and Theological Library at the Dominican House of Studies
in Washington, D.C. will take place April 17-19, the weekend after Easter. The weekend will feature distinguished
speakers, roundtable discussions and liturgical celebrations in a variety of settings. If you would like more
information, please send your email address to df@opfriars.org. Upcoming issues of the Monthly Missive will
also feature details on the Grand Opening.

Building Update
Last November’s unofficial opening of the New Academic Center and Theological
Library of the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception marked the end of Phase
One of the construction project. With the beginning of 2008, Phase Two has gone
underway. The (old) Priory has been transformed with additional space for the Pontifical
Faculty.
This process will eventually include faculty offices and lounges as well as an extra
seminar room. To modernize the aging interior, the walls have been completely stripped and reframed. The resulting interior
space will be more energy efficient and aesthetically pleasing. In addition, “life safety” features have been incorporated into
the renovation plan, such as a comprehensive sprinkling system in compliance with Washington D.C.’s latest safety codes.
On an average day, up to 40 construction workers from a variety of trades are on site to contribute their skills. A well-
organized system of advance supply ordering has ensured that construction materials are available in a timely manner.
Currently, for example, sheetrock for the entire project has arrived on site. All inspections of completed work so far have been
successful. The installation of sheetrock is scheduled to begin this month, and painting will commence in early February.
For updates on the building project, click here: www.dhs.edu

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PROVINCE NEWS
Christmas around the Province, in all corners
From Springfield, KY to Providence, RI and from New York City to Cincinnati, the Province of St. Joseph joyfully welcomed
the birth of the Savior, decking its churches in the season’s splendors. For a slide show of some of the sights, please click
here.

Christmas homilies at St. Vincent Ferrer

Please click here to hear the Christmas homilies delivered by Fr. Carleton Jones, O.P., pastor of St. Vincent Ferrer Church on
Manhattan’s Upper Eastside, and the homilies by Fr. Aquinas Guilbeau, O.P. and Fr. Bernard Keitz, O.P., the parish’s
parochial vicars.

Dominicans in Zanesville, OH
The Catholic Times, the weekly newspaper of the Diocese of Columbus, OH, has
run a comprehensive feature on the Catholic churches in Ohio’s Muskingum
County. The territory includes the Dominican Church of St. Thomas Aquinas in
the town of Zanesville. St. Thomas was dedicated in 1844. To read the story and
see photographs, please click here.

A New Chaplain for Dominican Sisters in New York

Dominican Nuns in Elmira, NY, last month welcomed their new chaplain, Fr. Tony Breen, O.P., to begin his
duties at the Monastery of Mary the Queen.

Vocation Weekend
The first of two Vocation Weekends for this year at the Dominican House of Studies in
Washington, D.C. will take place Feb. 13-15, 2009. The weekend is a “no-strings-
attached” opportunity for young men to spend time learning about the life of Dominican Friars, meet student brothers and
older Friars and—most importantly—pray with the community. The schedule for the weekend has not been set yet, but it
should closely adhere to the details of last fall’s Vocation Weekend. For more information, please click here.

St. Thomas Day Lecture

Robert Wilken, professor of religious studies at the University of Virginia, will deliver the annual St. Thomas
Day Lecture at St. Vincent Ferrer Church in New York on January 28th at 7PM. He will address the topic of
“Aquinas on Romans,” a fitting theme as the Year of St. Paul continues. For more information, please call
212.722.2080 or visit the parish Web site. www.csvf.org

Mission Pakistan
It was a different world when the Dominican mission to Pakistan was begun in the mid-
1950s, following the expulsion of our missionaries from China. But in 1970, the Pakistani
government ceased granting new visas to missionaries. It is tempting to wonder what a difference a stronger Church presence
in the volatile region could make today. In 1963, Michael Kalish produced a documentary on the Dominicans’ mission in
Pakistan. The documentary was made for WJRT-12 TV, the ABC affiliate in Flint, MI. Please check for a link to the video in
next month’s issue of the Monthly Missive. For a slide show of photographs of the Friars in Pakistan, please click here.

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In Kenya, an Apostolic Visitation
Fr. Carlos Azpiroz Costa, O.P., Master of the Dominican Order, made his visitation Dec. 1-8,
2008 to the Eastern African Vicariate of the Province of St. Joseph, headquartered in Nairobi,
Kenya. One of the highlights of his visit was he said at Dec. 7 at the city’s St. Catherine of
Siena parish. On Christmas Eve, the parish was able to celebrate the first evening Mass—a
Christmas Vigil Mass—in its six-year history; the Friars new residence on the parish ground brought with it a supply of
electricity for the entire compound.

The priestly character—it is for real

Dominican-educated, Fr. David Toups, associate director of the Secretariat for Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations at the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in Washington, D.C., has written a remarkable book about the actual change in the being
of the man as he is ordained—“Reclaiming Our Priestly Character” (Institute for Priestly Formation, 2009). The author rejects
the notion that the priesthood is merely another ministry alongside the ministries held by non-ordained clergy
and the laity.

“The renewal of the priesthood will come when the ontological character imparted to a man in ordination, far
from being dismissed as a ‘medieval’ invention and ‘cultic’ fiction, is embraced for what it really is — a
grace,” writes Br. James Brent, O.P., who himself was ordained a deacon this month at the Dominican House
of Studies in Washington, D.C. Fr. Toups recently completed his doctorate in Sacred Theology at the
Angelicum, the Domincan-run Pontifical University in Rome. His dissertation formed the basis of the book. To read Br.
Brent’s review, please click here.

George Weigel—friend of the Dominicans

Br. Austin Litke, O.P., recently interviewed George Weigel, Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy
Center. A frequent television and newspaper commentator, Weigel is best known for his 1999 authorized biography of the
late Karol Wojtyla—Witness to Hope: The Biography of Pope John Paul II (Harper Collins). He is the author of numerous
other books, including God’s Choice: Pope Benedict XVI and the Future of the Catholic Church (HarperCollins,
2005); Faith, Reason, and the War Against Jihadism (Doubleday, 2007); and Against the Grain: Christianity and Democracy,
War and Peace (Crossroad, 2008). Last fall, Weigel was the featured speaker at a major cultivation event in Washington, D.C.
that introduced prospective donors to the Dominican Foundation. To see the Weigel interview, please click here.

‘Beloved’ Nashville Dominicans

Canada’s Salt+Light Television, the Catholic television network, aired the debut of a documentary on the
Nashville Dominicans on January 11th. Click here to see the trailer. DVDs of the program are available at
Salt+Light’s website.

The ‘Dominican Gull’

The formal name of the Kelp Gull (photo) is the Larus Dominicanus, which
translates literally as the “Dominican Gull.” The gull was given the name because its black
wings and white front make it look like a Dominican Friar wearing his cappa.

Pilgrimage to France—In the Footsteps of the Dominicans

This spring, Fr. Aquinas Guilbeau, O.P., a priest at St. Vincent Ferrer Church in
New York, is leading a pilgrimage that will take travelers from the south of
France to Paris “to meet the saints and visit the places instrumental to the foundation and the growth of the
Dominican Order.” The 9-day pilgrimage will make stops at famous shrines and cathedrals in Marseille,
Toulouse, Vannes, Chartres and Paris. There will be daily Mass, and flavors of France’s history, architecture
and culture. For more information, call Corporate Travel Service, Inc. at 313. 565. 888 ext. 121, and ask about
“The Dominican Shrines of France Itinerary.” You may also visit www.ctscentral.net.

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 DOMINICAN LITURGY
A MIRROR FOR DOMINICAN MATERIAL PUBLISHED ON THE NEW LITURGICAL
MOVEMENT

The Living Tradition—the Dominican Rite in the 21st Century

In July 2007, Pope Benedict XVI issued the Apostolic Letter Summorum Pontificum (the Supreme Pontiffs),
which restores as one of two approved forms of the Mass—the post-Vatican II Novus Ordo is the second—the
Latin Tridentine liturgy. Taking its cue from the spirit of the document, the Western Dominican Province will
host a conference Aug. 5-9 devoted to the traditional (Latin) Dominican rite. The Province has distinguished
itself with its preservation of the Dominican Mass.
Under the banner, “The Living Tradition—the Dominican Rite in the 21st Century,” a line-up of distinguished speakers,
including Fr. Giles Dimock, O.P.—a liturgist and currently the prior of the Immaculate Conception Priory in Washington,
D.C.—will deliver lectures on the subject. The conference will also feature a number of workkshops for the benefit of Friars
and the training of altar servers and other ministers (including musicians). Non-Dominican priests, nuns and sisters, as well as
the laity are also invited.
In his Apostolic Letter, the Pope writes: “There is no contradiction between the two editions of the Roman Missal. In the
history of the liturgy there is growth and progress, but no rupture. What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and
great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden entirely forbidden or even considered harmful.”
“This wish of the Holy Father presents a unique challenge to us Dominicans,” says Fr. Pius Pietrzyk, O.P., a liturgical scholar
based at the Dominican community in Zanesville, OH. “Before the reforms of Vatican II, we celebrated Mass according to
our own special Missal. We Dominicans had our own special “rite” of Mass. Although essentially the same as the Roman
form, it contained many differences that reflected an earlier medieval tradition than did the Roman Missal of 1962.
Therefore, what should be the Dominican response to the Holy Father’s wishes as expressed in Summorum Pontificum?
Many have suggested that we should turn back to our own tradition – and celebrate Mass according to the Liturgical books
that were in place for the Dominican Order in 1962.
“This conference, then, is an opportunity to respond to the wishes of Pope Benedict. Secondly, however, it provides today’s
Friars with information about the traditional practices and prayers of the Order. Thus, we can better understand how our
charism as Dominicans is meant to be lived today by grasping how the friars of yesterday lived out that same vocation.
Finally, the conference provides an opportunity for Friars across the country to pray and learn together, collaborating in the
mission of the Church.”
For more information and to register for the conference, please click here. You may also request a copy of the registration
form by writing to: The Living Tradition, Holy Rosary Church, 375 N.E. Clackamas St., Portland, OR 97232. The conference
will be held St. Albert the Great Priory, the House of Studies of the Western Dominican Province, in Berkely, CA.

DOMINICAN SPIRITUALITY
‘Calling Down a Blessing’
"In some religious traditions, the contemplative life implied an almost complete turning away from the world, and in the case
of certain ascetic religious, of a rejection not only of their immediate family and friends, but also of people in general, or at
least those who appeared to be dominated by weakness or by worldly passion. Fortunately, however, the impulse towards
contemplation in the lives of our best-known Dominican preachers and saints was never characterized by that sort of rigid,
judgmental attitude. The contemplative apostle in the Dominican tradition, the authentic preacher, does not call down curses
on the sinful world. But, instead, conscious of his or her own weakness, and humbly identified, therefore, with the world's
need, the Dominican calls down a blessing."
From The New Wine of Dominican Spirituality by Fr. Paul Murray, O.P.

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