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The Sixth Annual Mental Health All Parish Blessing and Ice Cream Social
Sunday, June 25, Following 9:30 and 11:30am Masses, West Lawn
It was an idea that came at the end of a Mental Health Committee meeting six years ago: let’s end the programming year with a blessing of the entire parish for good mental health and then celebrate with ice cream on the West Lawn.
The committee had been working for six years prior mostly providing educational workshops for the parish and community. New people had joined the committee and they were interested in providing social opportunities as well as educational ones. People with a mental illness often feel limited in participating in social gatherings so this event, joyfully combining prayer, social interaction, and ice cream fit the bill. So this weekend, after the congregation stands for a blessing for others’ and their own mental health, they will exit the church and be greeted by servers with flavor after flavor of ice cream and sorbet as well as resource tables with representatives from mental health agencies and organizations in the Twin Cities.
This truly demonstrates the role of the Church in assisting those affected by mental health issues. As stated by Franciscan Sister Mary Fran Reichenberger, the Church’s role is “The creation of an environment of safety and welcome, offering the spirituality and traditions that give the sense of well-being and of being cared for. Churches can be a place of friendship and understanding.” See you this weekend on the West Lawn for ice cream and making new friends.
Mental health organizations will have resource tables and information available. For more information about the Mental Health Ministry, contact Janet at 612.317.3508.
Thank you to the patrons, guests and volunteers who made the 2017 Basilica Landmark Ball a success.
Through your generosity, the Ball raised a gross amount of more than $345,000, which will help us fulfill The Basilica Landmark's mission is to preserve, restore, and advance the historic Basilica of Saint Mary for all generations.
The Fund-A-Need program brought in a record $120,000 to use towards making The Basilica campus and grounds more accessible. These projects starting this summer.
Click here to view the event photos. Thank you to our photographers, Elyse Rethlake and Barbara Broten, for donating their time and talent and capturing this special evening!
Visitors to the studio and gallery of Sister Mary Ann Osborne, SSND are surrounded by stories carved in wood or printed on paper. There stories are taken from Scripture and inspired by feast days such as the Annunciation, Epiphany and Pentecost. They draw viewers in and invite them to discover their own stories.
The work of Sister Mary Ann is also inspired by conversations, writings and music, old and new. Her art at times comments on local and international events, peace and justice issues and acts of nature, like the tornado that devastated her home town of Saint Peter, MN, in 1998.
Blessed Theresa Gerhardinger, foundress of the School Sisters of Notre Dame (SSND) has been a major influence on Sister Mary Ann's work. The art she created for With Passion, her 2015 exhibition at The Basilica, was inspired by quotes from Blessed Theresa Gerhardinger and Pope Francis. An exhibition she conceived for Saint Paul Monastery in Saint Paul, MN a few years ago was entitled Love Cannot Wait. Sister Mary Ann borrowed this title from1882 writings by Blessed Theresa Gerhardinger. An imagined diary of the foundress accompanies the art. The work is now rotated monthly in a space near the Monastery's Good Counsel chapel.
Blessed Theresa Gerhardinger' influence on Sr. Mary Ann actually goes back to the very beginning of her art making as her first carvings (1985) were created to honor the SSND foundress on the occasion of her beatification. At that time Sister Mary Ann had taken only two summer workshops in wood carving, for a total of three weeks. After thirteen years of teaching in elementary schools in Minnesota, North Dakota and Iowa, Sister Mary Ann felt her future had a different path. She loved the students and enjoyed teaching but she felt called to teach in a new way. She was given permission to study and work as an apprentice with a wood carver in Faribault, MN. The original agreement was for one year, then followed by a second year. By 1988 she was a full-time artist, with her first studio space at Our Lady of Good Counsel. A couple years later she pursued a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at Metropolitan State University and studied for six months with Franciscan Sister Sigmunda May in Stuttgart, Germany.
The artist spends most of her days working in her sunny studio, a former laundry where she moved in 2004. Sometimes she will sketch ideas on paper, but she prefers to start with the wood, carving soon after some initial drawing directly on the surface. She usually begins with the faces. When studying with Sister Sigmunda she was encouraged to follow her heart, listen to God and let the characteristics of the wood guide her process. For carvings she typically uses kiln dried wood, bass or linden. The embellishments she adds to her wood sculptures often have their own stories. She has repurposed arches and copper from buildings under renovation. And people often drop off items they think she may be able to use; parts of a beautiful broken vase, pieces of glass or silver, or small logs from a beaver dam. Eventually these items find their way into a piece of art.
Sister Mary Ann has admired and been inspired by other artists including her teacher Sister Sigmunda May, Corita Kent, Henry Moore, Joseph O'Connell, Ernst Barlach and Käthe Kollwitz. Her work can be found around the world in churches, schools, hospitals and homes. In addition to wood carving, she does woodcut prints and works with glass.
The Basilica selected her piece One Breath from our art collection to visually represent the Revolution of Love and Tenderness initiatives this year. The piece of art was selected given its heart shape reference embracing the people of the world with love and tenderness and will be displayed in The Basilica throughout the year. Sister Mary Ann shares the meaning as, “Through the spirit we must work together sharing love and tenderness, to make the world a better place. All it takes is one breath of God in our direction.”
It is good to keep in mind that Love Cannot Wait has been the directional statement for the School Sisters of Notre Dame for the past five years. The statement commits this international congregation of women religious to embrace dialogue as a way of life that leads to new discoveries about themselves and others, and to conversion, reconciliation and healing. It is a call to change lives and the world. Sr. Mary Ann does this beautifully through her art.
Sister Mary Ann’s studio is located in Florian Hall at Our Lady of Good Counsel in Mankato. She welcomes visitors. sistermaryannosborne.com
By Kathy Dhaemers, Associate Director of Sacred Arts
Published BASILICA Magazine Spring 2017, A Revolution of Love and Tenderness
The Basilica of Saint Mary proudly releases BASILICA Magazine, Spring 2017: A Revolution of Love and Tenderness.
Thank you to the volunteer Magazine team for their dedication creating this issue.
Cecilia Hofmeister, Melissa Streit, Carol Evans, Rita Nagan, Elyse Rethlake
Inside this issue
A Revolution of Love and Tenderness:
Embracing the Pope’s Message
by Johan M.J. van Parys
A Revolution of Love and Tenderness:
In Our Community
by Janice Andersen
Living the Pope’s Message: In Our Homes
by Paula Kaempffer
The Power of the Pulpit: 500 Years Later —
Luther in Our Time
by Johan M.J. van Parys
Reflecting The Basilica: Photographer Michael Jensen
by Michael Jensen
Celebrating the Conclusion of the Year of Mercy:
From Minneapolis…to Rome
by Eileen Bock
Meet Our New Development Officers: Supporting
The Basilica and The Basilica Landmark
by Mae Desaire
Space Needed: It’s a Good Problem — Seek the
Well-Being of the City
by Peggy Jennings
Accessible and Welcoming to All: Improving Access
to Our Historic Church
by Emily Carlson Hjelm
Revealing the Story: Visiting the Artist’s Studio
by Kathy Dhaemers
Meet Our New Presiders: Weekends at The Basilica
by Melissa Streit
A Passion for Art, Architecture, and Giving: Meet The
Donors behind the St. Anthony Chapel Renovation
by Monica Stuart
The award-winning BASILICA magazine is sponsored by The Basilica Landmark, a 501(c)(3) corporation whose mission is the preservation and restoration of the historic Basilica of Saint Mary and it campus. BASILICA is published twice a year (spring and fall) with a circulation of 20,000.
For advertising information please contact Peggy Jennings.
The Basilica Landmark has announced a funding initiative to make accessibility improvements to historic The Basilica of Saint Mary. The Basilica continually strives to make the church and campus facilities accessible and welcoming to all parishioners and visitors. The Basilica’s Disability Awareness Committee has identified and addressed opportunities to make The Basilica free of barriers to prayer and involvement since 2005.
Every year the Basilica Landmark Ball supports a specific project. This year’s Fund-A-Need is designated to improving the accessibility of the historic structure. The project encompasses adding automatic openers to many of the restroom doors and the exterior bronze center east doors, weighing over 300 pounds each.
The Ball’s Chair, Jackie Millea, AIA, ASID, is especially passionate about improving accessibility from her personal family experience. Jackie believes, “Accessibility is not about calling out a disability. It’s about creating an environment that allows people to be autonomous—having the dignity to do things on their own.”
The Basilica Landmark Board of Directors invites the community to support our effort to make The Basilica more accessible. It is important that the physical building reflect our message of hospitality and inclusivity to everyone.
The Basilica Landmark Ball
Saturday, May 20, 2017 at US Bank Stadium
The signature fundraising event features creative cuisine, specialty cocktails, and fantastic giving opportunities to support The Basilica Landmark.
To purchase tickets or make a gift to support the accessibility Fund-A-Need initiative visit www.thebasilicalandmark.org
The Basilica welcomes all to celebrate Holy Week and Easter. The beauty and tradition at The Basilica will draw over 5,000 people for the sacred celebrations.
The most important days of Holy week, known as the Sacred Triduum, begins with Holy Thursday on April 13 and continues with Good Friday April 14, Holy Saturday April 15, and Easter Sunday April 16.
Join us July 7 and 8 for the Basilica Block Party.
Friday, July 7, 2017
Great Clips Stage
Brandi Carlile
NEEDTOBREATHE
John Paul White
The Roosevelts
PreferredOne Stage
The Shins
Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness
Cobi
Star Tribune Stage
Night Moves
Jaedyn James & the Hunger
Nick Jordan
Saturday, July 8, 2017
Great Clips Stage
WALK THE MOON
Gavin DeGraw
Ben Rector
Julia Brennan
PreferredOne Stage
AWOLNATION
Walk Off The Earth
Enemy Planes
Star Tribune Stage
Nooky Jones
Jackson & The Roosters
J.S. Ondara
The MN Lottery Silent Disco returns on the East Lawn - dance like knowbody is watching (and only you can hear) until 11pm
Gates open at 5pm each night
All bands and order of appearance subject to change.
The Basilica Block Party began in 1995 as a fundraiser to help pay for the structural restoration of The Basilica of Saint Mary. Today, proceeds from the event benefit The Basilica Landmark, which preserves, restores and advances the historic Basilica of Saint Mary for all generations. In addition, a portion of all proceeds from The Basilica Block Party go to The Basilica’s St. Vincent de Paul outreach program, which provides services to those in need.
Archdiocese Update:
A letter and video from Archbishop Hebda regarding the Archdiocese settlement agreement and bankruptcy. Please continue to pray for all the victims, survivors, and their families.
We’ve advanced to the next round in the Church Madness: Most Beautiful Church tournament. We need your vote to make it to the Sweet Sixteen!
Scroll down to the Midwest bracket- The Basilica vs. St. Mary’s Church in David City, Nebraska.
https://artandliturgy.com/2017/03/19/church-madness-2017-theological-32/
Elections will be held this spring for Parish Council representatives for our Liturgy and Sacred Arts and Christian areas. If you know parishioners who would make excellent representatives, please fill out a nomination form by April 6.
Parish Council members serve as an advisory group to the Pastor and assist with strategic planning, creation of effective communication structures, policies and procedures, and educating parishioners about biblical stewardship.
Our Parish Council is composed of:
- 6 elected members including 2 representatives each for Learning, Christian Life, and Liturgy areas,
- 3 appointed "at large" members,
- appointed representatives from the Finance and Development Committees,
- 4 ex-officio members including 2 Parish Trustees, Pastor, and Managing Director.
All elected and appointed at large members serve terms of 3 years and can serve a maximum of 2 terms.
Council members should be sensitive to the needs, ambitions and desires of The Basilica community to fulfill its mission, and through collaboration, consultation and support, serve as an advisory group to the Pastor. The
Parish Council also responds to and acts on the recommendations of the Parish Finance Committee and Stewardship Council.
Contact Terri Ashmore more information.