Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories Post # 11

From now and until Christmas Eve I will be participating in the Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories, 2015 Edition by Thomas MacEntee and the Geneabloggers. If you would like to join you or want to know more about it please see this link.

Today's Christmas memory is about Christmas at Church.

This picture was painted by Francisco de Zurbarán c.1630 and is known as Immaculate Conception and currently held by Museo del Prado in Madrid Spain. Wikipedia Commons.

One of my favorite holiday memories at church is the celebration and remembrance of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As a little girl from the age of 5 up until the age 10 I attended St. Bartholomew Catholic Church and School.

I love the music associated with Mary, the Blessed Virgin. There are two songs in particular that I associate with this memory, "Ave Maria" and "Salve, Regina" (also known as "Hail Holy Queen"). The little girl in me didn't pay attention to which version was used way back then, so it's hard for me to me remember. Every parish makes a different selection depending on which order of priests are in charge of that parish as well as the liturgy director and music director. There are many different versions of "Salve Regina" as well as "Ave Maria".


I don't recall the order of the priests who were at St. Bartholomew but I do remember the names of the priests from that time, Fr. Fogerty and Fr. O'Dwyer. A few key words and a couple websites later little I found Fr. Fogerty and Fr. O'Dwyer. As little girl to me their  names were Fr. Fogerty and Fr. O'Dwyer but in reality they are  Fr. T. Noel Fogerty and Fr. Dominick O'Dwyer. Fr. Fogerty is now a Monsignor and from what I have found he has had a distinguished career in the priesthood. He retired in 2011. He was the founding pastor of St. Bartholomew and was pastor there until 1971 and he was transferred to another parish in Miami Shores, Florida. Fr. O'Dwyer is actually Fr. Dominick O'Dwyer and he is currently the pastor of St. Malachy Church in Tamarac, Florida. 

Sources:

Wikipedia Commons, Francisco de Zurbarán, Immaculate Conception # 3 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Francisco_de_Zurbaran_Immaculate_Conception_3.jpg : 7 December 2015).
 Happy Retirement, Msgr. Fogerty, Archdiocese of Miami, (http://www.miamiarch.org/CatholicDiocese.php?op=Article_1178125912796 : 7 December 2015).
Our Parish History, St. Bartholomew Catholic Church & School, (http://www.stbartholomew.com/Our-Parish-History : 7 December 2015).
St. Malachy Catholic Church, Profile of Fr. Dominick O'Dwyer (http://stmalachy.church/people/father-dominick-odwyer : 9 December 2015).