Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Beauty Will Save the World - but you have to behold it!


Wednesday, May 13
5-7 PM
Crossroads Auditorium
125 Maiden Lane, 15th Floor, NY

Click Here for more information on Crossroads Cultural Center Site

Monday, April 27, 2015

An Exemplary Final Gathering



This was the scene as the mortal remains of Monsignor Lorenzo Albacete were taken from Saint Mary's, home of some Our Lady of Vilnius chalices.

Msgr. Albacete was one of a kind and very Our Lady of Vilnius in spirit.  I can't help but think that our church would be well ushered out of existence the same way. These mariachis ventured into international waters to play a Puerto Rican song, It would be a great leap for mankind if they could play us out in Lithuanian.

Saturday, April 25, 2015

Final Gathering in Front of Our Lady of Vilnius Tomorrow, Sunday, April 26, 2015


The demolition of Our Lady of Vilnius church is in progress.  We have been gathering near the steps of the church most Sundays since OLV's closure.  We would like to hold a final farewell gathering next Sunday, April 26 at 1:00 p.m., to honor those who initiated and gave all they had to build Our Lady of Vilnius.  You are welcome to come and join us to commemorate and remember, as well, this 100-year chapter of American-Lithuanian history, this chapter of New York City's immigrant history, Our Lady of Vilnius' service to the community, and the people whose commitment and love sustained the church's life and vibrancy.


Rita and Mindaugas

Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Demolition Has Begun

A call was received from a motorist driving toward the Holland Tunnel.  She said that Our Lady of Vilnius and the building next door were being demolished, but that she couldn't see exactly what was going on and that the building was draped.

Please e-mail us with any photos, descriptions or information that you may have.

Friday, April 17, 2015

Read it and Weep: The shed and scaffold are comming to 568/570 Broome Street


New entries at DOB site indicate permits have been filed for shed and scaffold.

Closure is Not the End

"A scar fades, but it is always there."


The closure of Our Lady of Vilnius is relatively small potatoes in the spectrum of trauma and loss that people experience.  When something unimaginable, unfair and unjust happens, many times the afflicted say they seek "Closure".  Some seek Justice, which is possible, but maybe not easy, to obtain.

In advance of the 20th anniversary of the Oklahoma bombing, WNYC aired a Storycorp item featuring a mother and her son:  son one of 6 children  out of 21 in daycare who survived.
The piece is titled ""Anniversary Of Oklahoma City Bombing Reopens Wounds For Survivors"  During the mutual interview between mother and son, the mom, Phuong Nguyen, said that, after 20 years, it left a scar.  That a scar fades, but it is always there.

As the canons rumble toward the closure of many churches and the dissolution of parish families, journalists are asking the veterans of the 2004-2007 realignment how they feel, are they still going to church, if so, where, and do they like it.  I myself struggle every day with the best answer to this question that was best answered today by Ms. Nguyen, whose 4-year old Phoenix was carried from the ashes and subsequently grew into a fine young man.

So we pray for all of those affected by the Oklahoma bombing, living and dead.  We pray for everyone, because we are all wounded and scarred.  We pray not for closure, but for healing and the slow and infinite fading of our scars, which will be always be there but may become reminders not of pain, but of love.