St. Josemaría Escrivá Chapel at Catholic Information Center

Where: St. Josemaría Escrivá Chapel at Catholic Information Center, 1501 K St NW, Washington DC, 20005.

When: December 31st, 2010.

Web: The CIC website is located here.

We attended the regular 12:05pm weekday Mass at the CIC.  The CIC is located in the heart of downtown Washington; it has a bookstore and chapel, and serves as a base for various Catholic groups and meetings. 

The core of the CIC is its 84-seat chapel, named in honor of St. Josemaría Escrivá, the founder of Opes Dei, the group that currently operates the CIC.  Given that it was a holiday today, only a dozen or so people were in the congregation.  A single priest celebrated Mass with one assistant who served as lector and alter server.  The Mass followed the standard rite, though had only one reading before the Gospel.  Only the host was offered for Holy Communion.  The priest gave a homily on the appropriateness of reviewing God's blessings in 2010 at the end of the year.  We sang hymns at the opening and closing of the Mass.  Mass was preceded by a recitation of the Angelus and followed by a recitation of the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel.

Chapel at Veterans' Medical Center

Where: Chapel at Veterans' Medical Center, 50 Irving St NW, Washington, DC 20422.

When: Sunday, December 26th, 2010.

Web: The chaplain's page of the VA Medical Center's website is here.

We attended the daily 11:30am Mass at the Veterans' Medical Center; one of the many hospitals in DC to offer scheuled masses to patients, staff, visitors, and the general public.  The Medical Center has a lovely chapel on the 3rd floor, shared by all faiths and denominations. 

The hospital's resident chaplain celebrated Mass.  The congregation was four people; two patients and us (a fifth person, possibly a staff member on a short break, attended for a while too).  We heard from one of the patients that a rumor had spread that today's Mass was cancelled due to the chaplain being sick - we deduced from this that the congregation is usually larger.

The priest led us in singing an opening hymn.  The service followed the standard rite.  He gave a homily on the feast of the Holy Family; he told of his own period of homelessness (as a recently-arrived Filipino priest in the US) and how his grandparents strengthened his faith and, ultimately, led him to discern his vocation when he was just ten.  He also reminded us that Christmas is a sixteen-day celebration that starts with Christmas Day.

The host was offered for communion.  At the end of Mass, just before dismissal, the priest led us in a series of prayers including four Hail Marys.  The ready participation of the two patients in these prayers led us to believe that this is standard practice here.

St Stephen Martyr

Where: St Stephen Martyr, 2436 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20037

When: Sunday, December 19th, 2010.

Web: The parish website is located here; the ADW listing is here.

We attended 5:30pm Mass at this church in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood of DC (note: not the 5:30pm Vigil Mass - St Stephen's has a late Mass on Sunday, most likely to accommodate the GWU students).

A single priest celebrated the Mass, with the assitance of two lectors and an altar server.  There was neither a cantor nor a music group.  The Mass followed the standard rite.  The priest focused his homily on the dream-like interactions God had with Joseph, Isaiah, and Ahaz, noting the different responses of each. 

The large congregation was quite mixed, both racially and in age.

St Dominic

Where: St Dominic's Church, 630 E St SW, Washington DC 20024 

When: Sunday, December 5th, 2010

Web: The parish's website is here; the ADW listing is here.

We attended 10:45am Mass at this rather large church in Southwest DC, located just off the 395 expressway amidst Federal office buildings.  The congregation of about eighty seemed sparse in the vast venue.

The Mass followed the conventional rite.  A single priest celebrated Mass, with the assitance of two deacons, a worship coordinator/cantor, an eight-strong choir/music group, two lectors, two eucharistic ministers, and an altar server.