St. Mary's Church in Jamesville
It’s rare when we know our prayers have been answered. Sometimes we pray for results that are too unlikely to occur. Sometimes we pray for accomplishments that are beyond our abilities. Sometimes we pray for conclusions that are difficult to measure. In the case of the parishioners of St. Mary’s Church in Jamesville they prayed for the impossible and appear to have achieved it.
In a case that is a first of its kind in the United States the Vatican’s equivalent of the Supreme Court heard the case of this tiny parish nestled in the hamlet of Jamesville. The Vatican listened and then ruled in favor of the people and to some degree against the ruling of the Diocese of Syracuse.
Praying was not all these Catholics did over this four year battle to keep their church building from being closed for good. They worked their way through an exhaustive system that ended just short of the Pope himself. They sought guidance. They filed briefs. They articulated their case in such a manner that they touched on the correct points of church doctrine to lead this Vatican court to decree St. Mary’s must remain as a place of worship.
These parishioners shed tears as they neared an end of this long journey. They don’t yet know whether mass will once again be said inside the classic white country church. They don’t know whether Bishop Cunningham will unlock the doors and restore St. Mary’s as a parish, a mission or some as yet unknown entity.
They do know they will once again pray inside these holy walls. They will feel the comfort of the building blocks set forth by their antecedents. They will know there are times when prayers are answered, even when the request is beyond belief.
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