Palm Sunday

Courtesy of St. Mary parish in Appleton, Wisconsin, many instructions for braiding palms, a custom of many ethnic groups. Click HERE.

Another custom . . . burning a piece of dried palm during storms for protection.

For many in the Toledo area, Palm Sunday calls to mind the Palm Sunday tornadoes of 1965. You can see a 1965 WTOL documentary on the tornadoes HERE.

O Sacred Head Now Wounded

A song for Holy Week, with views of Rosary Cathedral.

Stations of the Cross, St. Wendelin

These large paintings of the Stations of the Cross date from the early 1900s, from the previous St. Wendelin church in Fostoria.

Veronica wipes the face of Jesus. Mary is in the upper right background.

Jesus Falls the Third Time. Note the two prisoners in the background; I'm assuming they are the two thieves.

St. Joseph, Fremont

An interesting look at the renovation and restoration of Fremont St. Joseph church, at the Conrad Schmitt Studios website: Click HERE.

Mary Manse College, Toledo

The auditorium, from a 1944 post card.

The college is now the Collingwood Arts Center.

St. Mary, Millersville

Above, "Jesus is Stripped of His Garments." The Stations of the Cross at Millersville are paintings from Cologne, Germany, according to the parish history.

The church was dedicated in 1921.

The architectural style is Flemish-Gothic.

Nativity window above the main altar. The parish was first called "the Nativity church of Greensburg" in 1859. (A road nearby is Greensburg Pike.)

Many of the pews are from the previous church building.

Just north of the church is a new winery, Chateau Tebeau. If you look in the photo above, you can see the steeple in the middle above the grape vines. There is a limestone quarry across the road, and limestone makes for happy grapes (so I've read).

Something for St. Patrick

Bagpipes at Historic St. Patrick's in Toledo's Warehouse District.

From several years ago, click HERE for a post about how the crucifix at St. Patrick's inspired one man to become Catholic.

Millersville St. Mary Cemetery

A beautiful cemetery, with old cedar trees planted in rows throughout. Surrounding the cemetery are pastures and farms.

This cross was erected in 1891; the cemetery was dedicated in 1887. Previous burials from the parish are at Ludwig Cemetery.


The Lehman family marker.

Defining Your Parish

Over at the Adam's Ale blog, Fr. Valencheck has finished his series on "Defining Your Parish" -- hints for analyzing and documenting the symbolism and history of a church. Click HERE.

Shrine Park, Carey

Holy Family -- Joseph, Jesus and Mary.

Jesus awaits crucifixion.

St. Anne with Mary as a child.

The Organ in Church Design

In the 1957 book "The Organ in Church Design" by Joseph Blanton, there are photos of two churches in the Diocese of Toledo. Above is the organ at Sacred Heart church in East Toledo (Renisch organ from 1912).

Above is a Holtcamp organ at St. Mary's in Millersville.

Pope John Paul II in Ohio, 1969

At the Cleveland Memory Project website, you can view some photos of then-Cardinal Karol Wojtyla on a visit to Cleveland in 1969. Click HERE.

Stations of the Cross, Shrine Park, Carey

I. Jesus is Condemned to Death.

II. Jesus Carries His Cross.

XI. Jesus is Nailed to the Cross.

XII. Jesus Dies on the Cross.

First Communion, 1888

A certificate for a First Communion from 1888. Text is in German, and the lithograph is by Benziger. I could not read all of the writing at the bottom of the certificate, but it was signed by Fr. J. Heidegger, Pastor, who is likely Rev. James J. Heidegger -- he was a pastor at Fort Jennings and St. Mary, Sandusky. You can see a brief biography of him HERE.

Fr. Joseph Williams

A reader left a comment asking for information on Fr. Joseph Williams -- above is his obituary from the 1968 Diocesan Directory. His brother Leo, also a priest, apparently looked after him during his illness. Interesting how many sets of brothers are priests.

Precious Blood Sisters, New Riegel

A photo of a Jubilee celebration at the Precious Blood convent in New Riegel. Sister Euphemia Gosche (in the center) was marking 50 years as a sister with other sisters, family and friends. Not sure of exact date, sometime in the late 1940s.

Open Wide the Doors . . .

St. John the Evangelist parish in Indianapolis decided to open its doors during a youth convention, and most recently during the Super Bowl. Not many parishes will have a convention or Super Bowl nearby, but what would happen if the doors were open a little more often?

St. Martin de Porres Concert

Toledo St. Martin de Porres, the Diocese of Toledo and The Toledo Symphony present the 22nd Annual Neighborhood Concert in honor of Black History Month on Feb. 26, 2012 at 5 p.m. at St. Martin de Porres. Full information HERE. (Photo by Shari York Stowell.)

St. Mary Cemetery, Tiffin

Stations of the Cross.

Close up of the Ninth Station.

A grouping of statues: St. Joseph, St. Anthony, St. Therese of Lisieux, and St. Francis of Assisi.

St. Francis of Assisi.

St. Anthony with the Child Jesus, with St. Joseph in the background.

St. Michael, Gibsonburg

A few photos left over from an earlier post . . .