Lenten Mass at LaSalle Academy
BY TEQUILA MINSKY
With his heavy New York
accent and a down to
earth manner, Bishop
Edmund Whalen met La Salle
Academy’s freshmen class with
a lesson about the vestments of a
Bishop last week.
Soon after, the rest of the entire
student body, 340 in all, filtered
into the gym at La Salle’s East 6th
Street location for Lenten Mass.
Pinch hitting for Cardinal
Dolan, who was sick, Bishop
Whalen stepped up to the plate
with aplomb.
“I like being a teaching priest,”
Bishop Whalen told the assembly,
which explains his easy manner
and how well he connects with the
young men.
Students participated in the
procession—carrying the crozier,
and student and faculty member
Alexander Estevez and Mr. Murphy
carried the gifts.
Students from all grades sang
with the choir and participated in
the service. Fr. Gregory Chisholm,
pastor at St. Charles Borromeo in
Harlem, also helped celebrate the
mass.
Bishop Whalen’s homily spoke
directly to the student body and
what it means to be a moral young
man. He referenced the recent
cheating episode of the Astros as
something not to emulate. We all
make mistakes, though, he said,
but recognizing that, one should
try to correct their mistakes.
“It was great to have a Bishop
from the Archdiocese visit our
school and lead us in prayer,”
said Brother Thomas P. Casey,
FSC, President of La Salle Academy.
“Bishop Whalen’s presence
connected us to the larger church
and his words were an ideal mix
of comfort and challenge.”
Bishop Whalen has served
the Archdiocese of New York in
parishes in Westchester, the Bronx
and Staten Island.
La Salle Academy is a college
preparatory Catholic high school
located in the Lower East Side
that serves a culturally diverse
group of students residing in all
five boroughs, whose families
come from over 43 countries. It
was founded in 1848.
Bishop Whalen delivers his heartfelt
homily.
Bro. Thomas Casey in prayer. La Salle seniors at Lenten Mass.
Schneps Media March 12, 2020 17