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Summary of today\u2019s show: The Chrism Mass on Tuesday of Holy Week each year is one of the biggest single gatherings of the priests of the Archdiocese of Boston each year and in it Cardinal Se\xe1n often gives a very strong homily to encourage his priests. Scot Landry and Fr. Chris O\u2019Connor were joined today by Fr. Bill Kelly and Fr. Joe Scorzello to talk about the importance of the Mass to the priests and Cardinal Se\xe1n\u2019s reflections on the conclave and comparing it to the openness required of priests who give themselves over to the Holy Spirit. Also, Scot talks to the boys from the Archdiocesan Choir School about their experience singing at the Mass.\nListen to the show:\n\nWatch the show via live video streaming or a recording later: \nToday\u2019s host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Chris O\u2019Connor\nToday\u2019s guest(s): Fr. Bill Kelly and Fr. Joe Scorzello\nLinks from today\u2019s show:\n\n\n\n\n\nToday\u2019s topics: The Chrism Mass, the Choir School, and Cardinal Se\xe1n\u2019s homily\n1st segment: Scot Landry welcomed everyone to the show from the Cathedral of the Holy Cross where Cardinal Se\xe1n celebrated the annual Chrism Mass with the priests of the Archdiocese. the Cardinal gives a significant homily to the priests and consecrates new holy oils for all the parishes. Scot said this year many Catholic schools were invited to attend the Mass, including The Archdiocesan Choir School.\n2nd segment: Scot welcomed the boys from the choir school and music director John Robinson. He asked John where the boys have been singing in this their 50th anniversary year. He said they sing a range of events, including Christmas concerts in Salem, Norwell, Newport, Rhode Island, and even Carnegie Hall.\nToday the choir school was to sing the Gloria, an Ave Verum Corpus and another, alongside the Cathedral Festival Choir. Christian Landry, Scot\u2019s son who is part of the choir, said it was a great honor to sing for the cardinal\u2019s Mass. He said singing for all the priests of the archdiocese is a little bit of a nerve=wracking experience but will prepare them to sing for large audiences later in life. Christian said he loves the teachers and students. Another student, Thomas Potts, said the teachers push them to succeed and learn.\nScot asked John about what it\u2019s like to be the only Catholic choir school in the country. John said it\u2019s an amazing responsibility because they\u2019re training the future tenors and cantors and even boys who will become priests. It\u2019s a model that Europe has shown to work over many centuries. They\u2019re showing it works by the way the boys sing and are being educated.\nScot said the school\u2019s annual gala will be June 1. John said it\u2019s a very important evening financially for the school, but it\u2019s great fun as well because the boys are singing in a light jazzy style as well.\nJohn said having come into the Church with his wife as an adult, the Chrism Mass is very special for him and especially this year with the Cardinal having come back to us in Boston.\n3rd segment: Scot welcomed Fr. Chris O\u2019Connor to the show. Fr. Chris said it was a beautiful Mass that showed the unity of priests, bishops and laity. Scot welcomed Fr. Joe Scorzello who said it\u2019s one of the largest Chrism Masses he can remember with many older and younger priests gathered together in a sign of unity and a boost for morale.\nFr. Bill Kelly, pastor of St. Mary Parish in Dedham, was welcomed by Scot. Fr. Bill said the Cardinal was at the front door greeting each priest as they came in and it was moving for many of them who haven\u2019t been able to see him since the conclave. Fr. Bill said this year the anointing of the oil of the sick was moving for him this year as he recalled all the sick he goes to in hospital and nursing homes, including his own father recently. He said they probably use the anointings more than 100 times per year, including more and more recently to people\u2019s homes.\nFr. Chris said in this Mass all of the oils used for all of the sacraments throughout the Archdiocese this year were consecrated today. The men to be ordained in May carried the oils up to Cardinal Se\xe1n. All of the catechumens to be welcomed into the Church on Saturday and all the babies to be baptized will have those oils used to anoint them. Another moving moment was when Bishop Robert Deeley read the names of all the priests who died this year, reminding that the bonds of the priesthood never die. The unity among them exists not just among the priests, but among the parishes too. This is a Mass about unity between all and their bishop. All of the priests also renew their vows and stay committed to their promise to remain faithful to the Lord and faithful to the bishop.\nFr. Scorzello said the lists of names take even greater meaning as he gets older. He\u2019s known many of them for years and some he was even an altar server for. He said the Mass is usually celebrated on Holy Thursday and by exception on another day and is focused on the presbyterate as Holy Thursday is as well.\nScot said outside of ordinations, it\u2019s the largest gathering of priests. Fr. Bill said the Mass and the renewal of vows recalls for him his original vows at his ordination. Like any promise, you don\u2019t know how living those promises will be lived out and so saying it again makes him reflect. He said the closing hymn, \u201cOh Good Beyond All Praising\u201d talks of all the joys and challenges we have as Christians and has the great line, \u201cyet strive to follow still.\u201d He said he finds it consoling knowing that he will die and is being asked to live his life serving as a priest.\nScot said having all the Catholic school kids there made it much like the whole church from young to old and he thought of all the young boys who may one day be priests and one of them may one day be reading the name of Fr. Bill or Fr. Chris or Fr. Joe. Fr. Chris said he was struck by the young woman who did an incredible job proclaiming the Second Reading at Mass. Fr. Bill said the faces on the kids reflected all the hundreds of priests and how they realized that the Catholic Church is so much bigger than they imagined.\nFr. Chris said as he saw all the priests and all the young people gathered, he was struck by the Psalm \u201cForever I will sing of the goodness of the Lord\u201d, particularly for priests to be reminded to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ and to tell people even in their darkest hour of the goodness of God.\nScot said Cardinal Se\xe1n might work on this homily as much as he does on any homily all year. He said Cardinal Se\xe1n started with some humor reflecting on the conclave:\n\nThe whole pre-Conclave atmosphere where I was leading in the Italian polls was quite surrealistic. I thought of St. Patrick who was of a Roman family living in Britain.\xa0Patrick was an Irish wanabee, he was actually an Italian kidnapped by Irish pirates.\xa0I was worried that the Italians were trying to get even. Actually, I was very touched by the Italian people\u2019s enthusiasm for your Archbishop.\nNeedless to say, I am very happy and relieved to be back home in Boston.\xa0The whole experience of the Conclave was extraordinary. I felt very close to all of you. I knew that we were united in prayer, praying that the Holy Spirit guide our Church in this important decision.\xa0Like the first Christians praying intensely before choosing St. Matthias to be an apostle, to fill the vacancy and to pass on the office of Apostle.\n\nScot said it\u2019s Cardinal Se\xe1n\u2019s first mention of the enthusiasm for him in Italy. He said his own experience in Rome was that the regular folk were all for him. Scot noted that Cardinal Se\xe1n told reporters he was most looking forward to going home to celebrate the Chrism Mass. Fr. Scorzello said the theme of the Cardinal\u2019s homily was one of continuity, whether it was the continuity of the papacy or the continuity of the Church in Boston. He also spoke of the continuity of the formation and growth of the priest throughout his life. He said Metropolitan Methodius\u2019 words at the end of Mass was the fulfillment of that continuity. Scot said the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan expressed his hope for unity between West and East.\n\nHere in Boston, we must see ourselves as the continuation of the Church of the Acts of the Apostles, with so many dramatic challenges, we must cultivate a deep trust in the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit to guide and unite us.\nAs we work to implement the Pastoral Plan, it cannot be just about strategy or techniques, but about our own deep awareness of God\u2019s loving presence in our Church. All of our discussions and planning, like the work of the pre-Conclave Congregations and the Conclave itself, needs to take place in that atmosphere of prayer and trust in God\u2019s love for us.\n\nScot said as he was hearing that, he thought that he wants the awareness of the palpable presence of the Holy Spirit to be part of everything we do in the Archdiocese of Boston. Fr. Bill said when you\u2019re coming to the work of the Gospel from a sense of poverty, you\u2019re depending wholly on the Holy Spirit. It\u2019s easy to get caught up in the mechanics of pastoral planning, but this homily brings us back to the sense of hope and trust and if we do commit ourselves to where the Holy Spirit leads, these other things will get worked out. There\u2019s a deeper power to what the Church has to do.\nScot said Cardinal Se\xe1n reflected on the uncertainty facing priests with the pastoral plan compared to the uncertainty of the cardinals entering the conclave.\n\nAs my brother Cardinals and I entered the Conclave, we did not know what the outcome would be or what the future would hold. We were called to make ourselves available for the mission of the Church. Our pastors in the first phase of pastoral planning have likewise been called to make themselves available for mission, without knowing what the outcome would be as once again they responded, \u201cadsum\u201d. The Archdiocese is greatly blessed by their dedication, commitment and example of selfless service as we embark on the journey of rebuilding our parishes and welcoming the faithful back to active participation in the life of our Church. We want our Pastoral Planning, like the Conclave in Rome, to be a Pentecost moment in this Year of Faith.\n\nScot said we like to know that our leader knows what it\u2019s like to walk in our shoes and the cardinal knows that uncertainty. Fr. Chris said the Chrism Mass is usually on Holy Thursday because it\u2019s the day that Christ instituted not only the Eucharist but also the priesthood. When the man to be ordained to the priesthood lies prostrate on the cathedral floor, he is giving himself completely to whatever the Church needs of him, whether parish priest or pope.\nScot said it\u2019s tough sometimes for priests to focus on what they know they need to do, but have difficulty finding time to do. Fr. Joe said it\u2019s easy to get busy in the parish, but there has to be time set aside each day for prayer, reflection of Sacred Scripture and study of the sacred sciences. That\u2019s continuing formation that makes them receptive to the Holy Spirit and receptive to receive the will of God as spoken through the Church\u2019s needs. A thing is received according to the ability of the recipient to receive them.\nFr. Bill assisted Cardinal Se\xe1n in ongoing formation of priests before becoming pastor of St. Mary\u2019s. Scot asked what parishioners can do to help priests work on their ongoing formation. Fr. Bill said encouragement is key. The parishioners who work closest with the pastor who recognize the need of the priest to step back. People need to be understanding of the need of the pastor not to be responsive at every moment. He said he knows a priest who every year those closest to him tell him that he needs to go on retreat. Working in a parish can give you tunnel vision and you need someone to help you see what you need to make time for.\nScot said he\u2019ll remember the analogy made by Cardinal Se\xe1n between a husband kissing his wife each day with a priest kissing the altar each day, as in celebrating the Mass. Fr. Chris said it brings home to the layman the commitment of the priest to the Church. He liked as well that he referenced the fact that not only is kissing the altar is a public reality, but it\u2019s also a very private reality. The Eucharist should be the fire, zeal, energy for the priest to go out and do his ministry. Once a priest, you\u2019re always a priest. The most important thing a priest can do is reverence the altar and begin the celebration of the Mass.\nScot said Cardinal Se\xe1n also talked about the priest being a model of the Church\u2019s preferential option for the poor. Fr. Joe said concern for the poor is an Evangelical virtue. It comes out of the celebration of the Eucharist and what it means, the giving over of oneself for everyone. Looking back on the election of Pope Francis and the Italians\u2019 love of St. Francis, what was Francis\u2019 focus but the love of the poor and God\u2019s love of the poor. Francis reminded us of the poverty that Christ accepted when he accepted human nature. We can poor both materially and spiritually. Christ came to save the human person, body and soul. We have to be attentive to all aspects of the person, body and soul.\nCardinal ended by imploring all the priests to be unified, not to mention the call for unity with Metropolitan Methodius. We need to continually state the need for unity. Fr. Bill said the Gospel of John reminds us of Jesus\u2019 prayer that we all may be one. That\u2019s not just for ecumenical work, but also within the Church. The idea of the priestly life flowing from the altar holds everything together. Love is unitive.\nScot asked what else happens after the Chrism Mass. Fr. Chris said there\u2019s the reality of seeing all their brother priests, working in all places, in all sizes, shapes, colors, and ages, but all called with their unique gifts to serve Christ as priests.\nFr. Scorzello spoke of this mother who is 93 years old and he carries the oils of anointing with him all the time because he never knows when she might need him to anoint her. There\u2019s a unity in the sacraments of the Church through these oils.\n\nFr. Bill said he\u2019s a choir school graduate and the song they sang after Communion was the song he was singing when he received his call to the priesthood, \u201cGreater Love\u201d by John Ireland.\nFr. Chris said Holy Week is the best week every year.