Traditional Latin Mass in Maryland...Quo vadis? (The state of the TLM locally)

This blog was begun on December 8th, 2007 and dedicated to Our Blessed Mother on the Feast of her Immaculate Conception. As of that date, the only TLM known to me was the Traditional Latin Mass celebrated weekly at Saint Alphonsus Church in Baltimore, MD. I had a personal link to the Summary of Masses catalogued by the marvelous Ecclesia Dei Coalition, but there were no links to these Masses on the nascent blog.

Over the past year, many new and exciting things have occurred by God's Grace. I began to receive emails from friends of TLM-MD who apprised me of new and fascinating developments. For example, a TLM was scheduled for St. Bartholomew's Church in Manchester, MD and I publicized that (more Masses at Saint Bartholomew's are scheduled in the future). A dear friend in WV has kept me up-to-date on the situation at Saint James the Greater Church in Charles Town, WV. Over the Christmas season this year, TLM Masses were celebrated at both Saint James Church in CharlesTown and at Saint Peter's Church in Harper's Ferry, WV. It appears that the TLM community in WV is growing!

A friend notified me recently of a weekly Mass at Our Lady's Church at Medley's Neck (near Leonardtown, MD). This is in addition to Mass at Saint Francis de Sales in Benedict, MD. More recently still, I have heard from another friend of a Mass on the Eastern Shore to be celebrated in Delmar, DE at Holy Redeemer Church. This is set for February of 2009, but if the crowd is large, it will hopefully grow to be a weekly Mass. Laus Deo! I know how much the Lower Eastern Shore wants a TLM!

In addition to these Masses, the TLM returned to Lancaster, PA at St. Anthony of Padua Church. More and more "search strings" listed on my Sitemeter revealed that the name of the blog was getting out, BUT that people wanted to know the status of the TLM in PA, in northern Virginia, in DC, DE and then in Richmond and points west or south. To accommodate these requests, I have added more and more Masses in the Menu of Weekly TLM Masses found in the right menu bar just under the image of the TLM. The list is now up to 21. Needless to say, in many cases, I would not be aware of these Masses if friends had not apprised me of their initiation or of their status!

In a magnificent recent development, the TLM was celebrated at Mount Saint Mary's Seminary in Emmitsburg, MD on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. A story appeared in the Washington Times, and a gorgeous photo appeared on the front page of the December 18th edition of The Wanderer newspaper. I even linked to the story that appeared in the Mountain Echo, the Mount's own university newspaper.

To assist others, I added a Menu Bar within the "blue" header of this blog. The hyperlinks lead to key information that is searched often. Many recognize these embedded links and quickly get to the information they need with one click. Others are not aware of this menu "set up" and fail to utilize it. That is sad...it is meant to assist you!

As I found new and exciting links and blogs, I have added more and more of these to the Right Menu bar under the listing of Masses. The Blogroll and Website Favorites has some fascinating sites which are searched often. These include amazing blogs, great collections of links to Religious Orders, magnificent collections of books, etc. I am humbled that so many come here to search for Religious Orders or Monasteries. May it please God that even one soul is directed to a site which will bring a vocation!

I will continue this blog if it continues to fill a need. I know that there is a TLM Mass at the National Shrine in D.C., but I have never received information on when it is scheduled and if it is scheduled weekly. I also know that Georgetown University has a TLM in the Copley Crypt, but I never get feedback on when that Mass is scheduled. Your information is of great value!

I rely on your feedback for updates. I ask only that these be in the PA-MD-DE-DC-VA-WV region. I am totally dependent on information; this is a "clearinghouse" for the region or so it would seem. The Christmas Eve and Christmas Day TLM schedule I posted yielded the highest "hit total" ever on this blog site. The counter was off the chart for three full days!

If you have information on TLM Masses in the DC region, please advise me! I rarely hear about the Masses at Saint Bernadette's Church in Silver Spring, for example, although this is a popular search item.

May it please God, I pray I have aided in your search in some small way!

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