Book Review
Keeping the Faith in Stratton
Page 16
Phase III
Rebuilding
Anna-Katarina Emmerick (Visionary) 1800’s
“I saw the Church of St. Peter: it had been destroyed but for the Sanctuary and
the main Altar. St. Michael came down into the church, clad in his suit of
armor, and he paused, threatening with his sword a number of unworthy pastors
who wanted to enter. That part of the Church which had been destroyed was
promptly fenced in with light timber so that the Divine office might be
celebrated as it should. Then, from all over the world came priests and laymen,
and they rebuilt the stone walls, since the wreckers had been unable to move the
heavy foundation stones.”
CATHOLIC PROPHECY by Yves Dupont
Father Jones was kicked out of his parish by his
diocesan bishop, and being quite poor with very unreliable transportation to
match, went to work with the Traditionalists. In October 1972, the
traditionalist groups, mostly Stratton, bought Father Jones a new car so he
could get around and be sure to make it out to say Mass for us. It was probably
one of the best financial investments in our Faith we could have made since
Father Jones traveled all around the state, and other states, to set up
Traditionalist groups and chapels. These chapels were to be in Durango, Olathe,
Pueblo, Colorado Springs, Denver, and of course Stratton.
Fr. Jones told us about Father White, in Springfield,
Colorado, who was a Benedictine priest from England who had been sent to
Colorado with a drier climate for his health. He had been assigned to the
Benedictine Abby in Canyon City, Colorado, and was serving under the diocesan
Bishop in Pueblo, Colorado (the same bishop that Father Jones was under). I
don’t know how Father Jones and Father White got to know each other, but it is
for sure that “birds of a feather flock together.”
It was probably early in 1973 that Dad, Bill Hornung,
and I (I was just tagging along, sort of a mouse in the corner, not an important
member of the group at all; I would have been about 23 years old at the time,
old enough, for sure, but not mature enough) went to visit with Father White to
see if it might be possible that he would retire and move to Stratton to say
Mass for the Traditionalist group there. Father White said Mass for us early
that morning in the basement of the rectory on a private altar. Afterwards we
took him to breakfast at a local cafe in that rural community. The local people
obviously liked and respected Father White. Father White told us how he had
served Springfield and a couple of mission parishes for quite a few years, some
for around 15-20 years, and that he had always loved the Latin Mass—although I
think I remember that he had compromised some in order to get along with the
bishop, such as turning the altar around, etc. I am not sure of what had been
compromised or if anything had been. The real point is that he had not
compromised the Faith, which was a very unusual stand to take and still be in a
position in a diocesan church. Of course we can be sure the bishop was very
pressed to keep all the priests he could in service as so many had retired.
Father White expressed his interest in looking into working with the Stratton
group but that he didn’t know where he would stand, as far as his abbey was
concerned, if he was to retire.
It was probably the second time going to Mass at the
Knob Hill Community Center that I met Cecilia Ahern, another of Pat and Helen’s
daughters, who had been at Father Nelson’s boarding school with the intention of
entering the convent there. Cecilia had had an argument with one of the teachers
as to whether or not it would be all right to go to a Novus Ordo Mass. So
Cecilia was home for awhile. I also
