By Katie Peterson
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (CNS) — “I have arrived in Nashville. I have no place to live, I have no priests and no money, but here I begin.”
Words similar to these were written in the diary of the late Bishop Richard Pius Miles, a Dominican, his first night as the first bishop of the Diocese of Nashville in 1838, following the establishment of the diocese by Pope Gregory XVI in 1837.
At that time, the diocese covered the entire state of Tennessee before the Diocese of Memphis, which covers the western third of the state, was established in 1971, and the Diocese of Knoxville, which covers the eastern third of the state, was established in 1988.
But it was Bishop Miles’ words that officially brought the Diocese of Nashville to where it is today and its 185th anniversary was celebrated by Bishop J. Mark Spalding, joined by dozens of priests and deacons of the diocese, with a special Mass at the Cathedral of the Incarnation July 28.
At the start of his homily, Bishop Spalding listed the names of the bishops throughout the history of the diocese before quoting those paraphrased words written by Bishop Miles.
“From that moment to this, people have gathered in word and in sacrament and celebrated the presence of Christ and shared that presence with others,” he said. “The bishops, they’re important persons and leaders in our church, but as we gather here this evening, we are mindful as well of all those pastors, associates, all those deacons, the religious.”
“We’ve also had lay leadership and lay faithful in the pews that have made sure the church grew and prospered,” he continued. “This Mass, in a special way, we have it as an intention for all those who have gone before us who lived the faith, who loved the faith and passed it on.”
He advised the congregation: “Tonight, do yourself a favor and give yourself a grace by just pondering those dear ones God has blessed you with in your life, who’ve made you who you are, especially in your faith journey. As we gather here … we’re symbolic of the whole diocese this night. You symbolize everyone that has gone before us.”
Bishop Spalding urged the faithful to continue to be “mindful of the tradition and the legacy we’ve received.”
“If you read the history of this diocese, it’s full of many blessings of people gathering more and more and building the little churches and the big ones, starting in storefronts and even barns to celebrate Mass,” he said. “These are some of the biggest parishes now, and our parishes are only growing bigger, so we need to be wide open and praying that God watches over us as we go into this future.”
Going into the future will require “work, effort, invitation, challenge, compassion,” he said.
“We need to recognize Christ and share him with others. Profoundly, people in our day, as in the days before us, need to know Christ in word, in the proclamation and in the teaching of the church,” he continued.
“They need to know Christ in the sacraments of the church, but most especially in the gift of the Eucharist; the body, blood, soul and divinity given to us,” he said.
It’s “a wonderful miracle” that “we should be sharing with everyone we meet” and inviting them to “come with us on this great journey, this pilgrimage from this city on earth to the heavenly Jerusalem,” he said.
“There is no greater thing that you and I can be a part of in this church and for its future than to share Christ with others, to tell others you love them, you care for them and that you are a believer,” Bishop Spalding said.
“We thank God for where we are and we ask God to lead us into our future, mindful of the gifts of his Son, mindful of the gifts of the Spirit,” he added.
During the Mass, Bishop Spalding used items of the diocese’s former leaders, such as the crozier and pectoral cross that belonged to Bishop Thomas Sebastian Byrne, the fifth bishop of Nashville, who was responsible for the building of the cathedral.
The chalice used during the Liturgy of the Eucharist belonged to Bishop Miles — it was bent due to being kept in a saddle bag while the prelate traveled on horseback across the state.
“Think of Bishop Miles going all over the state with a horse and that beautiful chalice, and he offered up Mass then as we did just now and we unite ourselves,” Bishop Spalding said. “We united ourselves throughout space and time with the angels and the saints, and they gather with us every time we celebrate Mass.”
Peterson is on the staff of the Tennessee Register, newspaper of the Diocese of Nashville.
