CLEVELAND (OH)
The Plain Dealer
By Evelyn Theiss, The Plain Dealer
CLEVELAND, Ohio — Catholics from many of the closed churches in Northeast Ohio gathered this afternoon for a Mass of thanksgiving at St. Colman Church in Cleveland.
Hymn-singing was emphasized in the Mass, led by St. Colman’s pastor, the Rev. Bob Begin, and it seemed exceptionally joyous.
“This is so beautiful,” said Phyllis Cielec, 81, whose home church was St. Barbara in Cleveland’s Old Brooklyn neighborhood. “This is part of a dream we never thought we’d see.”
The celebration was triggered by the stunning news earlier this month that the Vatican’s Congregation for the Clergy had ruled in favor of 13 closed parishes in Cleveland, saying Bishop Richard Lennon did not follow church law and procedures when he closed them. Banners at the front of the church represented each of those churches.
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