Catholics from across the archdiocese flocked to St. Francis of Assisi Church, 1960 Bardstown Road, for a series of evening liturgies — each in a different rite or form — the week of June 9-13.
Among the liturgies celebrated were the Romanian Rite, the Syro-Malabar Rite, the Maronite Rite, the Ukrainian Rite and the Ordinariate Form of the Roman Rite.
Each night, the church’s sanctuary was transformed in sight and sound as the liturgies featured traditional objects — such as the iconostasis, a screen with icons traditional to the Ukrainian Rite — and various languages, including Romanian for the Romanian Rite and Malayalam for the Syro-Malabar Rite.
The variety of liturgies drew 55 to 110 participants each night — from older Catholics, to young families with toddlers, to middle-schoolers from St. Francis of Assisi School.
In an interview following the Maronite liturgy on June 11, Jack Cornett, an eighth-grader at St. Francis, said he was drawn by the opportunity to observe the diversity of the liturgies and gain a greater understanding of different cultures.
Similarly, Mariana Lemieux, a participant in the June 11 liturgy, said she had never attended the Maronite rite before, but thought it was “a very cool idea to showcase diversity” in the church.
Prior to each evening’s liturgy, a brief introduction to the rite or form was given. Following each liturgy, the celebrant answered questions from the congregation.
“It was a good learning experience,” and helped her connect with her faith, Lemieux added.
Others in the congregation were drawn to the liturgies as an opportunity to revisit their roots.
Brendan Sullivan, a participant in the June 11 Maronite liturgy, was baptized in the Maronite tradition in Chicago. But, since moving to Louisville in 2023, he hasn’t had a regular opportunity to attend the Maronite liturgy, he said in an interview afterward.
Attending the Maronite liturgy “helps ground me,” reminding him of “being in the church as a little kid,” he said, noting that he has learned about Maronite spirituality through podcasts and books.
“I think it’s really important to emphasize the Eastern Catholic spirituality when we can because it helps to augment what the Western churches have to say,” he said.
Father Jonathan Erdman, pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Church and Our Lady of St. John Church, opened the week of liturgies on June 9 by reading an excerpt from Pope Leo XIV’s May 14 address to Eastern Catholics to the congregation.
Quoting Pope Leo, he said, “The Church needs you. The contribution that the Christian East can offer us today is immense!”
The featured rites are in communion with Rome, submit to Catholic doctrine and are within the Catholic Church. Any Catholic can attend and receive the Eucharist at these liturgies.
