Anchorage to host gathering of 11th century Catholic order

CatholicAnchor.org
Hundreds of members of an international Catholic religious order dating back to the 11th century will soon be walking the streets of Anchorage.

Alaska is host for the annual meeting of the northwest chapter of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre Sept. 18-21.

While possessing an exotic name and a centuries-long history in the Catholic Church, the work of the order is right out of today’s headlines. Members — called knights and ladies — include both clergy and laity. They dedicate themselves to individual spiritual growth as well as helping persecuted Christians in the Holy Land. The order plays a significant role in supporting the Catholic Church’s mission in Israel and Jordan as the situation for Christians there grows increasingly difficult.

Anchorage resident Elizabeth Roberts, who with her husband David is a member of the order, chairs this year’s event, which rotates yearly among the major cities in the northwest region. The upcoming gathering is expected to draw some 250 members and will include prayer, liturgies, education and social events.

For 20 years Anchorage Archbishop Roger Schwietz has been a member of the Equestrian Order. He observed that the society is important for Christians in the Holy Land for two important reasons.

“I’ve been to the Holy Land twice with the knights and ladies from Anchorage,” Archbishop Schwietz explained.

Each time he met with the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem who is the Catholic bishop of the region.

“Both times we met with the patriarch or his assistant,” Archbishop Schwietz recalled. “And both times they thanked us for our monetary assistance, which is important in maintaining Catholic schools and hospitals in the region. But they especially thanked us for our presence.”

Members of the order are encouraged to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land at least once. By doing so, Archbishop Schwietz explained, they provide tangible support for Christians by being a visible sign to Christians but also to the governments of Israel and Jordan, that the church and its members are vitally concerned with the welfare of Christians in the area.

According to the group’s website, the origins of the order go back to the First Crusade, when Europeans took control of Jerusalem from Muslims. Although at first the order had a military purpose, as members dispersed to their homelands it gradually became an organization dedicated to the propagation of the faith and charity, and eventually to supporting area Christians.

Today, the situation of Christians in the Holy Land is dire. Sixty years ago, about 18 percent of the region was Christian, many descendants of the very first Christians who embraced the faith after Jesus’ Resurrection.

Today, that number has dropped to under two percent as many flee religious persecution and political conflicts in the region.

The Equestrian Order is a large source of funding for the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem — a position similar to an archbishop. Altogether the church runs 63 schools in the region, teaching 100,000 students.

Many of these, said Archbishop Schwietz, are Muslim students as the church is endeavoring to bring about peacemaking at the most grassroots level through integrated schools. Education is thus a major goal for the order, which also supports the University of Bethlehem whose student body is also a mixture of Christians and Muslims.

Becoming a member of the order requires being a Catholic in good standing. There are 71 active members in the Archdiocese of Anchorage who meet several times a year for potlucks and liturgies. Certain area members are “councilors” and therefore members of the order’s worldwide governing organization headquartered in Rome. In Anchorage, Mary Ann Molitor of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Cheryl Roderer of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton are councillors.

The upcoming September event in Anchorage will feature three liturgies, beginning with a 4 p.m. vigil on Friday, Sept. 18, at Holy Family Cathedral presided over by Archbishop Schwietz. Saturday at 10 a.m. the Grand Prior, Archbishop Emeritus George H. Niederauer of San Francisco, will celebrate the Memorial and Promotions Mass at St. Patrick Church. On Sunday at 2 p.m., the Grand Master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, Cardinal Edwin O’Brien, will preside at the Mass of Investiture at Our Lady of Guadalupe Co-Cathedral.

The public is welcome at all these liturgies. The Mass of Investiture will feature the knights and ladies in full uniform as new members are accepted.

Worldwide, there are about 30,000 active members of the order with divisions across Europe, the U.S. and Canada, Latin America, South Africa, Australia and the Far East.

Archbishop Schwietz observed that due to the excitement generated by the upcoming gathering, several people have expressed interest in joining the order.