Parish Afternoon Tea a time of fellowship and Catholic connection
July 29, 2019 at 12:37 p.m.
By Mary Morrell | Correspondent
For each of the saints, blesseds and venerables of the Church there is a symbol.
It may have come as a surprise for many of the 117 guests at a Traditional Afternoon Tea, held in St. Thomas More Parish, Manalapan, May 20, to learn that among those symbols is a “comfortable cup of tea,” a symbol for Venerable Mother Catherine Elizabeth McAuley, an Irish religious sister who founded the Sisters of Mercy in 1831.
Guest speaker, Lois Rogers, shared the information with a sold-out crowd during the Tea, the first of its kind held in the parish. The event stemmed from the vision and collaboration of Linda Andrew, parish Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults director, and Susan Fowler, St. Vincent de Paul Society, St. Thomas More conference president.
Jane Conway, a St. Vincent de Paul Society volunteer responsible for the administrative details, noted that proceeds from the event will directly benefit those in the community experiencing financial difficulty.
Guests at the Tea were treated to a five-course seating with the expected variety of teas, sweet breads, scones, clotted cream, tea sandwiches and desserts, much of which were baked by volunteers of the St. Vincent de Paul Society and fellow parishioners.
Colton Martin, parish director of sacred music and graduate of Westminister Choir College, Princeton, performed a piano concert, before Rogers, a member of St. Robert Bellarmine Parish, Freehold, long-time journalist and retired features editor of The Monitor, spoke to the group about personal and global perspectives on the Catholic connection to tea.
The genesis for an interest in tea and the Catholic faith started early, back when “Mom and whichever elders were present invited us [children] to join them for a ‘cuppa sip of tea,’ which was translated into almost all milk and very little tea,” explained Rogers.
Her early invitations to tea from her mom and grandmothers were an opportunity to share highlights of the day, which “often included reports on catechism lessons from the Mercy Sisters. We would share what we’d learned from them for the day and bring home the little gifts they bestowed on us, like holy cards and medals.
“I came to feel at home with tea as part of my Catholic identity,” said Rogers, who was delighted to discover the link to Catherine McAuley and the Mercy Sisters when she accepted a Mercy Day invitation from the Sisters in Georgian Court University, Lakewood, for a “comfortable cup of tea.”
Rogers shared the story of when Mother McAuley, known for her warmth, caring and hospitality, was dying, her sisters gathered around her bedside to say their goodbyes and pray. The foundress said to one of the sisters: “Be sure you have a comfortable cup of tea for them when I am gone.”
Coincidentally, Rogers said, George Jay Gould, son of railroad magnate Jay Gould, built his estate, Georgian Court, in 1896, and included an authentic Japanese Tea House on the property, one of the few authentic tea houses in existence in the U.S. today.
What more appropriate place for this cultural symbol of grace and hospitality, Rogers pointed out, than the property that would become Georgian Court College (now University), founded by Catherine McAuley’s own Mercy Sisters.
However, for Catholics, the significance of the Japanese tea room is more than a cultural tradition, said Rogers, who highlighted the important connection between the Jesuits, who brought Catholicism to Asia, and tea, explaining that Japanese tea houses played a significant role in keeping the faith alive underground during a time of persecution.
Rogers explained that, with their rice paper shades, tea houses made it difficult for observers to distinguish the shadowed ritual of the tea ceremony from that of the Mass, because the movements were so similar.
Quoting author Karen Anderson, Rogers said, “Tea preserves the sanity of beleaguered human beings all over the world who eagerly await its quiet civility, but its far greater achievement was to preserve Catholicism in Japan during 200 years of persecution.”
The Jesuits, said Rogers, also played a significant role in bringing tea to the European world.
Noting the very positive feedback from guests, event organizers acknowledged that hosting another Tea in the future is a real possibility, one that meets the important purpose of fundraising events to bring awareness to the St. Vincent de Paul Society with the hope of attracting additional members and raise funds that support its varied programs.
[[In-content Ad]]
Related Stories
Wednesday, November 06, 2024
E-Editions
Events
By Mary Morrell | Correspondent
For each of the saints, blesseds and venerables of the Church there is a symbol.
It may have come as a surprise for many of the 117 guests at a Traditional Afternoon Tea, held in St. Thomas More Parish, Manalapan, May 20, to learn that among those symbols is a “comfortable cup of tea,” a symbol for Venerable Mother Catherine Elizabeth McAuley, an Irish religious sister who founded the Sisters of Mercy in 1831.
Guest speaker, Lois Rogers, shared the information with a sold-out crowd during the Tea, the first of its kind held in the parish. The event stemmed from the vision and collaboration of Linda Andrew, parish Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults director, and Susan Fowler, St. Vincent de Paul Society, St. Thomas More conference president.
Jane Conway, a St. Vincent de Paul Society volunteer responsible for the administrative details, noted that proceeds from the event will directly benefit those in the community experiencing financial difficulty.
Guests at the Tea were treated to a five-course seating with the expected variety of teas, sweet breads, scones, clotted cream, tea sandwiches and desserts, much of which were baked by volunteers of the St. Vincent de Paul Society and fellow parishioners.
Colton Martin, parish director of sacred music and graduate of Westminister Choir College, Princeton, performed a piano concert, before Rogers, a member of St. Robert Bellarmine Parish, Freehold, long-time journalist and retired features editor of The Monitor, spoke to the group about personal and global perspectives on the Catholic connection to tea.
The genesis for an interest in tea and the Catholic faith started early, back when “Mom and whichever elders were present invited us [children] to join them for a ‘cuppa sip of tea,’ which was translated into almost all milk and very little tea,” explained Rogers.
Her early invitations to tea from her mom and grandmothers were an opportunity to share highlights of the day, which “often included reports on catechism lessons from the Mercy Sisters. We would share what we’d learned from them for the day and bring home the little gifts they bestowed on us, like holy cards and medals.
“I came to feel at home with tea as part of my Catholic identity,” said Rogers, who was delighted to discover the link to Catherine McAuley and the Mercy Sisters when she accepted a Mercy Day invitation from the Sisters in Georgian Court University, Lakewood, for a “comfortable cup of tea.”
Rogers shared the story of when Mother McAuley, known for her warmth, caring and hospitality, was dying, her sisters gathered around her bedside to say their goodbyes and pray. The foundress said to one of the sisters: “Be sure you have a comfortable cup of tea for them when I am gone.”
Coincidentally, Rogers said, George Jay Gould, son of railroad magnate Jay Gould, built his estate, Georgian Court, in 1896, and included an authentic Japanese Tea House on the property, one of the few authentic tea houses in existence in the U.S. today.
What more appropriate place for this cultural symbol of grace and hospitality, Rogers pointed out, than the property that would become Georgian Court College (now University), founded by Catherine McAuley’s own Mercy Sisters.
However, for Catholics, the significance of the Japanese tea room is more than a cultural tradition, said Rogers, who highlighted the important connection between the Jesuits, who brought Catholicism to Asia, and tea, explaining that Japanese tea houses played a significant role in keeping the faith alive underground during a time of persecution.
Rogers explained that, with their rice paper shades, tea houses made it difficult for observers to distinguish the shadowed ritual of the tea ceremony from that of the Mass, because the movements were so similar.
Quoting author Karen Anderson, Rogers said, “Tea preserves the sanity of beleaguered human beings all over the world who eagerly await its quiet civility, but its far greater achievement was to preserve Catholicism in Japan during 200 years of persecution.”
The Jesuits, said Rogers, also played a significant role in bringing tea to the European world.
Noting the very positive feedback from guests, event organizers acknowledged that hosting another Tea in the future is a real possibility, one that meets the important purpose of fundraising events to bring awareness to the St. Vincent de Paul Society with the hope of attracting additional members and raise funds that support its varied programs.
[[In-content Ad]]