BY TEQUILA MINSKY
With his heavy New Yawk accent and a down to earth manner, Bishop Edmund Whalen met La Salle Academy’s freshmen class with a lesson about the vestments of a Bishop last week.
Soon after, the rest of the entire student body, 340 in all, filtered into the gym at La Salle’s East 6th Street location for Lenten Mass.
Pinch hitting for Cardinal Dolan, who was sick, Bishop Whalen stepped up to the plate with aplomb.
“I like being a teaching priest,” Bishop Whalen told the assembly, which explains his easy manner and how well he connects with the young men.
Students participated in the procession—carrying the crozier, and student and faculty member Alexander Estevez and Mr. Murphy carried the gifts.
Students from all grades sang with the choir and participated in the service.
Fr. Gregory Chisholm, pastor at St. Charles Borromeo in Harlem, also helped celebrate the mass.
Bishop Whalen’s homily spoke directly to the student body and what it means to be a moral young man. He referenced the recent cheating episode of the Astros as something not to emulate. We all make mistakes, though, he said, but recognizing that, one should try to correct their mistakes.
“It was great to have a Bishop from the Archdiocese visit our school and lead us in prayer,” said Brother Thomas P. Casey, FSC, President of La Salle Academy. “Bishop Whalen’s presence connected us to the larger church and his words were an ideal mix of comfort and challenge.”
Bishop Whalen has served the Archdiocese of New York in parishes in Westchester, the Bronx and Staten Island.
La Salle Academy is a college preparatory Catholic high school located in the Lower East Side that serves a culturally diverse group of students residing in all five boroughs, whose families come from over 43 countries. It was founded in 1848.
