By:SCM
Wednesday October 5th 2011

Overflow seating will be available in Jackson Square

Since Monday, thousands of people have visited Notre Dame Seminary to pay their respects to the late Archbishop Philip Hannan as he lies in repose. Tomorrow, over one thousand people are expected to attend or witness the funeral Mass at St. Louis Cathedral in Jackson Square including local and national dignitaries.

Twenty-three members of the Hannan family will be in attendance for the Funeral. Also attending tomorrow’s services will be Mrs. Victoria Kennedy, the wife of the late Senator Ted Kennedy. Several long-time friends of Archbishop Hannan have been asked to serve as honorary pall bearers. They are Gayle M. Benson and Tom M. Benson, Honorable Corinne C. (Lindy) Boggs, Joseph C. Canizaro, Alma A. Cartagena, Klara B. Cvitanovich, Dr. Norman C. Francis, Mrs. Lawrence D. Garvey, Alden J. “Doc” Laborde, Anne M. Milling, J. Garic Schoen, Phyllis M. Taylor, and V. M. Wheeler III.

Eighteen Catholic bishops from across the country will be concelebrating the service with several hundred priests from the Archdiocese of New Orleans and beyond. Ten clergy and religious leaders from other faith traditions will also be in attendance, and members of the 82nd Airborne, the brigade Archbishop Hannan served with during World War II, will serve as honor guard.

Many civic officials are expected to attend as well including Governor and Mrs. Bobby Jindal, New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu and his wife Cheryl, Jefferson Parish President John Young, St. Bernard Parish President Craig Taffaro, New Orleans Police Chief Ronal Serpas with his wife and several parish and city council people and state legislators and representatives.

While St. Louis Cathedral is expected to be full to overflowing with those attending the funeral Mass, a large screen will be set-up in Jackson Square with seating for those not able to be inside the cathedral to take part and witness the service. Accommodations are being made for those watching outside to also receive communion. Seating Jackson Square will be provided for 300 and will be on a first come-first serve basis.

Visitation for Archbishop Hannan will continue today at St. Louis Cathedral, October 5 following the funeral procession. Visitation will also be from 9 am to 12 noon tomorrow, October 6, prior to the communion service.

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A sad day in the City of New Orleans as Archbishop Gregory Aymond Announces the death of beloved Archbishop Emeritus Philip M. Hannan.

by Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond

Humanly speaking, we are grieving, and Archbishop Hannan will be greatly missed. At the same time, I do not believe he would have wanted to linger in the condition that he was in.

It was 46 years ago today – Sept. 29, 1965 – that Archbishop Hannan was appointed the 11th archbishop of New Orleans while he was attending the Second Vatican Council in Rome. He was such a wonderful shepherd who came into our midst when we needed him the most, right after Hurricane Betsy.

It was a real privilege to celebrate with him what is called the Mass of Viaticum in his room at Chateau de Notre Dame on Saturday afternoon (Sept. 24). Viaticum is giving Communion – the Body and Blood of Christ – to a person who is dying for his journey home to the Lord.

He’s always been a father figure to me. He was the only archbishop I knew as a child – I was younger than 10 years old when he came here. He ordained me as a deacon and as a priest and was a co-consecrator when I was ordained a bishop. He was someone I always looked up to.

He was a man of the church, a man who loved God and certainly a man who loved God’s people. He was a great shepherd for us, and he also was a true New Orleanian. He made New Orleans his home.

He was very active in the community, and he could deal with presidents like President John Kennedy, and he could also deal with the homeless. He had a great love for the poor, and much of the ministry that we do today in the archdiocese is continuing to build on who Archbishop Hannan was and what he has done for our archdiocese.

I’m sure in entering World War II as a paratroop chaplain, he was very brave, but I’m also sure that he became even braver during the war. He was very much self-assured. Not only did he risk jumping out of planes, but he also risked doing new things and confronting new challenges in the church and in the archdiocese. I think that kind of risk-taking and determination is very much who Philip Hannan is.

I was thrilled that Pope John Paul II came to New Orleans in 1987, but I was happier for Archbishop Hannan than for anyone else because his historic visit meant so much to him. That was really the high point of his tenure here.

People knew him and recognized him as THE archbishop of New Orleans. I think that was a testament to the love, admiration and affection that people have for him. It never bothered me in any way when I heard people talking about THE archbishop and meaning it was Archbishop Hannan. Even the day before he died, I was referring to him as THE archbishop.

He’s someone I’ve learned a lot from. He’s been a mentor and a father, and he will be missed. But I also truly believe that he is with the Lord in heaven and will continue to shepherd us from his place in heaven.

By Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond

Why are national celebrations such as Father’s Day and Mother’s Day so important?

It’s significant that we as a country designate a day every year to give special honor to our fathers and our mothers. It reminds us that we should not take for granted their care and their sharing in creation with God and all the ways in which they have supported and loved us. We’re all aware that the composition of a family today can be very different from what it was years ago. So when I talk about extending Father’s Day greetings, I am aware there are some children who have never known their father or who have not been treated well or even abused by their father. There are some children who rarely see their father and live in a very conflicted situation. I pray on this Father’s Day for them that their wounds can be healed. Please join me in that prayer.

Do people sometimes forget that fatherhood is a vocation?

That’s true, and this day allows us to honor those good fathers who have taken their vocation seriously and have lived it out. Marriage is a call from God for two people to unite themselves in love toward each other and through that love to be co-creators with God. Father’s Day is an opportunity for us to recognize that fathers do not have an easy vocation. It requires a lot of love and sacrifice, especially given some of the values our world espouses today and some of the financial challenges in simply making ends meet. Father’s Day is a chance for both children and fathers to say thank you and to acknowledge the good, and also to try to heal any wounds and move on to a renewed commitment to one another in family life.

What was your dad like?

In terms of personality, he and I were quite different, but we had a deep love and mutual respect for each other. Both of my parents are deceased, but my family was and still is very close. My dad and I were different in terms of hobbies and interests, so there was not as much of a bond at that level. There was a deep, mutual love and respect. He was a successful businessman, so I think when I first mentioned that I was interested in the priesthood, he might have been surprised and even a little disappointed. But he never discouraged me from taking that step. That is something we were able to work out over the years. We were very different people, yet in the midst of that we were able to go well beyond those differences and love and respect each other.

These days so many children are raised by a single parent. How difficult is that for both parent and child?

It’s very challenging when a father has to be both mother and father or when a mother has to be both father and mother. We honor and pray for people who have to take on that challenging responsibility. Years ago, parents, the family, the church and the community formed children in values. I’m not a sociologist, but I think right now there are so many influences that it’s safe to say there is a great deal of competition between the family and the culture. The media, the Internet and peer pressure are extremely powerful influences. Today’s families not only have to try to form their children in values but also try to counteract some of the values their children are picking up from other sources in our society. That’s a real challenge that requires prayer, commitment and sacrifice on the part of fathers.

How is St. Joseph a model for fathers?

We have these images of St. Joseph doing his carpentry work with Jesus at his side, and we know that he helped form Jesus in values. But even in that relationship, there were some tensions. Even before Jesus was born, Joseph asked, “How can this be?” because he and Mary weren’t married. Then when Jesus was a baby, Joseph knew Herod was trying to kill his son. When Jesus stayed behind in the temple, his mother and father were searching for him. Those are incidents to which all fathers can relate. It’s easy for us to sugarcoat Joseph, but Joseph was a man who faced many challenges as a husband and father that we sometimes don’t give him enough credit for. He is a true model for fathers. St. Joseph, pray for our fathers in their vocation of fatherhood.