Letter: ‘God can work through the ordinary’
by Tess Sousek
DAVEY (SNR) - Fires and fiery tempers couldn’t keep St. Mary Parish in Davey from becoming the nurturing home it is today for many Catholics in the countryside north of Lincoln.
Established by Irish settlers and pastored by Irish priests for many years in its infancy, St. Mary has known hardship. What began as two separate churches, St. Patrick and St. Mary, now celebrates a united community of believers in Davey and the surrounding areas. 
“The people of this parish have been through a lot in those 150 years,” Archbishop George Lucas said during his homily at the celebration Mass Aug. 15.
The early years of the parish were turbulent. Parishioners disagreed about the location of the church to the point of causing a great divide amongst many of the Catholics in the area. In 1909, the rectory at St. Patrick was destroyed in a fire. Only 10 years later, fire consumed St. Mary Church in Davey, as well.
When St. Mary was rebuilt to the current brick structure, St. Patrick was officially incorporated into the parish and the former church building was closed. Still, St. Patrick remains a strong part of the parish’s history and identity, and the saint himself is represented in the current church through a stained glass window and a beautiful statue gracing the façade.
The 150th anniversary was celebrated in conjunction with the parish’s feast day, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Mass began with a letter from Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Christophe Pierre, congratulating the congregation and imparting the pope’s apostolic blessing on the parish.
In a letter read by pastor Father Christopher Goodwin, the apostolic nuncio wrote on behalf of the pope:
“His Holiness is confident that this important commemoration will inspire in all of the faithful, particularly the young, a renewed awareness of their mission to bear joyful witness as disciples of the Lord....”
Although many of the original anniversary plans were changed due to the current pandemic crisis, Archbishop Lucas reminded the parish of the incredible truth behind the simplified festivities.
“Even though our celebration is a little bit muted,” he said, “and we can’t open our voices and sing, and the church isn’t packed with people the way we envisioned it—with our imagination, we can see what’s really true.”
The archbishop went on to describe the hundreds of people from the parish who have gone before in faith—some who were known, some who were not. He described those who had received the sacraments at St. Mary, who had been born into new life through baptism, who received Christ’s mercy through reconciliation, all those who came, sometimes daily, to be fed with the bread of life, those who received confirmation and marriage, and even those who were prepared for burial.
“They are united with us today in the communion of saints, as they always are, every time we celebrate the Holy Mass,” he said.
Archbishop Lucas went on to describe what the church’s patroness, the Blessed Mother, teaches about parish life.
“Jesus makes Himself accessible right here,” Archbishop Lucas said. “Mary teaches us that our parish is the place where we encounter the Risen Jesus.”
Undeniably, many over the years have encountered Christ within the brick walls of St. Mary. One former parishioner, Sister Mary Jo Polak,who is now a Benedictine at Sacred Heart Monastery in Yankton, S.D., wrote a letter of gratitude which was read at the end of Mass, describing her many fond memories.
“The thread that holds these grateful memories together is that this parish nurtured my vocation and called me into ministry,” she wrote. “I thank you and I want you to remember this and the power and grace that God can work through the simple, ordinary, sometimes challenging things that you do.”
Through the simple, the ordinary, and the challenging, may God continue to bless St. Mary Parish and all within it.
