By Florida Catholic staff - Florida Catholic
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO
Anthony Shriver, right, founder and director of Best Buddies International, poses for a photo with Archbishop Thomas Wenski and Sean Clancy, area chairperson for the American Association of the Knights of Malta. The three met to plan the first archdiocesan White Mass for people with disabilities.
MIAMI | Archbishop Thomas Wenski recently met with Anthony Shriver, founder and chairman of Best Buddies International, to set the date for a first-of-its-kind White Mass in the Archdiocese of Miami.
The Mass will be a celebration for people, young and old, with disabilities. It will take place Saturday, Nov. 23, 5 p.m. at St. Patrick Church, Miami Beach, which is Shriver�s parish. The celebrant will be Archbishop Wenski.
"Anybody that has a disability is welcome to come," said Sean Clancy, area hospitaller, or chairperson, for the American Association of the Order of Malta, a chivalric association dedicated to caring for the sick and the poor. The knights and dames of Malta are helping to plan the Mass.
The order is partnering with Best Buddies, whose goal is to foster one-on-one friendships and create employment opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Clancy said Best Buddies organizes a similar Mass every year in the Archdiocese of Boston.
This would be the first time such a Mass � specifically for people with disabilities � is celebrated in the archdiocese. Clancy added that he would love to see those with special needs take part in the Mass, by proclaiming the readings, reciting the Prayer of the Faithful, singing in the choir and taking up the offertory.
�Anything we can do to involve the special needs community in the various parts of the Mass would be wonderful,� said Clancy, whose 22-year-old son is autistic.
�I�d love to see a lot of people come,� he added. �It�s a wonderful thing when (those with disabilities) are embraced and people celebrate their uniqueness.�
The Mass will be a celebration for people, young and old, with disabilities. It will take place Saturday, Nov. 23, 5 p.m. at St. Patrick Church, Miami Beach, which is Shriver�s parish. The celebrant will be Archbishop Wenski.
"Anybody that has a disability is welcome to come," said Sean Clancy, area hospitaller, or chairperson, for the American Association of the Order of Malta, a chivalric association dedicated to caring for the sick and the poor. The knights and dames of Malta are helping to plan the Mass.
The order is partnering with Best Buddies, whose goal is to foster one-on-one friendships and create employment opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Clancy said Best Buddies organizes a similar Mass every year in the Archdiocese of Boston.
This would be the first time such a Mass � specifically for people with disabilities � is celebrated in the archdiocese. Clancy added that he would love to see those with special needs take part in the Mass, by proclaiming the readings, reciting the Prayer of the Faithful, singing in the choir and taking up the offertory.
�Anything we can do to involve the special needs community in the various parts of the Mass would be wonderful,� said Clancy, whose 22-year-old son is autistic.
�I�d love to see a lot of people come,� he added. �It�s a wonderful thing when (those with disabilities) are embraced and people celebrate their uniqueness.�
For more information, contact Clancy at [email protected] or Shriver at [email protected].
