When Immaculate Conception Parish was established a century ago, Kenmore was a separate city between southwest Akron and Barberton. The first Mass was celebrated on March 24, 1923.
Since then, many changes have taken place, including the 1928 annexation of Kenmore to Akron.
Immaculate Conception Parish remains an important part of the community and marked its milestone anniversary with a Mass, a visit from Bishop Edward Malesic and a lunch on March 19. It was the first time in about 18 years that a bishop visited the parish and celebrated Mass.
“I’m correcting that today,” the bishop told those gathered for the centennial Mass.
(See photo gallery above.)
He said one of the things he enjoys most as bishop involves traveling to every part of the diocese to visit the parishes and the faithful who make the diocese what it is today, “a place where the love of God shines forth for all to see. And so it is for the people of Immaculate Conception Parish here in the heart of the Kenmore neighborhood. I am absolutely delighted to be here with you this glorious morning.”
He apologized for his raspy voice, noting he was getting over a cold and had been speaking at several events during the past few days.
“We come together on this special day to worship the Lord and receive his Son through the holy Eucharist and to mark a major parish milestone as we celebrate the centennial anniversary of your parish’s founding,” Bishop Malesic said.
At the beginning of Mass, Parish Life Coordinator Melissa Keegan presented the bishop with a centennial memento.
“Melissa is doing a great job,” the bishop said. He also credited Father David Majikis, pastor of nearby St. Augustine Parish in Barberton and presbyteral moderator for Immaculate Conception. The parish has been without a full-time pastor since longtime pastor Father Michael Smith retired last June.
Father Majikas and Father Smith were among the concelebrants for the liturgy. Father Andy Turner, a son of the parish who will become president/rector of Borromeo and Saint Mary seminaries in July, also concelebrated the Mass.
The bishop told the congregation that their parish is a blessing from God that is meant to be a blessing for others. “What we have received as a gift, we must give as a gift. And, I often reflect that the gift of a parish is given for three important reasons. It is a family that prays together. It is a family that proclaims the Gospel. And this parish must serve those who are most in need – the needy among our own parishioners and the needy outside this parish.”
The bishop said we don’t serve others because they are Catholic but because we are.
“May the worship, service and evangelization that flows from Immaculate Conception Parish continue to be a beacon of faith and hope for all the people of the Kenmore area here in Akron. And through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, may all our lives reflect a deep and abiding love of God through our service to others, carrying on the tremendous parish legacy started on that beautiful day back in 1923,” he said.
In order to proclaim the Gospel, the bishop said we must find it here. He shared the Gospel story of the man born blind who was healed by Jesus and the encounter of Jesus with the Pharisees, whose blindness could not be healed.
It is a Gospel that juxtaposes light against darkness, sight against blindness, understanding against ignorance and faith against unbelief. The bishop noted that the man born blind is compared to men born with sight. And, as Mary foretold in her Magnificat, “God turns things upside down. The man born blind receives sight and the men born with sight become blind.”
What was discussed was the inner eye of the soul, he explained. “The man born blind washed himself in the pool of Siloam and he came to see – not only with his eyes – but with his whole mind, heart and soul that Jesus was the Son of Man, the Messiah, the long-awaited deliverer, the Savior and the Christ.
The Pharisees, people who should have known better, who prayed and were religious, had become so closed to the Spirit of God that they shut the eyes of their minds, hearts and souls to the presence of Christ, the bishop said. “Even though he was right in front of them, they could not see him.”
He said the Pharisees pre-judged Jesus, thinking he could not be from God and that he had broken a commandment by healing the blind man on the Sabbath. Jesus called the Pharisees blind, questioning their level of insight and understanding.
The bishop noted Jesus was talking about a blindness darker than physical blindness but the Pharisees didn’t understand the concept of spiritual blindness.
“As we continue this Lent, we should reflect on the opening of the Easter Vigil when the newly lighted Easter candle is brought into the darkened church on Saturday night. The priest sings three times, “Light of Christ,” and the people respond three times, “Thanks be to God.”
“We pray that Christ will become the torch that makes us more aware of the presence of God and his love in our everyday lives, he said, and that Christ, the Son of God, will give sight to our blindness – our spiritual blindness,” he added.
The bishop said we should thank the Lord that he has brought us around his altar at this parish and that we have come to know the meaning of the words in the hymn “Amazing Grace.”
“May this parish be a lighthouse in a dark world so that others may come to be saved, to be found and to see as well. May these doors not keep us from going into the world to proclaim that Jesus is Lord for all who want to come to him,” Bishop Malesic said.
He told the congregation that like young David in Scriptures, Jesus sees something in each of us. “You are children of God. And once we know that, we begin to act as heirs to the kingdom of God. And we try to bring a bit of that future kingdom down to our present way of life here on earth.” The bishop thanked the faithful for sharing that saving faith with others.
After Mass, the bishop toured the Kenmore Free Store, a community outreach program located in the former Immaculate Conception School. The store is a partnership with nearby Park United Methodist Church. People in need can “shop” for clothing, household items and furniture during store hours. They also can receive a brown bag meal and information about other resources.
The parish St. Vincent de Paul Society also showed the bishop the food pantry they operate.
The group then traveled to Guy’s Party Center where they enjoyed lunch, conversation and exhibits of parish memorabilia and history.