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Read this Sunday’s Gospel with the examples of “the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices” or “those eighteen people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them.” It could sound as if Jesus were reading out of the disaster section of his local newspaper. Those poor victims could also remind us of two minor characters in Shakespeare’s “Hamlet.” Rosencrantz and Guildenstern grew up with Hamlet. In the play, King Claudius employs them to “glean what afflicts” the moody Prince. In fact, Hamlet is haunted by the ghost of his father who was murdered by his own brother, the same King Claudius. Worse yet, Claudius marries Hamlet’s mother. No wonder Hamlet acts strange. However, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern merrily skip along trying to figure out their old chum. Through no fault of their own, they innocently find themselves in possession of a letter intended by the King to have Hamlet killed. Instead, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are killed. They never knew why. Tom Stoppard wrote a mid-1960s comically clever play called “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead,” the title taken from the line in Hamlet that announces their demise. The insignificant schmoes from Shakespeare become the stars of the show in Stoppard’s play. The two characters, brought into being within the puzzling universe of the play by an act of the playwright's creation and by those they encounter, often confuse their own names, as they have interchangeable yet periodically unique identities. They are portrayed as two clowns or fools in a world that is beyond their understanding; they cannot identify any reliable feature or the significance in words or events. Their own memories are not reliable or complete; and they misunderstand each other as they stumble through fairly deep philosophical arguments while not realizing the implications to themselves. They often state heavy philosophical truths during their nonsensical ramblings; however they depart from these ideas as quickly as they come to them. At times Guildenstern appears to be more enlightened; at times both of them appear to be equally confounded by the events occurring around them. They are the classic example of the nice man who gets hit by a truck. Why did they live? How about the Galileans, or the ones killed by the falling tower? Why does evil seem to erase innocent people from our world? Stoppard’s play puts these words in Guildenstern’s mouth as he is about to die: THERE MUST HAVE BEEN A MOMENT, AT THE BEGINNING, WHEN WE COULD HAVE SAID NO – BUT SOMEHOW, WE MISSED IT. Christians believe that the possible time to say NO is always with us. That is the reality of free will. For those in the RCIA, converting to Catholicism, becoming disciples of Christ, this Lent is that time. I had the honor of pointing that out to them Saturday as we prayed all day at Quigley Seminary. Pastoral Associate Ann Klocke and the RCIA Team will be escorting 62 great souls into our Church on Holy Saturday night. Every one of them is shouting YES to Christ’s invitation of Grace. For the rest of us baptized as babies, we always had the ability to walk away. But why would we take it? So, why is there evil in the world? Why do people get hit by cars or by falling towers? Christians never can ignore that question. Yet we cannot answer quickly. We only rely on Hope – the virtue that sees the presence of the resurrected Christ even when it looks as if He is missing. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead. At that statement, Christians cry, especially if Rosencrantz and Guildenstern were as dopey as Stoppard made them seem. Still, we never lose Hope. We wait in joyful Hope for the coming of Our Savior, Jesus Christ.

On Monday, March 12, Holy Name Cathedral remembers Msgr. Michael Fitzsimmons, our third pastor who died on that date in 1932. He was a priest 50 years, 49 at the Cathedral, 40 as pastor. He was ordained a priest in 1882 in the same Cathedral where you prayed today. During his administration, Msgr. Fitzsimmons oversaw tremendous capital projects. The installation of a new heating system just 15 years after the Cathedral opened revealed a weak foundation. Buttresses were dismantled, rebuilt and pinnacled with turrets of stone replacing the original wooden turrets encased in galvanized iron. Windows were straightened, the steeple was braced. With construction constant, Fitzsimmons oversaw the painting of murals throughout the interior of the Cathedral. He replaced wooden pillars with marble pillars. To enlarge a small sanctuary, he hired an architect and contractors to lengthen the structure by 15 feet, moving the east end of the sanctuary up against the rectory. His leadership was not confined to the parish. Msgr. Fitzsimmons served as Vicar General and as administrator of the Archdiocese in the period between the death of Archbishop Quigley in the summer of 1915 and Cardinal Mundelein’s installation in February, 1916. It was Msgr. Fitzsimmons who strengthened the parish’s schools when he enlisted the BVM nuns in 1904. They remained a beloved part of our parish for 102 years. In declining health, Fitzsimmons retired in 1928. However, he remained a resident of the parish until his death four years later. Most impressive to me is his 40 years as pastor of the Cathedral parish, 16 years longer than any of the other eight of us who have occupied the office. Still, when he died, was Msgr. Fitzsimmons eulogized as a builder? No. Was he remembered first as an Archdiocesan official? No. Was he first honored for his vision of children’s education? No. Msgr. Francis O’Brien, preaching the funeral homily, wrote the epitaph well. “As a pastor of souls, Msgr. Fitzsimmons did his work well.” No greater compliment can be paid to a priest. On Monday, say a prayer for our former pastor, Msgr. Michael Fitzsimmons.

Plan to join us on Tuesday, March 13, at 6:00pm in the Cathedral for a Lenten Penance Prayer including the opportunity for individual confessions. Several priests from the Cathedral staff plus a few visitors will be available. No matter how long it has been since your last confession, take this opportunity to make this Lent a genuine conversion.

Anyone who knows me even a little bit knows that I am not a fish eater. Lent Fridays are a challenge for me. However, even I am going next Friday to the Cathedral Lenten Fish Dinner in the cafeteria from 6:00 – 8:00pm. And I will eat fish. I think I like the fried better that the baked. Whichever flavor you prefer, that will be OK with me. Thanks to the Parish Life Commission for sponsoring the suppers on each of the remaining March Fridays. You can pay $9 for your meal; that’s a bargain. Even better, you can buy a ticket for all three Fridays for only $22! That’s a steal. Either way, be sure to be there at the Fish Dinner to witness a rare sight – Father Mayall eating fish! I will look for you.

Fr. Dan Mayall