Latin Mass in Seattle
St. Joseph Chapel

I was in Seattle, Washington recently. Knowing I would be there over a weekend, I first checked the list of Latin Masses at the TRADITIO website to see if the classical Latin Mass was available there. (Sad to think being a traditional Catholic requires so much homework – oh for the good old pre-Vat2 days when every Mass in the world was in Latin and as long as you had a missal in your own language, you were set.)

I learned there was one every Sunday at 9:30 at the St. Joseph Chapel with a Father James Reichman, SJ. A quick Mapquest check showed the chapel was less than a half mile from my hotel (was I being blessed or what?).

On Saturday, I called to make sure the info on the website was current. I learned from a recording that what the website listed as the Josephinum Hotel for the location was called the Josephinum Apartments. After walking there Sunday morning, I discovered the place was an old hotel that had obvious been converted into an apartment building for mostly elders. Never did learn if it was run by the diocese.

The chapel was in what was probably the ballroom during the hotel’s heyday, as evidenced by the tall, ornate ceiling. I guess it was a “chapel” because it wasn’t in a stand-alone building that could be called a “church,” but I have been in churches that had less space and seating than this chapel.

There weren’t a lot of religious decorations, but there was one stained glass window as I recall, and Stations of the Cross running down one
inside wall. The proper altar (see picture) was
beautiful in its simplicity and flanked on each
side by large statues of the Blessed Virgin and
St. Joseph (always good to see him recognized
– there was a day when he was represented
in nearly every Catholic church).

The Mass was, as expected, a sacred celebration. The altar boys all seemed well-trained. The one thing that was unusual was that the congregation did not say aloud any of the Latin (or Greek) responses one normally hears at the TLM, i.e. Et cum spiritu tuo, Kyrie eleison, Gloria tibi, Domine, Habemus ad Dominum, etc. I felt a little out-of-place, but responded anyway.

Father returned to the ambo after Mass, for one announcement. He noted it was six years to the day since they started having the Latin Mass there (obviously begun under the indult). The, almost in tears, he said it was probably the best six years of his priesthood. It was a touching moment at then end of a beautiful Mass.