Mapping Georgetown: When the President Comes to Pray
By • December 20, 2021 0 2210
Video link of President Biden arriving to attend Mass at Holy Trinity Church in Georgetown. Courtesy Holy Trinity Catholic Church.
Mapping Georgetown has been searching for a good Christmas story for months. And now, in the spirit of “Miracle on 34th Street,” the story has appeared.
Amidst our neighborhood’s ever-festive holiday cheer one beautifully crisp weekday morning, I took myself for a brisk, meditative stroll through Georgetown to attend an 8:15 a.m. Mass at Holy Trinity.
For me, the novelty of Georgetown never wears off. Every enticing and lovely detail of our neck of the woods speaks to me, from the cobblestones between my apartment and Stachowski’s to the splendid trees, shrubs and planters, to thoughts of the glorious gardens and inner spaces behind the charming brick walls and alleyways.
On this morning, I was walking east-to-west through Georgetown toward Holy Trinity Church, when I noticed a procession of long black official-looking cars a couple of blocks up. Could it be they were going around the block to pull up in front of Holy Trinity?
As a parishioner of Holy Trinity, I had heard from my fellow parishioners that the President of the United States, Joe Biden, has attended their masses. That in itself is pretty exciting. But, just how does that happen? What does it look like? Does the Chief Executive just ask you to move over so he can sit down next to you? I’m joking, of course.
Our hats are off to the U.S. Secret Service for making us all feel safe in church on this special morning! The president was near enough to be visible without compromising the security of everyone present.
These precious photos tell the story of the thousand words! A most gracious thank-you to Ashley Klick, Kate Devlin and Elizabeth Delaney Moore and all of Holy Trinity that make our faith community so priceless! Merry Christmas to you and to all of our Georgetown friends and neighbors!
Holy Trinity students with presidential security detail. Photo courtesy Holy Trinity Catholic Church.
Crowds looking on as President Biden attends Mass. Photo courtesy Holy Trinity Catholic Church.
Here’s Holy Trinity’s Instagram take on our recent visit from this faithful president:
What timing! Just as the Pre-K wrapped up a unit learning about community helpers, one of the most important community helpers of all attended mass at our Church.
Pre-K through 1st grade had a special opportunity to wish the president good morning while lining up to go to class, and the Pre-K and 5th grade attended mass in the pews in the back half of the church. The Pre-K also persuaded the president’s security detail to let them be community helpers themselves for a minute and help keep him safe. (Being four years-old has its advantages!)
Students attend mass on a rotating schedule predetermined at the start of the school year. We are honored to share our Church with President Biden and welcome his attendance of mass, as we do that of all who come seeking to know the love of God. We had no knowledge of the president’s attendance prior to his arrival.
Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Very Best wishes for a Happy New Year to all of our Georgetown Faith Communities. How fortunate are we to have the opportunity to pray together? And how fortunate are we to be able to pray with our President Biden as he prays for us!
How proud are we of John for his mapping picture of Holy Trinity School with the American flag flying proudly! I’m sure President Biden felt right at home! Students from Holy Trinity School have written stories for the Mapping Georgetown collection. See end of article for link.
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Blank maps for your story as well as the entire collection of Holy Trinity School stories can be found at www.mappinggeorgetown.com. Marilyn Butler can be reached at marilyn.butler@gmail.com.
To see the Holy Trinity students’ posts on the Mapping Georgetown website, go to https://mappinggeorgetown.com/2019/04/08/holy-trinity-school-be-still-my-heart/.
To learn more about the Mapping Georgetown project see https://georgetowner.com/articles/2021/07/19/marilyn-butlers-vision-for-mapping-georgetown/.
