Last Saturday I attended mass with the Coeur d'Alene Tribe at the Sacred Heart Mission. The mission is now a state park. The church is the oldest standing building in Idaho having been built in the 1850s.
Each year at the Feast of the Assumption the tribe makes a "pilgramage" to the mission for mass. The reservation used to include this area, but like most other reservations, the land was taken away. I thought it was interesting that the tribe considers this a pilgramage. They consider the mission an important part of their heritage. They have funded the new visitor's center there and are in the process of assembling displays.
The bishop came from Boise to preside, something he does every year. I was surprised by the number of priests present. I wonder if any were Jesuits, the order that built the mission.
Drummers played and sung at times during the mass.
Being catholic, I've seen lots of presentations of the gifts, but none like this. It was a very elaborate dance with the drummers chanting.
Later these girls signed the Our Father.
These girls ancestors built this church. One of the matriarchs related how her grandmother help carry rocks from a nearby hill for the church.
Just imagine how many young tribal members walked through these doors over the last 150 years.
Cute
The tribe provided lunch catered by their casino. It was open to anyone who happened to be visiting the park.
This event made quite the impression on me. I came away admiring the Coeur d'Alenes.
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