Oct. 20 Mass to honor first Native American saint

   
    Tom Aicklen considers this holy ground, this pristine stretch of land that he loves along the banks of Bayou Lacombe. It was here that Father Adrien Rouquette ministered to the Choctaw people from 1859 until his death in 1887; it is here, on Oct. 20, where the parish that he founded – Sacred Heart Church – will honor Kateri Tekakwitha, who will become the first Native American saint when she is canonized on Oct. 21.
    Aicklen, who proudly claims his Cherokee heritage and his Catholic faith, felt it only fitting that Sacred Heart celebrate the canonization of the 17th-century maiden known as the Lily of the Mohawks. In researching the life of Father Rouquette for the Lacombe Heritage Center, Aicklen said, he discovered that the priest known as Chacta-Ima (friend of the Choctaw), had a devotion to Kateri. The Algonquin-Mohawk woman was baptized by Jesuit missionaries in what is now Fonda, N.Y. She faced much persecution and eventually fled to Canada, where she died in 1680 at the age of 24.
    It didn’t take much for Aicklen to convince his pastor, Father Kyle Dave, to honor Blessed Kateri, who was known for a simple life of prayer, service and fidelity to Jesus.
Proud day for Lacombe
    “This will be a great opportunity for the community of Lacombe and for the descendants of the Choctaw” to celebrate the first Native American to be canonized, Father Dave said. “Since Father Rouquette had a priestly devotion to Blessed Kateri, it is appropriate that we honor her Indian heritage and Adrien’s religious dedication to her.”
    The 5 p.m. Mass on Oct. 20 will include two notable elements: Native American music and a candlelight procession whose centerpiece will be an icon of Kateri Tekakwitha.
    The music will be led by Christian Brother Martin Fenerty, who lives in Lafayette and has a Ph.D. in multicultural music. “The melodies of all 10 hymns for the mass will be taken from traditional Native American songs and chants,” he said. “This is only the second time, as far as I know, that a Mass with Native American hymns has been celebrated in the Archdiocese of New Orleans.”
    The previous time was also at Sacred Heart, in February 2010, when a special Mass honored the birthday of Father Rouquette.
    “This will show the Catholic community that Native American music can be sung in a devotional way as part of the Mass,” Brother Martin said.
    Over the years, he has adapted 55 Native American hymns for the Mass, and he is looking forward to bringing the music back to Lacombe. The hymns will be accompanied by hand drums, striking sticks and shakers.
    “We will sing in antiphonal style,” Brother Martin said, explaining that he will sing a verse at a time, which the congregation will echo.
    The Native American chants will continue at the end of the Mass, when an icon of Blessed Kateri is carried in candlelight procession through the church and to the banks of Bayou Lacombe. The icon of the Lily of the Mohawks was donated to the Lacombe Heritage Center by Covington artist Luz-Maria Lopez in honor of Father Rouquette’s 200th birthday in 2013. The center, Aicklen said, has given it to Sacred Heart.
An icon is personalized
    Lopez, of Mayan Indian heritage, said that the mixed media artwork was not originally intended to be a depiction of Kateri. In fact, she said, she completed it 10 years ago and had been trying to find a home for it. When Aicklen saw the piece, he noted the resemblance to the Indian maiden, and the rest is history.
    “You never know who you are working for, but God has a plan,” Lopez said. She made a few changes to the icon, adding lilies and filling a blank scroll with a poem by Aicklen; the poem highlights Kateri’s role as patroness of the environment and ends with a phrase in Choctaw: “Chi hollo li Bok Shewac (I love you Bayou Lacombe).”
    When the Knights of Columbus carry the icon to the banks of the bayou, Father Dave will bless both the artwork and a new 27-acre bayou heritage park in honor of Francois Cousin, Father Rouquette’s ancestor.
    A Circle of Life wreath enclosing the Indian cross and the cross of Christ then will be released in the bayou to symbolize Kateri as the patroness of ecology and to commemorate Father Rouquette’s commitment to the Choctaw in Lacombe.
    Aicklen could not be more pleased with how things are shaping up to honor the first Native American saint and, by association, the priest who was devoted to her. “I don’t know if it was divinely inspired,” he said, “but it all worked out. Everything has come together.”
    All are welcome to attend the Mass at Sacred Heart Church, 28088 Main St. in Lacombe, Oct. 20 at 5 p.m.
    Karen Baker can be reached at kbaker@clarionherald.org.