Via Busted Halo

John Kerry's Pastor

John Kerry’s PastorPaulist Father John Ardis counts the Democratic Presidential nominee as a member of his flock.

by Mike Hayes

John Kerry's nomination in 2004 marks the first time a major party has nominated a Roman Catholic for president since another senator from Massachusetts, John F. Kennedy, secured the nod in 1960. Back then, Kennedy had to deal with suspicions that a Catholic president might be unduly influenced by the pope.

Today, Kerry is running in a far different political and religious climate in which some US bishops have stated that they would refuse to allow the senator to receive the eucharist in their diocese because of his stand on "life" issues. When not campaigning, Kerry and his wife, Theresa's home parish is the Paulist Center in Boston, a small, unassuming chapel adjacent to Boston Common. Recently, the Center's pastor, John Ardis, sat down with BustedHalo to talk about how the presence of
their high-profile parishioner affects parish life. It turns out that Kerry's affect has been significant. Ardis, who was asked by the Kerry campaign to give the closing blessing at this year's democratic convention, talks candidly about topics ranging from the secret service and bomb-sniffing dogs to disruptive protesters outside mass and crank calls in the middle of the night.

BustedHalo: What do you have to prepare for when Senator Kerry comes here for worship?

John Ardis: It’s important for me to say that the Kerrys come here to pray. They really don’t come here to be seen or to cause a distraction and that’s true of both Theresa and John. It’s prayer time for them and they usually try to slip out at some point during the last hymn before most of our parishioners, who usually wait until the final hymn is over. We’ve really tried to protect their privacy and we’ve even blocked off some rows when we know their coming so they can have that time to themselves. The regulars get it and respect their personal piety. Now that’s not to say that they don’t participate in mass –they do. They sing and respond and offer all the parishioners around them the sign of peace, just like everyone else does.

BH: In terms of logistics though…is this tough on the parish?

JA: The secret service is very good about telling us in advance when they’re coming. So they come in with a couple of sniffing dogs and sweep the building. That’s about it. They’ve made it a point to tell us that this is nothing in comparison to what would happen if he gets elected. If that happens then everybody is going to have to go through a metal detector in the front door and probably have to get individually “wanded” too.

BH: So you’re rooting for President Bush then?

JA: [Laughs] The Paulist Center makes no endorsements for political candidates. You know, the Paulists have actually been pretty good at serving the needs of both candidates, which hasn’t been reported much. Fr. Pat Johnson, the pastor at St. Austin’s in Texas recently did Jeb Bush’s son’s wedding. Jeb’s son, George, (not the president), went to UT-law and he and his now-wife became close with Pat.

BustedHalo should go an interview him about that too. So we serve the spiritual needs of everyone, regardless of political affiliation.
[Laughs]

BH: What has your relationship and the Paulist Center’s relationship been with Senator Kerry?

JA: [Senator Kerry and his wife Theresa] have been coming here for around 8-10 years--when they’re in town, which isn’t all that frequently now because of the campaigning. I would say that my relationship with him and Theresa is pretty much the relationship most pastors have with most of the parishioners in their parish. I know them by name. I
see them when they come to mass on Sunday and there’s a little exchange of pleasantries but not much more than that. You know the pastor only really gets to know the really active and involved people in the parish well which is only about 10%. I actually have a hard time recognizing Theresa, who sometimes comes alone, when she’s without the Senator.

Here’s a good example of how our relationship is: one Sunday I wasn’t presiding but was standing outside waiting for mass to finish. It was after one of the Primary victories for Senator Kerry and it was becoming clear that he was the democratic
candidate. Theresa’s driver was out there sort of nervously pacing and he asked me how much longer mass was going to be. Now I know that the Kerry’s try to slip out quickly just as the last hymn is ending because they really don’t want their prayer time to slip into business mode, so I told him she
should be out in a few minutes. As Theresa came out I acknowledged her and told her congratulations on the recent success and basically offered her some general support and good wishes. She smiled said thanks exchanged in some
little small talk and then simply went into her car.

BH: Why do you think John Kerry chose the Paulist Center as his place of worship?Well I think we do good liturgy. There’s good music and good preaching, that’s an obvious reason. But certainly he aligns himself with the social justice aspects of
our ministry which we’ve become well known for. He’s been supportive of our homeless supper program where we invite 200 people each Wednesday for a sit-down dinner where they are truly our guests, as opposed to the traditional soup kitchen style where people line up for food, etc. We serve them a sit
down dinner and they are truly treated as guests here.

In the late 60’s the center was known for being against the war in Vietnam and the priests that served here were particularly vocal about that. Here today, we clearly state our opposition to the war in Iraq but we are also sensitive to the fact that some of our parishioners are military families, who have sons and daughters in Iraq and who truly are doing their duty in serving our country; doing what they made a commitment to do. But in terms of the war itself, we have stated that we think this is an unjust war, just as the Holy Father has stated as well.

In short, I think Sen. Kerry comes here because of what he has stood for all his life in reaching out to the underdog.

Check Back for Part 2:
Mike Hayes is the Associate Director of Paulist Young Adult Ministries.Comments to: editor@bustedhalo.com