Florida Catholic | Parish Priests Going Home For Papal Masses.

Two parish priests going home for papal masses.

Father Timothy Daly, born and raised in Washington, and Father Anthony Palmese, originally from New York, are looking forward to concelebrating Mass with Pope Benedict XVI.

LAURA DODSON | FLORIDA CATHOLIC CORRESPONDENT

Published: 04.11.08

ORLANDO | The papal visit is a dual excitement for Father Anthony Palmese and Father Timothy Daly: They will be concelebrating Mass with their spiritual father and they are going home to their hometowns of New York City and Washington, D.C.

Father Palmese, pastor of St. Jude Parish in Ocala, and Father Daly, pastor of the Basilica of St. Paul in Daytona Beach, are two of 10 priests, along with Bishop Thomas Wenski, who have been chosen from the Orlando Diocese to concelebrate Mass with Pope Benedict XVI in Nationals Park in Washington on April 17.

“I wanted to concelebrate with this pope,” Father Palmese said. “I just want to give my support to our Holy Father, chosen by God through the Holy Spirit. It’s a joyous time for us all to come together. I believe we’ll see the same thing on May 10th at our Festival of Faith, and it will be a beautiful thing. … Seeing people of faith excites me.”

After concelebrating Mass with the pope in Washington, Father Palmese is traveling to his hometown of New York in the hopes of also being able to concelebrate at Yankee Stadium. “It’s my pope and my town!” he laughed, and recalled having done it before. Father Palmese concelebrated with Pope John Paul II several times in 1979 at Yankee Stadium and for charismatic conferences at the Vatican.

“I wanted to concelebrate when Pope John Paul II came to my city, where I worked,” Father Palmese shared. “Helen Hayes was the lector. Just being able to see people having faith and cheering us on builds me up. It builds me up when I see people cheering for our faith.”

At the Masses for the charismatic conferences at the Vatican, “Priests were there from all over the world and there were cardinals and bishops and it was really wonderful. There were 5,000–6,000 priests concelebrating. Mother Teresa was there one year also. Those were good memories.”

Father Palmese is looking forward to being home. “My family is all primed and ready for me. I think there are 12 bedrooms waiting for me to decide where to stay. My family has all written for tickets for the Mass at Yankee Stadium. If they all get tickets, it really will be a miracle.”

He’s also looking forward to Italian desserts from one of the bakeries in his old neighborhood near Grant Street. “They are a must,” he said. “Grant Street is right next to my first parish, Most Holy Crucifix on Broom Street and Mulberry.”

His favorite is a pastry called sfogliatelle — thin strips of crisp pastry wound to form a shell, covering an inside filling of citron-dotted ricotta cheese. “I can’t have too much, being a diabetic, but I can look and I can have one. I’m sure my family will be watching me like a hawk. They can make the sfogliatelle without sugar, you know,” he advised.

For dinner, he’ll have his favorite meal of chicken marsala in Little Italy, and will attend a Broadway show afterwards. His family is getting tickets, but “they haven’t told me yet where we’re going. I just hope all those places are still there,” Father Palmese sighed.

Father Daly was born and raised in Washington. He’s returning to his old neighborhood to stay with the parents of his first friend, Scott. When they met, Scott was 1 year old and Father Daly 9 months.

“I’m honored to go to represent the people of the Basilica of St. Paul because St. Paul’s Church was the first basilica to be named in Pope Benedict XVI’s pontificate. Secondly, from a personal perspective, I grew up in the D.C. area and it’s always good to go back home. I’m excited to see the new Nationals Stadium after growing up watching the former Washington Senators play in D.C. Stadium — now called Robert F. Kennedy Stadium. I think the pope will hit a grand slam for the Catholic Church in the U.S.”

For those visiting Washington for the first time, Father Daly recommends the national memorials as not to be missed, and advised pilgrims to visit his favorite eatery, downtown’s Old Ebitt Grill.

This is the first time Father Daly will concelebrate with the pope.

“I saw Pope Paul VI when I was in Rome in 1974,” he recalled, “but I never saw either Pope John Paul I or II. I’m overwhelmed with the number of the faithful who are trying to get tickets to attend.” Father Daly realizes being a part of it all is a special blessing. “I wouldn’t be going if I weren’t a priest,” he said.

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Two parish priests going home for papal masses.

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