Lead Message
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First Catholics elected to statewide office in Va.
By Steve Neill
Of The Catholic Virginian
“Walking through history into the future with Christ” is the mission of historic Bruton Parish Church in Williamsburg.
Indeed it was when the red brick church, which dates back to 1715, was the site of an Interfaith Prayer Service before the 2006 Inaugural ceremonies of the Commonwealth of Virginia on Saturday, Jan. 14.
At this year’s inaugural ceremony, both the new governor, Tim Kaine of Richmond, and attorney general, Robert McDonnell of Virginia Beach, are the first Catholics ever to be elected to these positions of statewide office in Virginia. Msgr. Michael Schmied, pastor of St. Augustine parish in Richmond and Vicar for the Hispanic Apostolate, gave the homily at the request of Governor Tim Kaine.
Msgr. Schmied had officiated at the marriage of Gov. Kaine and his wife, Anne Holton, back in 1984 when the priest was pastor of St. Elizabeth’s Church in Richmond. Gov. Kaine, his wife and three children, Woody, Nat and Annella, still regularly worship there each Sunday.
Msgr. Thomas Caroluzza, a retired priest of the Diocese of Richmond, gave the benediction at the service. He had served as pastor of Holy Spirit Church in Virginia Beach, which had long served as the parish of the McDonnell family and baptized three of their children. The McDonnells are now members of St. John the Apostle parish in Virginia Beach. The new attorney general is a graduate of Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria.
The choir of St. Elizabeth’s sang two gospel anthems at the service. They were “Clean Heart” and “Total Praise.”
Sister Cora Marie Billings, director of the diocesan Office for Black Catholics, was among the three people who said the prayers of intercession on behalf of the Christian community. She shared the role with Dr. Shaheed Coovadia of the Islamic Center of Virginia and Rabbi Martin Beifield Jr. of Congregation Beth Ahabah of Richmond, who had readings from the Muslim Scriptures and Jewish Scriptures, respectively.
While Msgr. Schmied said Catholics should not feel “triumphalistic” about the election of a Catholic governor and attorney general, he told The Catholic Virginian that he felt Catholics, who are a distinct minority in Virginia, had definitely entered the mainstream of public life in the Commonwealth.
In his homily, Msgr. Schmied recalled that it was almost 22 years ago that he first met Anne Holton when she came to St. Elizabeth’s to make arrangements for her wedding to her fiancé Tim Kaine who had not yet arrived in Richmond. The couple met when both were students at Harvard Law School.
He witnessed their marriage on Nov. 24, 1984. For their wedding the couple chose the same scripture text from Matthew’s Gospel — the Beatitudes of Jesus — that were read at the pre-inaugural interfaith prayer service. “By their choice of that text, I believe Tim and Anne were covenanting with each other and revealing to me, their families and friends their deep faith in and commitment to the vision of the Kingdom of God as enunciated by Jesus in that inaugural Sermon on the Mount,” Msgr. Schmied said.
Speaking to Gov. Kaine, Lt. Gov. William Bolling and Attorney General McDonnell, the priest said, “Help transport us beyond congestion and frustration not only by more and better highways… help inspire and enable all of us Virginians to travel and work together to craft and create that promised land of deep respect and reverence for persons and our natural environment.” Msgr. Schmied later told The Catholic Virginian that the new governor “in his own inaugural address, said that all are welcome at the table of Thanksgiving. He told me that by far, the best part of the weekend for him was the worship service,” the priest said. “Tim Kaine is truly a man without guile,” he continued. “What you see is what you get.”
Mildred Green, a St. Elizabeth’s parishioner, was among the 45 people from the parish who had traveled by bus to the inauguration. “We had special seating at the church,” she said. “We sat in the bleachers at the inauguration and watched the parade. “It was just touching emotionally,” Mrs. Green said. “It was my first time being part of an inauguration and just to see the quaintness of Bruton Parish Church brought back memories of history.” Mrs. Green pointed out that Governor Kaine has been involved in ministry at St. Elizabeth’s. “His wife, Anne, and I conducted liturgy of the Word for children,” she said. “When Anne couldn’t make it, Tim would step in”. He also sang in the gospel choir and he has been guest speaker at Men’s Day at the church.”
Msgr. Caroluzza was asked what impact he felt Catholic leadership would have in Virginia with the election of Gov. Kaine and Attorney General McDonnell. “These are not ordinary Catholics,” he replied. “They’re not Catholic in name only. They sit in the pews, they worship and they pray daily. They know what the Church teaches. It’s a great day for not only do we have the bishops to lead us, we have two committed Catholics who will bring their faith to politics and to the marketplace. As Catholics, we can be proud that these men have worked their way to the top without any backroom maneuvering or politicking.”
Bishop Emeritus Walter F. Sullivan gave the benediction at the inauguration ceremony and asked God to watch over the new governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general. “May they fulfill their respective offices with graciousness and impartiality. May they ever seek to serve the less fortunate and forgotten who are in our midst,” Bishop Sullivan prayed. “And so Lord, send your special blessing and inspiration upon them. Guide them at times of difficult decisions. Inspire them to promote true justice for all. “Lord, we begin this new day hopeful and hope-filled. Let us go forward arm in arm respectful of one another, respectful of our ethnic heritages, respectful of our religious beliefs, because we are truly children of our eternal God, brothers and sisters to one another with a common destiny. Let us respect all of life as coming from you as our ultimate existence.” 
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