A view of Luther Place Memorial Church from Thomas Circle - 1922

The Basilica

As a confirmed Methodist, baptized Congregationalist, and member of the Lutheran Volunteer Corps, I haven’t had much experience outside of the mainline protestant realm. Because of this protestant past, I have always felt a little out of my comfort zone when I attend Catholic services. So when my roommates and I decided to take a stroll down Michigan Avenue to the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, I did my best not to feel intimidated by my lack of Catholic service experience. The massive Cathedral is the third largest in North America and it definitely shows as its tower and dome can be spotted from miles away. With paintings of saints and various small chapels along the outer aisles, the Basilica certainly is an impressive architectural feat. With about a thousand people attending a regular Sunday service, the Cathedral is definitely a hot spot for DC Catholics. Not wanting to look too out of place, we sat towards the back with the hope that no one would notice how out of step we were with Catholic traditions. This of course did not work. Since we basically never knew when to kneel or what liturgy to say, I’m sure that the Cathedral locals spotted us tourists fairly easily. The homily was brief and not incredibly insightful, but the Priest did speak about a topic that is always good to be addressed: humility. Especially for a recent college graduate who thinks his opinion matters so greatly that he needs to write about his church hopping experiences, humility is always a great virtue to keep in mind. Without a Catholic baptism, my housemates and I were not allowed to receive communion. Staying seated during this pivotal point of the service was apparently not the respectful thing to do as others seated in our pew gave us the “stink eye” and proceeded on without us. While an experience like this may make me feel unwelcomed in the Catholic community, I do enjoy many aspects of the Catholic tradition. The fifteen hundred years of Catholic theology that was formed under figures such as Augustine, Aquinas, and St. Ignatius is exactly what makes the study of Christianity so interesting. Even the high church traditions in Catholic services create that sacred and peaceful space that I experienced at Augustana. And the beautiful artistic imagery seen in Catholic churches always impress me and make me feel as though Protestants can be rather bland (thanks Luther). So while my relationship with Catholic services may be a bit on the edgy side, I do enjoy many of the attributes of Catholic traditions. Being confirmed a Methodist, I often remind others that John Wesley was actually accused in 18^th century Britain of being a Catholic sympathizer, a supposed insult that obviously didn’t catch on.

            The crab cake that I hunted down in the Basilica area was just down Michigan and

Monroe Avenue at a little pub-like restaurant called Colonel Brooks’ Tavern. The crab cake was delicious and was of a good size with larger crab chunks than even Bus Boys and Poets. The fries were also excellent as they were cut well and contained a good amount of actual potato and were not just sticks of deep-fried-materials. So even if you’re denied the body of Christ at a church service, you can’t be denied a cook crab cake from down the street.