A beaming and exultant Archbishop Timothy Dolan was greeted with thunderous applause last night by well over 1,000 congregants of the Sound Shore Vicariate who had gathered for an Evening Prayer service at The Blessed Sacrament Church in downtown New Rochelle. Blessed Sacrament is the mother Church of the Sound Shore Vicariate which encompasses New Rochelle, Pelham, Pelham Manor and Mount Vernon.
Reflecting the diverse nature of the local Catholic community, prayers were said in English, French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese.
Dolan is in the final stages of meeting his commitment to visit every vicariate in the New York Archdiocese during his first year in office. He was named Archbishop of New York by Pope Benedict XVI on February 23, 2009. He was installed as Archbishop of New York on April 15, 2009.
Afterwards, almost every congregant went to the nearby school gymnasium, where the Archbishop patiently greeted and blessed each and every one. A professional photographer took photos which will be made available through the individual parishes.
