New Hope in Newtown D
By Kate Torok ecember 14, 2012, started just like any other day at St. Rose Parish in Newtown, Connecticut. And Msgr. Robert Weiss ’68, Pastor, St. Rose of Lima Church, was in the middle of his morning routine in the rectory when the phone rang. The voice on the other end of the line delivered the horrifying news that would soon spread to the rest of the country – there was a random shooting at one of the schools, and all schools were to be put on lockdown. For Msgr. Weiss, that was the beginning of the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy, where 26 young students, teachers, and administrators were killed by a lone gunman. Weiss immediately went to the church, where the St. Rose schoolchildren were attending their regular 9:00 a.m. mass. He discontinued the service, put the school on lockdown, and the school officials started to notify parents. It was then that the second phone call came in. This time, it was a St. Rose parishioner who said five simple words to Weiss, “You’d better get down here.” Weiss and his two associates rushed to the scene. According to Weiss, about half of Newtown belongs to his parish, so he knew they were about to be directly impacted. When they got to the firehouse, which was set up as a command post and gathering place, they realized that it was more than a random shooting, and immediately felt the magnitude of the devastation. Weiss’ two associates stayed by the firehouse, where the Sandy Hook students and teachers were gathered, frantically taking attendance. Parents and families were slowly starting to gather as well. Weiss went down towards the school, and was approached by one of the first responders, whom he knew, and was asked to go in and bless the children. From the look on the face staring back at him, and the scene unfolding around him, Weiss quickly realized there was very little he could do if he did go inside, and opted not to.
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several hundred people outside who were starting their own service, with makeshift shrines adorned with rosaries and candles. They even started singing Christmas carols. “I encountered love that night. I saw the love these parents had for their children, and the love the community had for each other, in spite of this horrible tragedy. The good emerged quickly,” Weiss recalled. “This wasn’t just happening at St. Rose, it was happening at every religious house in Newtown that night.”
St. Rose of Lima Church. Photo courtesy of the Diocese of Bridgeport.
When Weiss went back to the firehouse, he was readily recognized by a number of the children, who all started to huddle around him. He sprung into teacher mode, and started working with them to get children back in their lines so the teachers could check off their names. Parents started to arrive, bursting into tears at the first sight of their child, then quickly shuffling them home. Weiss stayed there until the last child was called. He looked up and saw the group of parents whose children’s names were not called. Within moments, they were escorted into the back room, and Weiss trailed closely behind. That moment marked one of the longest days in Weiss’ life, and in the lives of all those in Newtown. Weiss said some of the relatives stayed behind and wouldn’t leave until verification was given that their loved one was in fact inside the school. He himself was overwhelmed by the cars when he tried to leave, and swarmed by media while trying to find his own vehicle. “That was when the magnitude of the tragedy really hit me. It was very overwhelming,” he said. Weiss knew that he and the parish had to do something that evening. He knew people would be looking for a place to go, to find comfort. Newtown is already a very faith-based town and has many active churches. But with almost half of the residents being St. Rose parishioners, Weiss moved into planning mode. By 5:00 p.m. that evening, the church was overflowing with people – some parishioners, some not. There was an organized 7:30 p.m. service. All the pews inside the church were filled and there was standing room only. Weiss said the police estimated
They left the church open for many days following the tragedy, never closing or locking the doors. Floral tributes rapidly filled the sanctuary, and lit candles filled any open niche inside. Weiss said their mantra became, “Light overcomes darkness.” Over the next several days, Weiss presided over eight funerals. Some days, he had two funerals. They started Msgr. Bob Weiss preaching to the St. Rose of Lima congregation following the Newtown shootings. Photo that Tuesday, and the courtesy of the Diocese of Bridgeport. last one took place on Saturday. In the weeks that followed, he said people were doing their best to comfort each other, but the community was still struggling. “People were very supportive, affectionate, and full of prayer. They were doing their best to lift each other’s spirits. We had to get into the Christmas celebration quickly after this happened, but obviously, people were still hurting,” he said. One thing he didn’t hear from the people of Newtown, however, was, “Why did God do this?” “They realized this was evil, and that God’s hand was not in it,” said Weiss. But today, five months later, the anger and questioning is starting to happen, and the recent gun legislation efforts caused a lot of stress to the community. Despite all of that, he said the town is still holding strong. “Every day is different, grief is taking different forms,” said Weiss. “But just yesterday, I was out in the parking lot and people I didn’t know came up to me and said ’thanks.’ I go to the grocery store, and I still get hugs. If I stop in Starbucks, I still get treated
to a coffee. At the core of this town, we are still trying to hang together and stay strong.” Weiss said he has protected himself from doing too much one-on-one counseling with people because it is still just too overwhelming for him. But he has certainly spent time with a number of people in the community, especially the first responders. A number of counseling services have been made available to the church through Catholic Charities, and will be offered through the end of June. The biggest question Weiss and his colleagues have had to ask themselves is, “How will we preach around this?” They were advised by colleagues from around the country to bring in guest priests, particularly for the Christmas and Easter masses, which they did. And Weiss said, sure enough, even they preached about that fateful day in Newtown. “It touched people everywhere, and now it is woven into our fabric. It’s hard to get away from it,” he said. St. Rose has received hundreds, if not thousands, of cards and gifts from people around the world extending their prayers and sympathies. They have sent teddy bears, CDs, books, prayer shawls, rosaries, flowers, candles, wreaths, and “miles of construction paper prayer chains” from elementary schools. Weiss admits that he and his colleagues have become more serious in their preaching. He said the breaking point for them was this past Palm Sunday, when the church was full and the weather was beautiful. “Christ rose from the dead, but he still had his scars. And we are the same way. We’ve all gotten more realistic about what pain and suffering is, and how much a part of life it is,” he said. Weiss will celebrate his 40th anniversary in the priesthood in May, and said he is very grateful for his Catholic education, one that provided him with the foundation to help lead people through this tragedy. “I’ve been put into a privileged and trusted position as pastor to be able to help and lead this community. I am very grateful for the faith of these people, especially for these families. They are incredible,” he said.
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