The weather was awful Sunday, but the pews in the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston’s South End were filled for a special mass celebrated by Cardinal Sean O’Malley for the repose of the soul of Thomas M. Menino, the city’s longest serving mayor.
Current Mayor Marty Walsh sat in the front row, head bowed.
In the same cathedral where cardinals mourned the passing of John, Bobby, and Ted Kennedy, and shed collective tears for the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing, Roman Catholics observed Menino’s passing.
“We’re offering this All Souls Day mass, for mayor Thomas Menino, for his wife Angela, for his children, grandchildren and family. He was so devoted to them all,” said O’Malley.
The Cardinal spoke of the significance of All Souls Day.
“This,” said O’Malley, “is the day Catholics gather in churches, visit graves, and offer prayers for our faithful departed.”
Menino’s faith was as central to his identity as his membership in the Democratic Party.
And the Cardinal recognized this when he said, “Tom Menino was very faithful to Sunday mass.”
Still, Menino’s support for same-sex marriage and a woman’s right to choose, were always out of step with his church. And for most of Menino’s 20 years in office the church’s doctrine on abortion and homosexuality drowned out its other priorities. But with the ascension of Pope Francis and his emphasis on the poor, the positions of the church and Menino finally aligned in the public consciousness.
“Our paths would cross often at groundbreakings for low income housing, at homeless shelters and in neighborhoods convulsed by street crime,” O’Malley said of the late mayor’s commitment to the poor.
Outside the inspiring arches of the cathedral, under an iron-grey sky just a few blocks away, a man exiting the Pine Street Inn for the homeless, reflected on the passing of Menino: “It’s sad that he passed away. I think we lost a great mayor.
And Darryl Wallace of Pine Street credits Menino for the small gestures that did not go unnoticed:
“He was here a lot. He was here a lot of times. I actually work here so I seen him around; Thanksgiving, Christmas during those occasions. A year and a half I stayed here. But I’m no longer here. Thank God, I have my own place now.”
The first snowflakes of the season obscured the construction cranes in the background; a reminder of Menino’s duel – perhaps even contradictory -- priorities: assisting the poor and homeless and populating Boston’s skyline with luxury high-rises that make hefty tax contributions.
“The skyscraper thing,” said Wallace, “I don’t really know too much about that. But I think probably he was one of the best mayors that we had as far as looking out for those just coming out of jail and being homeless and things of that nature. I think that he was number one.”
As he was leaving the service, Mayor Walsh at one point shared a quiet moment with Cardinal O’Malley, exchanging blessings and good wishes.
In deference to his predecessor, Wash declined to comment. His silence and solemnity were eloquent.
But Police Commissioner William Evans – who called Menino “Mr. Mayor”, but also called him friend -- spoke of the mayor’s concern for those left behind in life:
“You know he was out there and he always wanted to make sure that they were out of the cold, that they were fed. That’s why he was so special and I think that’s why you see the outpouring of sympathy for his passing. He built a great city but he never forgot where he was from.”
The commissioner then walked out of the cathedral and joined other mourners clustered on the sidewalk on Washington Street. Several people moved closer together as the wind picked up, and dark clouds dotted Boston’s horizon.
