Chapel of Our Lady of Good Voyage

Loved that post from 4÷8÷08…
Funny thing is that on THAT (2008) Easter night after having to visit someone in the hospital, I had planned to go to that same 7pm Mass at the chapel, but there was NO Easter night Mass then. — Awfully sad!
In fact, I’ve been going to that chapel since at least the mid-1980’s, and love it!
There is unfortunately now only the 11:30am Sunday and 7pm Sunday Masses (no more 7pm Sat. or 8pm Sun. — which was a great, and very popular, time for so many working folks).
I always spread the news of the 7pm Sun. Mass to anyone I can — and many people have been so grateful to hear of that little-​known Mass option!
Yes, it will be sad to see the chapel move — and I hope it wil not go too far away at Fan Pier.
*A very ironic note:…Going to this chapel one Sunday evening in May, 1987 actually led (LONG story how! :) to the founding of our maritime business in Boston… Little did I know what Our Lady of Good Voyage had in store for my future that night — but SHE did!!! :)

This church is kind of a landmark and it won’t be here much longer, thanks to the development happening on the Waterfront. It’s actually affiliated with Saint Vincent De Paul church in South Boston and apparently, they’re going to rebuild a new chapel not far from the location of this one, but that’s not the same thing.
We got married here a couple of weeks ago. It’s smaller than a church but bigger than the usual chapel and the perfect size for a wedding that’s on the smaller side. The aisle is smaller for walking down too, which made me very happy. It’s a great old church with lots of character. The stained glass is remarkably detailed and every one of the windows features a nautical motif. They even have old model ships in there and steering wheels from old boats, etc.
The view of the water would have been great from here (if not for the stupid «Fan Pier» construction banners everywhere). They do have a lovely little side garden though, with lots of trees and grass. Perfect for post-​wedding mingling and photo ops.
The name «Our Lady of Good Voyage» is fitting because I hear this is a church where women used to go and pray for their husband’s to return safely from fishing trips, a long time ago.

The first time I came here was freshman year of college. when I slept 45 minutes a night on weekdays and weekends were when I caught up on sleep. I don’t remember what I did that Saturday (settle down, I lived on the Wellness floor at the time), but I woke up at 4PM on Easter Sunday. Yeah. 4PM. What they don’t tell you about Catholic churches in downtown. is that most of them close at noon on Easter Sunday. What the… So after a furious online search for churches (and this was back before many had websites) and a score of calls, I found Chapel of Our Lady of Good Voyage over by the water. They had a 7PM and an 8PM mass. Wheww. By this time it was 6PM and I was begging someone to come along with me. After no takers, I set off on my own.
I took the red line to South Station and walked the rest of the way. For those of you that don’t know, this is a pretty decent walk. I mean there’s a bridge and everything. I believe this was before the Silver Line and definitely before the ICA. After getting a little lost and almost giving up. I found the church. A small little thing that I would never had guessed was a church if it didn’t have a small cross in the front of it. I walked into the middle of the 7PM mass and felt bad… so I stayed for the 8PM mass. And yeah. I went to 1 ½ masses. It was kinda great though. The readings were hammered into my head and the church is so small it felt like such a close knit community. You know those old, but cozy one bedroom apartments with warm lighting? This is the church version. hehe. The music was the traditional kind from home and the priest gave a good sermon. At both masses. hah
When the mass was over, I began my long walk home. A few minutes in, I realized I was the only rail commuter because after the flurry of cars driving off I was the only one on the road. I was okay at first. then all of a sudden a wave of creepiness came over me and I got scared. What do you do when you’re scared? Run and sing of course! Imagine young Trish. in an Easter dress. running around Fort Point. singing:
You shall cross the barren desert,
but you shall not die of thirst.
You shall wander far in safety,
though you do not know the way.
You shall speak your words in foreign lands,
and all will understand,
You shall see the face of God and live.
Be not afraid,
I go before you always,
Come follow Me,
and I shall give you rest.
If you pass through raging waters
in the sea, you shall not drown.
If you walk amidst the burning flames,
you shall not be harmed.
Needless to say. I made it back to my downtown dorm unharmed. For those of you who want to make it out this way, the Silver Line to the Waterfront is your best bet (transfer from South Station). There isn’t a lot of info on this church on the web, so I’ll try and stop by this month to pick up a bulletin. And I’ll wear sneakers this time.