St. Dominic bells resonate throughout Lakeview

by Peter Finney Jr.

By Peter Finney Jr.
Clarion Herald

Deacon Jody Fortunato knows his limits.

When the permanent deacon and local attorney had the opportunity during a renovation of the six-story bell tower at St. Dominic Parish in Lakeview to scale an interior ladder to get a bird’s-eye view of the three bells that were raised to their perches in 1961, discretion became the better part of valor.

“I don’t know how much you like heights, but I liked them a lot more when I was a kid,” Deacon Fortunato said, laughing. “I even asked my son, ‘Do you want to climb up there?’ And then I showed him this old metal ladder attached to the inside of the tower. He said, ‘No, I think I’m good.’”

Bells were silent

Because of damage to the tower over the years – and the fear that the original marble slats that permitted the bells’ pealing to carry throughout Lakeview could dislodge and fall to the ground – the three bells cast by the royal Dutch foundry Petit & Fritsen in the Netherlands remained silent for the last two years.

Now, after a meticulous renovation, the bells are back pealing once again. Father Wayne Paysse, the St. Dominic pastor, blessed the bells on Nov. 3.

“They can be heard all over Lakeview,” Deacon Fortunato said. “We’ve gotten a lot of positive responses from the community. People are saying, ‘Gosh, the bells are back. We missed the bells.’”

The three bells at St. Dominic are arranged in descending order. The smallest bell, named for St. Jude, sits atop the tower. The middle bell, named for St. Dominic, sits just below. The largest bell, dedicated to St. Mary of the Most Holy Rosary, is closest to the ground.

The names are inscribed on each bell in Latin using the formula: “Mihi Nomen Est … Judas Thaddeus” (“My Name is … Jude Thaddeus”). Each bell also includes a bas-relief image of an apostle: Jude has St. Jude Thaddeus; Dominic has St. Paul; and Mary has St. Peter.

Every bell also includes images of the angels playing musical instruments. All three bells are dedicated “To the Glory of God and the Memory of St. Dominic’s Mothers’ Club.”

Pre-Mass call to assembly

The three bells peal in unison five minutes before every weekend Mass (the 4 p.m. Saturday Vigil and the 8 and 10:30 a.m. and 12:15 and 5:30 p.m. Sunday Masses). During the week, the largest bell is struck for the traditional Angelus devotion at 8 a.m., noon and 6 p.m.

“There’s a mechanical hammer that strikes the biggest bell,” Deacon Fortunato said. “It does three sets of three, followed by nine consecutive strikes, which is half of the most traditional way to ring the Angelus, which is 18.”

On special occasions, the bells peal in unison: to welcome the archbishop and on other joyful moments such as baptisms, First Holy Communions and weddings.

Deacon Fortunato said the largest bell is used for the death knell (or funeral toll), when a mechanical hammer strikes the Mary Bell from the side.

“The funeral toll has a special delay that creates a sense of longing as the strikes are made slowly,” he said. “The sound is one of mourning.”

The bell tower also is equipped with a digital carillon that marks the hours, plays during Angelus prayer times and plays bell music according to the different liturgical seasons.

“It’s a hybrid system because you’d really need a dozen bells to have a real thing that would play music,” Deacon Fortunato said. “There are all kinds of hymns loaded into it, and that can be heard throughout Lakeview as well. There are general hymns, Marian hymns, patriotic hymns, Advent hymns, Lenten hymns, Easter hymns. We get a lot of nice comments from people about the bells. There’s a lot of excitement about the bells being back.”

A good neighbor

St. Dominic also is mindful of its neighbors’ sleep patterns. On Saturdays, the bells don’t ring until noon.

“We’ve got a Saturday morning reprieve,” he said, laughing.

In his homily at the Nov. 3 dedication Mass, Deacon Fortunato said St. Dominic was blessed to have “real bells,” which are increasingly rare.

“May the sweet, sonorous sound of our parish bells regularly encourage us in our faith and our trust in Almighty God,” he told parishioners. “May our bells dispel division and evil thoughts from our hearts and remind us always that ‘the Lord our God is God alone.’ May they encourage us to keep the commandments and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.

“May the peal of our bells remind us all that we are, by a beautiful mystery, one family and one church in Christ Jesus – risen from the dead! May they bless the hours, summon us to prayer and exhort us to holiness of life. May their voice direct our hearts to the Lord, the One Eternal High Priest, and to his holy will for our lives.”

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