As many observe Good Friday across Montgomery County, a pastor at a historic church in Rockville is offering a message that he prays will resonate far beyond his congregation.
St. Mary’s Catholic Church, established in 1817, is the oldest Catholic church in the county and a site rich in both religious and cultural history.
“We also have one of our most famous residents in the cemetery behind me, as well,” Father Nathanael Anderson said, standing between their centuries old white chapel and the church graveyard. “I happened to read ‘The Great Gatsby,’ as many of probably your [viewers] did in high school, and F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda, and some of their progeny are all buried near the chapel in the cemetery,” said Anderson, who serves as an associate pastor at St. Mary’s.
The final resting place of the renowned author draws visitors from across the globe.
“They sometimes leave a Gin bottle or a note,” said Anderson. But visitors also leave flowers and coins at Fitzgerald’s tombstone as a way of paying their respect to a writer who didn’t make much money while he was living, explained the pastor.
While the famous scribe wasn’t a member of the church, Anderson said Fitzgerald’s father worshipped there.
But this Good Friday, the pastor’s focus is not just on history. It’s on providing people of all walks of life a comforting message during times of uncertainty.
“We do have to celebrate the little things,” said the pastor. “When we invite someone else who wants to support us into that suffering, and don’t go through it entirely alone, it can become redemptive and it can be a source of grace — and that is what we’re rejoicing in, even on Good Friday.”
His words reflect the deeper meaning of Good Friday in the Christian tradition: acknowledging hardship while looking ahead to renewal and redemption.
This Holy Week, he says this message is meant to convey that hope is always within reach, even in the most challenging times.
“There are many forms of the cross that we all pass through, and that’s what we’re focused on right now,” Anderson said. “Not to rejoice in suffering, but to rejoice in what’s on the other side.”
Located in the heart of Rockville, Anderson said St. Mary’s welcomes visitors of all faiths, whether they come to pray, reflect or simply explore its historic grounds.
