God calls us to serve Him in the midst of our daily responsibilities and we try to do so because we want to be saints.  But how can we find God in the middle of our work when so many things distract us?  We must remember that however small a task is, it is filled with divine meaning and it can be offered to Our Lord as a pleasing sacrifice, undertaken for love. In and through doing our work with love, we learn how to love Our Lord.

Jesus worked joyfully as a carpenter for a number of years.  In the narthex of Holy Cross Chapel, we have a relief of St. Joseph as a loving father teaching a young Jesus how to do this work.  Daily, Joseph and Jesus and Mary grew closer to God, giving their work dignity and giving glory to God in their everyday duties.  Christ redeemed us so that we also can give glory to His Father in our work and in our duties to our family just as he did while on earth, the earth he had created. 

Christianity centers on the world that God gave us and we need his grace to change it.  Human realities are what we need to embrace, just as Christ embraced them when he became one of us.  Jesus, a carpenter, became our Redeemer.  Mary, a wife and a mother as depicted in our bronze statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe, became the Queen of All Saints.  Joseph, the carpenter, became the head of the Holy Family on earth and a saint for all upon death.

In the middle of our busy days, we can see the Crucifixion in the sanctuary at Holy Cross Chapel.  We can go to the Cross in order to return to our work with a deeper vision and understanding of how we can redeem the world with Christ.  Coming to the Liturgy of the Eucharist at lunchtime prepares us to be more in the presence of God in the afternoon and evening when we return to our families.  To spend time before the Tabernacle, where Our Lord waits for us and prays for us, gives us courage to face the demands of our family life, as well as those of our supervisors, fellow workers, and employees.  Coming to the Sacrament of Reconciliation leads us to forgive all the above, just as we are forgiven by God.  When we go to confession we tell Our Lord how sorry we are for not only our recent sins but all the sins of our lifetime and we begin again, filled with his grace and blessings.

The Chapel was founded in 1982 by Msgr. Albert J. Beck in the basement of 905 Main Street.  Msgr. Beck was joined later by his retired brother, Msgr. George Beck.  In 2001, the Archdiocese purchased the entire building and after much prayer and hard work, a beautiful Chapel was constructed on the ground floor and dedicated by Archbishop Joseph A. Fiorenza in December 2005.  That day he told us in his homily that we were finally leaving the catacombs!

Holy Cross Chapel is small, seating 135 persons and inside  it is peaceful, quiet, and refreshing.  You can learn more about its beauty by going to the “Photo Tour” on the website. The style and architectural elements of the Chapel turn it into a space where we can adore God, thank him and ask for his help in our lives.  The confessional for reconciliation makes it very easy for the penitent to be anonymous as he comes to God for forgiveness of sins, or to make his confession face to face with the priest. At the end of 2009, we renovated the second floor with a Bookstore, conference rooms, offices and kitchen to provide more space for activities such as the Business Ethics Forum, Thomas More Society, Endow for women, days of recollection and our series of breakfast conferences for men and for women during Advent and Lent.  The Chapel is ready to serve as the center of Catholic worship and education in downtown Houston.

Go onto our website to “Schedule” to see when our Masses are and when the Sacrament of Reconciliation is offered.  Visit “Activities” to see how you can learn to use your work as the principle way to bring Christ into the world.  God will not change what we do as wives and husbands, mothers and fathers, and persons who have to strive to work well while winning the respect of others.  But instead, you may discover that there are quiet ways to bring our Gospel values into your life by following the example of Jesus Christ.

Many have learned about Holy Cross Chapel from their friends who work downtown.  But there are still many who have been downtown for years and years who exclaim that they never knew we are here!  We hope you will visit us, bring your friends and help us spread our good news!  There are not many workplaces where we can bring the responsibilities of our family and the tasks of our work to the altar and offer them as a sacrifice, along with bread and wine, which miraculously becomes the Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ.  We invite you to avail yourself of this gift!