Savannah Arrival

The group of 40 travelers from Chapelwood rose early to meet at the church to begin our week long trek. In terms of travel this was literally a hop, skip, and a jump. We hopped on a bus, skipped down the Sam Houston tollway and jumped on a small jet at Intercontinental Airport for our flight to Savannah.
The travel guides call Savannah the "Belle of the Southeastern Coast." It was founded by James Edward Oglethorpe in 1733. Our tour guide Mary Waitzman noted Oglethorpe had four rules. There would be no hard alcohol, so rum and whiskey were out. No lawyers, insert your favorite lawyer joke here. No slavery which of course became a stain in American history in years to come and no Catholics which is interesting because Oglethorpe was known for his religious tolerance.
Waitzman, who is a devout Catholic, noted the reason Oglethorpe at first did not want Catholics in the colony was because of the political situation of the time. In 1733, England and Spain were at loggerheads, and since Spain was a Catholic country, Oglethorpe feared the Pope might ask the Catholic Church members to rise up and revolt against members of the Church of England which of course would have doomed the colony.
However by the late 1700's immigrants fleeing the turmoil in Haiti and France established Savannah's first Catholic congregation, The Congregation de Saint Jean-Baptiste which turned out to be on the grounds of our first visit tour.
The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, which is home to the Catholic Diocese of Savannah, was errected about 70 years later. (Dedicated in 1876 for the history buffs.) It is a glorious structure that was restored in November 2000 to honor the 150th anniversary of the diocese. For our group it was quite a treat as many of the Easter Lilies were in bloom from yesterday's services. The sanctuary is ardorned with the "Twelve Stations of the Cross," which Waitzman noted is a reverent Catholic service. We later made a short tour around the city before heading to our hotel.
As for the weather, for those who attended yesterday's 11 O'clock service at Chapelwood, you may remember the storm which passed through during Jim Jackson's sermon. We flew over it today, which made the ride a little bumpy, but also led to some drizzle during our short tour this afternoon. As I write this, a pretty good sized thunderstorm is brewing over the city, however there is good news, weather radar is projecting an outstanding week for us.
Tomorrow we head to St. Simons Island where John and Charles Wesley spent their early days in Georgia in 1736.