Bishop Gregory Parkes concelebrated the White Mass with Father Paul Pecchie, pastor of St. Anthony the Abbot Parish in Brooksville and chaplain for the Tampa Bay Guild of St. Philomena of the Catholic Medical Association (CMA), and Father Ralph D’Elia, priest secretary to the bishop and director of the Office of Episcopal Ceremonies. Two deacons also participated in the Mass – Deacon Frank Averill, M.D, J.D. and Deacon Paul Haber.  

The White Mass is named after the white coats worn by physicians. It is typically held in the fall, in honor of St. Luke whose feast day is October 18, and who is the patron saint of physicians. The White Mass recognizes and gives tribute to physicians and other healthcare professionals for their service to others and seeks God's blessing upon them and their work.

Celebration of White Masses in the United States was introduced by the National Federation of the Catholic Physicians Guild in the 1930s. This organization eventually reconstituted itself in 1997 under the name “Catholic Medical Association.” The local Tampa Bay Guild is one of 120 active CMA guilds across the country.

The CMA Tampa Bay Guild was founded on October 8, 2008, with the approval of Bishop Emeritus Robert N. Lynch and under the guidance of Monsignor Robert Morris, the founding chaplain. The first White Mass, including a dinner event, in the diocese was held 17 years ago, on September 6, 2008, in the St. James Chapel at the Bethany Center in Lutz, celebrated by Bishop Emeritus Lynch. Three of the guild's founding physician members were present at the 2025 White Mass: Dr. Diane Gowski, Dr. Debra Gramlich and Dr. John R. (Rob) Hamill, Jr.

John R. (Rob) Hamill, Jr., M.D., current Tampa Bay Guild President, hosted a dinner event at Christ the King Catholic Church following this year's White Mass. Over 90 participants attended including spouses and medical students. The dinner’s speaker was Dr. Julio Gonzalez, M.D., J.D., a former Florida State Representative. His talk, entitled "The Role of Catholic Physicians in Restoring Right Order: What You Can Do,” was inspirational and very motivating as he encouraged attendees to boldly speak out the truth on healthcare matters and regarding the Catholic faith.  

At the White Mass dinner, the Guild's annual St. Giuseppe Moscati, M.D. Physician Award was presented to Dr. Ana M. Verdeja, M.D. for her statewide efforts in speaking out against abortion including in opposition to Amendment 4 in Florida.

The White Mass is very meaningful to physicians such as Dr. Ilka Nazario, an internal medicine and pediatrics practitioner in Tampa who reflected that “The yearly White Mass renews my strength to remain faithful in my vocation as a Catholic physician, even when the world challenges our values. It’s also a time to unite with other doctors who practice medicine with deep respect for human dignity and the whole person. And the Catholic Healthcare Professional’s Oath we proclaim reminds me of the sacred purpose behind our work.”  

Very positive feedback was received following the event including “... a fabulous speaker...a great one as a matter of fact. He was so bold in calling out everything," said Barb Bennett, a retired nurse.  

Dr. Maria Soto-Aguilar, a rheumatologist said, “The Mass and dinner with the speaker were a big success, and we had a nice time.”

Dr. Hamill, the Tampa Bay Guild President, noted that the White Mass & Dinner is a wonderful, annual gathering where we worship together as a group with our bishop. The dinner provides great fellowship for attendees where we end up sharing our experiences and ideas on how to incorporate our Catholic faith into treatment of complex and chronic diseases in our medical practices. He shared how we can offer patients the benefit of spiritual support such as prayer.

The guild invited medical students and residents in training to be guests at the White Mass dinner. Medical students attended from various training programs. Local, non-profit Catholic organization representatives (some of whom are guild members) were invited to share about their services.

Dr. Hamill shared that that this year’s White Mass was very special to him because of his family support (his wife Sue, along with his daughter Sarah, son John, and granddaughter Lillian) in helping with the event, including having his two grandsons as the altar servers at the White Mass.

For more information about the Tampa Bay Guild of St. Philomena, click here.

For more information about the history of the Catholic Medical Association, click here. 

To view photos from the event, click the arrows below.