Two tour buses packed with Catholics — from college students to retirees — made their way up I-95 to Philadelphia and back June 25 for a Eucharist-themed pilgrimage. The goal is to inspire parishes to conduct their own visits to holy sites as part of the three-year run-up to the diocesan Golden Jubilee in 2024.
Parishioners from as far as St. Francis de Sales Church in Kilmarnock pulled into Bishop O’Connell High School’s empty parking lot in Arlington early Saturday morning for a whirlwind, 14-hour jaunt. They toured Philadelphia’s Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul and the Shrine of Katharine Drexel, the St. John Neumann Shrine and Parish of St. Peter, and St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in nearby Wynnewood, Pa.
In his homily at the mid-morning Mass at the basilica, Bishop Michael F. Burbidge urged the faithful to return home inflamed with new zeal for their individual vocations.
“Recall today how God has revealed his will to you,” he said, noting how each person in some way made space in their heart for God’s plan. “Give yourself over to that ‘yes’ every day.”
St. Katharine Drexel’s tomb rests in one corner of the basilica. Following Mass, pilgrims took turns venerating the saint, who was devoted to the Eucharist and the underserved, including African Americans and Native Americans.
After a short ride across town, the buses reached the St. John Neumann Shrine and St. Peter the Apostle Church.
Born in what is now the Czech Republic, St. John Neumann was ordained a priest in New York in 1836 and joined the Redemptorists approximately five years later, drawn to the order’s commitment to the poor and abandoned, including immigrants. In 1852, he became bishop of Philadelphia and promoted strong devotion to the Eucharist. He died of a sudden heart attack in 1860 at age 48.
Today, the shrine that bears his name is a peaceful, urban campus shared with St. Peter’s Church and school and administered by the Redemptorists. They led tours through a museum that documents his life and impact, screened a video about a healing attributed to the saint and visited the saint’s body, enclosed in a transparent coffin that serves as the base of the altar in the basement crypt. A lifelike mask covers his face, and a bishop’s mitre and robes adorn his body.
Carol Nyce, a parishioner of St. James Church in Falls Church, was struck by the many connections between the diocese and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, where both Bishop Thomas J. Welsh, Arlington’s founding bishop, and Bishop Burbidge were ordained priests.
St. Katharine Drexel’s foundation provided financial support for establishing St. Joseph Catholic Church in Alexandria and she is the patron saint of a diocesan mission in Haymarket. A parish in Reston is named for St. John Neumann and the Forty Hours Devotion he promoted has taken root at several parishes during the run-up to the diocesan Golden Jubilee.
Shelly Costello, a parishioner of Corpus Christi Church in Aldie, lived in the greater Philadelphia area until she moved away at age 18. She became Catholic after leaving the area and, in returning to it during the pilgrimage, she gained a new perspective on her past.
“I saw everything through new eyes,” she said, reflecting on how knowledgeable the guides and speakers were. “I could have spent all day in one building.”
Visiting St. Charles Borromeo Seminary was a homecoming for some, including Bishop Burbidge, who served as rector there, and Father Edward C. Hathaway, rector of the Basilica of St. Mary in Alexandria, who studied there. Bishop Burbidge led vespers and Eucharistic adoration in one of the chapels. The seminary is preparing to leave the campus that dates back to the middle of the 19th century for a brand new facility to be constructed near Gwynedd Mercy University in Gwynedd Valley and slated to open in 2024.
The pilgrimage was organized by Father Jonathan M. Smith, parochial vicar of St. Andrew the Apostle Church in Clifton, and Father Stephen M. Vaccaro, parochial vicar of Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Winchester. They are finalizing a resource document to help parishes plan their own Eucharist-centered trips to the City of Brotherly Love this summer during the first Jubilee preparatory year. It runs through Nov. 19 and is themed “Remember” to encourage reflection on Christ’s words, “Do this in remembrance of me” — emphasizing the Eucharist as the source and summit of the Catholic faith.
Reflecting on the day’s sites and experiences, John Grabfelder of St. Patrick Church in Fredericksburg described how special it was to be in the physical presence of the remains of Sts. Katharine Drexel and John Neumann.
“These are incredibly spiritual experiences,” he said. “Each of us is going back to our parish to share this.”
Other pilgrims echoed that sentiment and left inspired to visit other holy sites in the area, such as Mount St. Mary’s in Emmitsburg and the St. John Paul II Shrine and Franciscan Monastery in Washington to celebrate Catholicism’s rich tradition and history.
Grabfelder said as a lay Carmelite he appreciated the missionary nature of the pilgrimage and that it was led by his bishop, one of Christ’s modern-day apostles.
“We get sent back out (to evangelize),” he said. “I get chills.”
Schweers can be reached at [email protected].
