EMMITSBURG, MD – The National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton welcomed nearly 350 visitors on Sunday for its annual Pilgrimage for the Sea Services. This year for the first time the pilgrimage Mass was broadcast live on EWTN. The Most Reverend Neal J. Buckon, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA (AMS), himself a retired commissioned officer and chaplain in the U.S. Army, was the principal celebrant and homilist.
Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton is the Patroness of the Sea Services, which include the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Merchant Marines, and Public Health Service. The pilgrimage is co-sponsored each year by the Seton Shrine and the AMS to pray for those who serve. The Sea Services Pilgrimage Sponsoring Committee is chaired by retired Admiral William J. Fallon and co-chaired by retired U.S. Navy Captain Daniel D. Thompson.
The 3:30 p.m. Mass opened ceremoniously with the march of the Joint Services Honor Guard, Presentation of the Colors, and singing of the National Anthem. Sister Joan Drega of the Daughters of Charity (D.C.) welcomed the pilgrims to the Shrine.
A number of priests concelebrated with Bishop Buckon, including fellow AMS Auxiliary Bishop Joseph L. Coffey, a retired U.S. Navy chaplain and the principal celebrant and homilist at last year’s pilgrimage Mass; Father Donelson Thevenin, CHC, LCDR, USN, a chaplain at Arlington National Cemetery; and Father Luke R. Dundon, CHC, LCMR-select, USN, a chaplain at the U.S. Naval Academy. Father Thevenin proclaimed the Gospel. He and Father Dundon both serve with AMS endorsement and faculties.
Among those in the congregation were many active-duty and retired military personnel, members of the Catholic War Veterans and Auxiliary, the Sea Cadets, and midshipmen from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and U.S. Naval Academy. Mrs. Kim Miller, president of the Military Council of Catholic Women Worldwide brought her family from the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, PA. The U.S. Naval Academy Catholic Choir led by Mr. Monte Maxwell animated the liturgy with sacred song.
In his homily for the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Bishop Buckon expounded on the Gospel of Mark, 10:2-16, wherein Jesus teaches about the sanctity of lifelong marriage between one man and one woman. Drawing on the history of the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812, in which a sand bar in shallow water prevented heavily-armed British warships from reaching their American targets, he likened the sand bar to sin, which can pose an impediment to perseverance in the faithful living out of a marital commitment.
Bishop Buckon preached in part:
“My good friends in Christ, I think you will agree that when sin becomes habitual in marriage and in family life, it is like being grounded on a sand bar without a tugboat in sight. This is when we need that grace that comes from the Lord…. Being sorry for our sins helps a marriage to get past that invisible barrier. Yes, by being sorry for our sins, and asking for forgiveness, we are then predisposed and waiting for the high tide of grace that comes from Jesus to set us free.”
Summing up the meaning of Christ’s message, Bishop Buckon concluded: “Jesus wants to preserve marriages as God intended. Jesus gives us grace to help us remain true to our commitments. The good Lord helps his disciples to be steadfast in their fidelity. What seems impossible in our culture, Jesus makes possible through grace.”
After the homily, Bishop Buckon went to the communion rail where he blessed a silver tray of Sea Services medals presented by Sister Anne Marie Lamoureux, D.C., who also read, along with Midshipman George Smith, USMMA. The cantor was Midshipman Cameron Smith, USNA. The song of praise after communion was the Navy Hymn, “Eternal Father, Strong to Save,” including the Midshipmen verse:
Midshipmen of our own Navy
Saint Elizabeth Ann’s sons served at sea;
She prayed for them both day and night
That God would guide them with His light;
Oh, Mother Seton, hear my plea,
As you did for them, now pray for me. Amen.