In the weeks since the RE year concluded, I've had some amazing spiritual experiences, and I've had prayerfully in mind all of my 250+ former students and families.
In May, after sightseeing in the Boston Metro Area, my first visit to Massachusetts, I traveled south to join my family for vacation time in the Washington, DC, Metro Area. I stopped in New Haven, CT, my first time in Connecticut, and went to see St. Mary's Church--please see photo directly below. Blessed Father Michael McGivney served as a priest there, and founded the Knights of Columbus there.
Washington, D.C., has become a place of spiritual significance for me because of two places I enjoy visiting during my annual trips to that area.
The first is the National Shrine of St. John Paul II.
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| Here I'm posing next to St. Faustina, in a photo taken by a fellow visitor. |
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| Here I pose next to Pope St. John Paul II, in a photo taken by a fellow visitor. |
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| Here's a portrait of Pope St. John Paul II. I lit the prayer candle in the lower right corner. |
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| The lighting isn't the best, but here's la Virgen de Guadalupe. I lit a prayer candle in the lower right corner. |
Just to the south is the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.
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| Here's a prayer candle I lit. |
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| A fellow visitor photographed me outside the Basilica. |
I also attended Mass at two different churches in Alexandria: St. Joseph's, founded with funds from St. Mother Katharine Drexel, and St. Mary's Basilica, the oldest Catholic parish in Virginia.
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| St. Joseph |
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| Basilica of St. Mary |
In Baltimore, I stopped by the Basilica of the Annunciation (please see photo below), the first Cathedral in the US, although the Archdiocese of Baltimore has a different Cathedral now.
And I saw the house--in the photo below--where St. Mother Elizabeth Ann Seton lived before she settled in Emmitsburg, MD. Last year, August 28 marked 250 years since her birth, and this coming September 14, marks 50 years since she was canonized the first US-born saint.
(If you're interested in reading more about my trip and what else I experienced, including the National Memorial Day Concert, Fort McHenry, and lunch at a tavern where George Washington ate, please contact me and I'll send you a link to the post on my personal blog when it's complete.)
In mid-June, I was at Guaranteed Rate Field for the Pope Leo XIV Celebration.
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| Here I am in the stands, holding a flag that was in my hand when I came within 20 feet of Pope Francis at World Youth Day 2019. Parishioner Bill Skalitzky took this photo of me. |
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| Here's the view during the broadcast of the message of Pope Leo XIV. |
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| At the end of Mass in the stadium. |
I highly recommend that your families spend 7 minutes watching Pope Leo's message that was broadcast at the celebration, the first message for a US audience. He specifically has words for young people.
When visiting these places, and at Pope Leo's celebration, I was praying for you, that God will work wonders in your lives and bring you alive in faith.
Please know of my continued prayers for you throughout the summer and beyond. If there are any specific prayer intentions you want to share with me, please send them my way. I remain available to support you spiritually.
I look forward to seeing you at Church.
God's blessings,
Paul
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| Artwork, inside the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, depicting the descent of the Holy Spirit. I pray the Holy Spirit pours out fresh graces day by day upon all my former RE students and their families. |
