Pilgrimage to Lourdes - September 2–7, 1958
From September 2 to 7, 1958, a solemn pilgrimage to Lourdes was held to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the apparitions of the Mother of God to Saint Bernadette Soubirous. The event gathered thousands of pilgrims from around the world, including bishops, priests, and lay faithful from the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the United States.
Our American pilgrims traveled to Lourdes by sea, air, and land, visiting other French cities along the way. The first group of pilgrims, led by Father Vasyl Sheremeta, left New York on the ship Flandre on July 19 and arrived at the port of Le Havre on the night of July 25. Another group, led by Bishop Joseph Shmondiuk, left Philadelphia by plane on July 24. Both groups met in Paris on July 26 and stayed there until July 30. Father Petro Melnychuk, who participated in this pilgrimage, wrote about it for the eparchial newspaper The Way. According to his accounts, we know that during their stay in Paris, our pilgrims visited and prayed in our parish of St. Volodymyr and other major cathedrals of Paris - Notre Dame, Sacred Heart of Jesus, and Mary Magdalene. On July 29, the pilgrims also visited Lisieux, the city where St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus lived, and Nevers, where the relics of St. Bernadette Soubirous are present.
Approximately 1,200 Ukrainian pilgrims from around the world gathered in Lourdes for the pilgrimage. On Sunday, everyone prayed the liturgy together, led by Bishop Ivan Buchko, who at that time was the apostolic visitator for Ukrainian Greek Catholics in Europe. In the afternoon, Fr. Maliuga from Belgium and Dr. Volodymyr Yaniv prepared two lectures for the audience. On Monday, August 4, pilgrims had a Ukrainian day with a joint liturgy led by Bishop Constantine Bohachevsky and a moleben led by Bishop Nil Savaryn from Canada. All the Ukrainian pilgrims sang the Divine Liturgy together in samuilka, impressing many journalists. Additionally, on that day, all Ukrainian pilgrims participated in a joint procession.
The journey of our American pilgrims did not end there. They also traveled by bus to Venice, Ravenna, Assisi, and Rome. While in the Eternal City on August 10, they received word that Bishop Constantine Bohachevsky had been named Metropolitan of Philadelphia. This pilgrimage became a memorable trip for all its participants.
