Update: National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton -- Emmitsburg, Maryland

Destination: We originally visited the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Md., in September 2009. But the shrine has recently received a number of relics of the saint from the Sisters of Charity of New York, which make it worth an update. In addition, 2021 marks the 200th anniversary of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton’s death.

Masses are being live-streamed on Facebook or the website on Sundays at 11 a.m., and Mondays through Fridays at 1:30 p.m. Check the website for changes.

Photos: St. Elizabeth Ann’s bonnet (top left) and wedding brooch (below left) are among new donations to the shrine.

Why to go: Emmitsburg was the home of Mother Seton from 1809 until her death in 1821.

In the northern bay of the basilica, beneath the altar, her relics are enclosed in marble in a small copper casket. A white marble statue shows her in the habit that she and her Sisters of Charity wore in 1809.

Additional new relics just donated include St. Elizabeth Ann’s rosary, bonnet, wedding brooch and her daughter’s christening gown.

(CNS photos/courtesy Devine Partners)

In addition to the basilica, the site includes the Stone House (circa 1750), which was the first permanent home of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton and the site at which she founded the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph on July 31, 1809. In 1979, the house was moved from its original site to its present location.

The White House, built during the winter of 1809-1810 when Mother Seton needed an expanded home, is also at the site. She called it St. Joseph’s House.

Accessibility: Much of the campus appears to be accessible to the handicapped.

Hours: The Visitor Center and Museum are open Monday through Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday 12-5 p.m. The gift shop is closed, with plans to reopen by July 22.

Access: The shrine sites are open Tuesday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. On Mondays, only the basilica is open. Check the Web site for holiday hours.

(Grand) Kid friendly: Children are welcome at the shrine, but check the Visitor Information Guidelines on the Web site for dos and don’ts.

Info: Address — The National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, 333 South Seton Ave., Emmitsburg, MD 21727-9297
Phone — 301/447-6606
Web — www.setonshrine.org

— Sharon Boehlefeld compiled this story

Send Destinations ideas to seasonedobserver@rockforddiocese.org

Oldest Catholic Churches: St. Francis Xavier Church -- Leonardtown, Md.

(Observer screengrab/parish website)

Destination: This Maryland parish, which celebrated its 350th anniversary a few years ago, represents the arrival of the first English-speaking Catholics in the original colonies and the second oldest continuous parish in the U.S. 
Masses are offered Saturday at 4 p.m.; Sunday at 8 and 11 a.m.; Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m.
Photos: A photo of the parish in winter in 1962 (top) is credited to a priest on the parish website. An archaeological dig of the parish grounds (below)  took place in 2011.
Why to go: Catholicism in English-speaking America began in Maryland and most of the events of the intervening centuries have been witnessed by Newtowne, Md.  The St. Francis Xavier website explains Newtowne was the first settlement in the Maryland province after the original at St. Mary’s City. The church is within view of St. Clement’s Island where English colonists first landed in 1634. The Piscataway Indians and their forebearers occupied the site for many centuries before Europeans arrived.
The landowner, William Bretton, invited Jesuit priests to begin missionary activity in the area in 1640, but chapels and churches were not built so Catholics wouldn’t offend the English authorities.
Twice in the early years — in 1645 and 1655 — the Jesuit missionaries fled to avoid anti-Catholic activites, but returned each time.

(Observer screengrab/parish website)

When Charles II became king of England in 1660, the religious tolerance that had been the hallmark of the colony was re-established in Maryland.  In 1661 Bretton and his wife, Temperance, donated 1.5 acres of land so the Newtowne congregation could build a chapel and establish a cemetery. The chapel was built in 1662 and the cemetery is still in use.
In 2011, shortly before the parish celebrated its 350th anniversary, an archaeological dig of the grounds uncovered artifacts of both native American and English colonial settlement.
Accessibility: The website offers no information about accessiblity, but look for a virtual tour on the website to plan your trip.
(Grand) Kid friendly: All ages are welcome.
Info: Address — St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, 21370 Newtowne Neck Road, Leonardtown, MD  20650
Phone — 301-475-9885
Website — https://stfrancisxavierchurch.org/

— Sharon Boehlefeld compiled this story 
Send Destinations ideas to seasonedobserver@rockforddiocese.org

Medieval Art Exhibit -- Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, Md.

(CNS photo/courtesy Museum Boijmans Van
Beuningen, Rotterdam/Studio Tromp, Rotterdam)

Destination: A 500-year-old oil painting of “The Glorification of the Virgin” (left) now on display at the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore is inspired by John’s apocalyptic vision of a woman “clothed with the sun.” The painting is part of a new exhibit, “A Feast for the Senses: Art and Experience in Medieval Europe,” at the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore.
Masses are offered at several churches in the area. To find one that best fits your schedule, check https://masstimes.org.
Why to go: “The Glorification of the Virgin” by Geertgen tot Sint Jans of the Netherlands, is half of a diptych on loan from the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
A 15th century German censer features intersecting raised bands that mimic the complex vaulting systems used in late Gothic churches, and openwork areas reminiscent of the tracery found in the windows of these buildings.
They are just two of more than 100 works of stained glass, precious metals, ivories, tapestries, paintings, prints and illuminated manuscripts from 25 collections in the U.S. and around the world.
The free exhibition is at the Walters Art Museum through Jan. 8, 2017. It was organized by the Walters in partnership with the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota, Fla., where it will be on display Feb. 4 through April 20.
Because the museum is in three adjacent buildings, check the website (below) for parking and visitor information.
(Grand) Kid friendly: Museums are always kid friendly.
Info: Address —  The Walters Art Museum, 600 N. Charles St., Baltimore, MD 21201
Phone — 410-547-9000
Website — http://thewalters.org
— CNS; Sharon Boehlefeld contributed to this story.
Send Destinations ideas to seasonedobserver@rockforddiocese.org

St. Clement’s Island, Maryland

(Photo/stmarysmdtourism.blogspot.com)

Destination: Next time you plan a trip near the nation’s capitol, plan a side trip to St. Clement’s Island, Md. While it’s not officially a shrine, the island in the Potomac River is where Catholics from Britain first set foot on a New World spot where they could practice their faith freely.
Masses are not offered on the island, but the nearest church is probably Holy Angels Parish, 21340 Colton Point Road, in Avenue, Md. Drivers on Maryland
Rte. 242, headed toward St. Clement’s Island, will pass through Avenue. Masses at Holy Angels are Saturday at 4:30 p.m., Sunday at 6, 8 and 10:30 a.m., and Monday-Friday at 7:30 a.m.
Why to go:  In 1634, Jesuit Father Andrew White celebrated what is believed to be the first Mass to be said in the original 13 English-speaking colonies. The Mass was on St. Clement’s Island, now a Maryland state park, about 60 miles outside of Washington.
The site of the first Mass, marked by a large cross, can still be visited. Inside the St. Clement’s Island Museum, one can read the firsthand account written by Father White about his voyage and landing on the island with the first colonists of Maryland. He had accompanied Catholics on their voyage from England, where they had been persecuted.
Those Catholics, under the leadership of Leonard Calvert, had traveled in two ships, the Ark and the Dove, to establish a Catholic colony.
George Calvert, the first Lord Baltimore, and father of Leonard Calvert, had secured the charter for a colony in which people would be allowed religious freedom.
Access: The island is accessible only by boat, June through September, on a weekend schedule from the Potomac River Museum. The Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources does not recommend it for people with mobility problems, but people who are traveling with friends may be able to manage a visit.
If you don’t want to make the trek, the St. Clement’s Island Museum is on the mainland at the end of Maryland Rte. 242 onto Bayview Drive. The museum is open March 25 through Sept. 30, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays, and from Oct. 1 through March 24, Wednesday through Sunday, noon-4 p.m. There is a fee to visit.
(Grand) Kid friendly: As with any state park, children are always welcome.
Info: Address: St. Clements Island State Park, c/o Point Lookout State Park, 11175 Point Lookout Road, Scotland, MD 20687. Phone: 301/872-5688. Web: www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/southern/stclements.asp.
Address: St. Clements Island - Potomac River Museum, 38370 Point Breeze Road, Colton’s Point, MD 20626. Phone: 301/769-2222. Web: www.co.saint-marys.md.us/recreate/stclementsisland.asp

- Compiled by Sharon Boehlefeld
Send your Catholic destinations ideas to seasonedobserver@rockforddiocese.org

National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton - Emmitsburg, Maryland

(CNS file photo by Nancy Wiechec)

Destination: The National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is located in Emmitsburg, Md., a small town in the foothills of the Catoctin Mountain, part of the Blue Ridge Mountain chain.
Mass is offered Wednesday through Friday at 1:30 p.m.;  Saturday, 9 a.m.; Sunday, 9 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Why to go: Emmitsburg was the home of Mother Seton from 1809 until her death in 1821.
In the northern bay of the basilica, beneath the altar, are her relics, enclosed in marble in a small copper casket. A white marble statue shows her in the habit that she and her Sisters of Charity wore in 1809.
In addition to the basilica, the site includes the Stone House (circa 1750), which was the first permanent home of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, and the site at which she founded the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph’s on July 31, 1809. In 1979, the house was moved from its original site to its present location.
The White House, built during the winter of 1809-1810 when Mother Seton needed an expanded home, is also at the site. She called it St. Joseph’s House.
Special events: On Oct. 4, the Annual Pilgrimage for the Sea Services will be held at the shrine. A 3 p.m. Mass in the Basilica will honor those who serve in the Navy, Marines, Coast Guard, and Merchant Marine. The Naval Academy Catholic Midshipmen Choir from Annapolis will sing for the Mass.
Amenities: There is a gift shop that is open Tuesday through Sunday, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. There is also a snack room and an outdoor picnic area.
Access: The shrine sites are open Tuesday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. On Mondays, only the basilica is open. Check the Web site for holiday hours.
(Grand) Kid friendly: Children are welcome at the shrine, but check the Visitor Information Guidelines on the Web site for dos and don’ts.
Info: Address: The National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, 333 South Seton Ave., Emmitsburg, MD 21727-9297. Phone: 301/447-6606. Web: www.setonshrine.org

- Compiled by Sharon Boehlefeld
Send your Catholic destinations ideas to seasonedobserver@rockforddiocese.org