By
Mr. Nicholas Wansbutter
My
wife Monika and I attended a pilgrimage in central Canada over the
Labor Day weekend (September 3rd, 2005). This was the first
traditional pilgrimage that either of us had been on, having “tradverted”
less than two years ago, and we both found it to be of immense spiritual
benefit. Days after our return, we are still thinking about the three
days we spent walking from Welwyn to Kaposvar, in Saskatchewan, savoring
the event, and realizing all its spiritual implications.
The
pilgrimage started, perhaps providentially, on the Feast of St. Pius
X, which also happened to be the first Saturday of the month. It began
at 7:00 a.m. with a high mass at Our Lady of Fatima Chapel in Welwyn
and a hearty breakfast downstairs where Monika and I had the pleasure
of meeting several new people that had come for the pilgrimage from
as far as Sudbury, Ontario and Rocky Mountain House, Alberta.
Before
the pilgrimage began, the Altar Scouts of Christ the King had a brief
meeting near the chapel flag pole for an investiture ceremony. The
boys who had reached the age of 13 (I believe) were promoted from
cub to scout.
By
around 10:00 a.m. (a little behind schedule) the pilgrimage was ready
to depart. With the pilgrims gathered around the chapel steps, some
hymns were sung and Fr. Rusak imparted a special blessing of the pilgrims.
We then separated into two groups, the “little” pilgrimage for all
those under 13, and the “big” pilgrimage for everyone else.
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The ‘Big’ Pilgrimage
begins to walk |
The
“big” pilgrimage departs with the cross at the lead. In the left or
men’s column is led by the Altar Scouts and the right or women’s column
is led by the Girl Guides. The march started out at a moderate pace,
with the pilgrims alternating between singing hymns and decades of
the Rosary (in alternating English, French, and Latin). Water stops
were scheduled every hour, although the pilgrimage halted more often
than that for spiritual readings from Fr. Rusak. There was also confession
available as we went.
By
lunch we hadn’t made it as far as planned, so in the afternoon Father
would read to us on the march and the pace was picked up considerably,
bringing back memories of ‘ruck’ marches during my army days. However,
the pace was much more enjoyable without a 100 pound rucksack, rifle,
and 250 rounds of ammunition! All told, we covered 30.9 km / 19.3
miles by 5:00 p.m. on the first day, we then we retired in Rocanville
to the acreage residence of one of the local families.
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When
a Cub becomes a Scout
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I
must say that already on this first day, I was impressed by the perseverance
of all the pilgrims as they offered their suffering up to God and
continued on despite the long distance, the pace and the heat (about
85 Fahrenheit). I was especially impressed by the Girl Guides of Mary
Immaculate, a band of young women as tough as nails. They never left
their position at the front of their column and never even limped
although when we broke for the evening I observed some hideous blisters
on their feet. It is amazing that such devout Catholic women of character
and grace can still be found in this age!
A
wonderful meal was served by all the volunteers who, while they didn’t
walk the pilgrimage, made the event possible with all their hard work.
We had an opportunity to visit with many excellent and admirable traditionalist
Catholics while the teenagers played a game of football (I remember
being young enough to have that sort of energy, once). After a long
day, Monika and I hit the sack by about 9:00 p.m. in order to rest
up for the next day.
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Overlooking
the Qu'appelle Valley
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The
next morning began dark and early with a 6:30 a.m. Sunday High Mass
celebrated in a converted barn on the host family’s property. While
a humble setting where the faithful knelt on bare cement for much
of the Mass, it was a far more admirable place for the sacrifice than
any of the Novus Ordo mega churches (that cost millions to build)
in my diocese.
For
day two’s march we descended into the gorgeous Qu’appelle Valley.
It provided a lush mountainous backdrop to the day’s travel; not something
that I expected to see in Saskatchewan which is renowned for being
as flat as paper. One time we even had to ford “Scissors Creek”.
On this second day, I had the honor of doing the spiritual readings
as Father’s voice was failing him. My wife walked with the children’s
pilgrimage on the second day as they needed someone to take over for
the Girl Guide leader who would have to work on Monday.
The
second day was somewhat more difficult than the first, I’ll confess,
as we kept up the strong pace throughout. As such, I would say that
I found it even more spiritually beneficial than the first day and
I was further impressed by my companions, most of whom were under
the age of 21 (the Scouts and Guides at least; there were also some
older pilgrims over sixty who were equally impressive). At one point
in the day, we sung the hymn “Faith of Our Fathers” and I was almost
overwhelmed by emotion. That song really cut me to the quick, sung
by the young, devout men and women. They were giving their all for
Christ and His Church, praying unceasingly through the ordeals of
a long road, practitioners of the ancient faith. Perhaps what mostly
struck me, was that here were true Catholics, yet they (and we) are
shunned by the hierarchy of the Church and many of Her members.
While
the adults only stopped every hour for a drink, the children took
a pace more fitting to their stamina, and stopped frequently for simple
yet meaningful stories that taught them lessons about how to live
and of the Faith. Of the children I should mention that I have never
encountered such a great group of kids. They were energetic and full
of joy, but also extremely well behaved and dedicated to the Faith
that their parents have taught them. Those I saw on this pilgrimage
will definitely be a good crop of adults!
The
second day’s marching concluded around 5:00 p.m., and we covered 28.4
km / 17.8 miles. As there was no room for camping, vehicles were waiting
for us, and we were shuttled back to Rocanville, where another wonderful
dinner and great conversations were enjoyed. This evening, Fr. Rusak
took part in the boys’ football game for a little while, as he had
promised them that he would. I don’t know how he did it, frankly,
as he had walked every mile with us despite not being of optimal health.
The
third day (Monday; the socialistic holiday “Labor Day”), the volunteers
drove us back to our last stop of the day before, and we continued
on foot towards Kaposvar. There were only 10.3 km / 6.4 miles to go,
but that day was a gloomy one with the constant threat of rain lurking
above. However, the children’s prayers against rain (at my wife’s
insistence) kept precipitation at bay they entire day. By the time
we reached the shrine, we had covered a total of 69.6 km / 43.5 miles.
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The children march in order |
We arrived at Our Lady of the Assumption ,
the target of our pilgrimage, at about 11:00 am. We proceeded immediately
to the grotto dedicated to Our Lady. After some hymns to Our Lady
and consecrating ourselves to her Immaculate Heart, we processed as
one group back to the church.
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Lady of the Assumption |
As
Father prepared for mass, we took our places in the pews with all
the women on the right side and men on the left. A number of hymns
to Our Lady were sung and what glorious hymns! The acoustics in this
beautiful old church were astounding and, moreover, I felt that I
could hear the faith and devotion of the singers in the music. Somehow,
it touched me more deeply than any of the professional choirs I’ve
heard (admittedly, all recorded).
As
Father began to celebrate the High Mass of the Assumption of the Blessed
Virgin Mary, bright light began to stream through the stained-glass
windows that flank the sanctuary.
It
was a beautiful and worthy culmination of the pilgrimage. The shrine
curators were, as in previous years, touched by the Traditional Mass
which they only ever see when our pilgrimage visits each Labor Day
Weekend. Everything went without a hitch, and I am happy to report
that the shrine staff did everything they could to make our time at
the shrine perfect. The rector of the shrine, a Novus Ordo priest
known for his dislike of the Traditional Mass in general and the S.S.P.X
in particular, never made an appearance, but nor did he interfere
with us in any way. A much more edifying reception than that received
by the Society pilgrims to Fatima, to be sure, and I applaud and thank
everyone involved for their impeccable treatment of our pilgrims.
Alas all good things come to an end. At about 2:30 p.m. everyone dispersed
to go their separate ways back home. It was interesting to see that
it took us nearly 45 minutes to get back to our Welwyn, traveling
at roughly 100 km/h. Back at our hosts’ home, we had a celebratory
glass of wine and were on our way back to Winnipeg. All in all, this
pilgrimage was a powerful and spiritual experience for me and I am
certain that many graces have resulted from it both for me and for
others. I pray that these graces assist any in need. A traditional
pilgrimage is truly a fantastic experience that I would recommend
to anyone for the expiation of sins, for graces, and for spiritual
growth. I don’t think it would be an exaggeration to say that this
was perhaps the most spiritually significant event of my life thus
far (save, perhaps, my marriage, but in a different way).
