RIDGELY, Md. — About 125 members and friends of Saint Benedict/St. Elizabeth Parish in Ridgely and Denton, Md., turned out for a Solemn 40 Hours retreat in early October, according to Father Christopher Coffiey, parish pastor.
The three-day event began on the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. Thursday evening, Oct. 7, and concluded with a free dinner on Saturday, Oct. 9, hosted by the Knights of Columbus and Ladies Sodality. Father Coffiey, who was appointed Nov. 1 and will be installed as parish pastor Dec. 18 by Bishop Koenig, called the dinner “first class.”
Guest homilist Father Seán Loomis spoke on the “Virtues of the Eucharist.” A convert to the faith as an adult, he currently serves as the chaplain to the Deaf Apostolate and parochial vicar of Annunciation Blessed Virgin Mary parish in Havertown, Pa.
Father Loomis urged parishioners and guests to follow the Blessed Mother’s example of humility.
“God has chosen you to be who you are in all your strengths, and with all your weaknesses and vulnerabilities, so that you could serve him and by serving him to magnify his name, and by doing so, to not only receive blessings but to be blessings in him,” Father Loomis said. “In the Eucharist, accept the truth of yourself, taste the freedom of Christ — crowned as he is with humility — and never let that go.”
In addition to Father Loomis’s homilies, the three days included exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, recitation of the Rosary, penance, a communal sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, the Saturday Vigil Mass and an outdoor Eucharistic procession around St. Benedict Church.
All three services can be viewed on the parish’s YouTube channel, BE Parish.
