The 70th Holy Dormition Pilgrimage was held from August 9-11, 2023, at the Sisters Servants of Mary Immaculate property in Sloatsburg, NY. The theme for this year’s pilgrimage was “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (Lk. 1:46).
On Sunday, August 11, the final day of the pilgrimage, approximately three thousand people gathered for the 10:30 a.m. Hierarchical Divine Liturgy. The Liturgy was celebrated by Archbishop Borys Gudziak, Metropolitan of Philadelphia of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, who also delivered the homily.
At the beginning of the Divine Liturgy, Sister Eliane Ilnitski, SSMI, Provincial Superior, welcomed the pilgrims to the 70th Jubilee Pilgrimage. In her welcome, she invited the pilgrims to take a pause from worldly cares. She said:
“We are gathered here to entrust ourselves to our Blessed Mother, asking her to intercede for us before her Son, Jesus Christ. At this moment, I ask you to observe a few seconds of silence to think of those we carry in our hearts to this holy place and those we wish to entrust to our Blessed Mother, along with the intentions we wish to offer to Mary. Let us pray for those who have asked for our prayers and for those we have promised to pray for. Let us thank God for the blessings and graces we have received and ask our Blessed Mother to guide and protect us, extending her Blessed Mantle over us.”
Afterwards, Sister Superior invited Sister Theresa Slota, SSMI, to read a welcome letter from Sr. Sofija Lebedowicz, SSMI, Superior General in Rome, who had attended the pilgrimage two years ago. In the welcome letter, Sister Superior General stated:
“With great joy, we welcome you to the celebrations on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the pilgrimage to this ‘Marian Hill’ in Sloatsburg. This special place has been a witness to deep faith, unceasing prayer, and numerous miracles performed through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary for seventy years.”
The Hierarchical Divine Liturgy was concelebrated by Bishop Paul Chomnycky, OSBM, of Stamford; Bishop Bohdan Danylo of St. Josaphat Eparchy in Parma; special guest Archbishop-emeritus Ihor Isichenko of the Ukrainian Catholic Exarchate of Kharkiv; Very Rev. Kiril Angelov, Chancellor of the Eparchy; Very Rev. Dr. Bohdan Tymchyshyn, Rector of St. Basil Seminary; Rev. Ioan Lubiw, OSBM, Administrator of St. George’s Ukrainian Catholic Church in Manhattan; Rev. Teodosij Hren, OSBM, Vicar General of the Apostolic Exarchate for Ukrainians in Italy; and Deacons Andriy Pradyvus and Ihor Demydas. The responses to the Liturgy were led by the Choir of St. Michael Catholic Church in Yonkers, NY, under the direction of Mr. Yuriy Yanovski.
Reflecting on the Gospel reading, Archbishop Gudziak delivered his homily in Ukrainian. He emphasized the importance of listening with the heart to understand, stating:
“Maria listens not just with her ears to hear, but with her heart to understand. Today, dear sisters and brothers, our primary struggle is for our hearts. What is at the core of our being? What is in our soul? What emotions, thoughts, and feelings do we have? Because the Lord wants to place His Spirit in our hearts. So that we may have certainty, so that we do not doubt, so that our faith is victorious. So that peace and joy reign in our souls. We must come out of this pilgrimage with a calm heart. This is not easy… especially when we read about deaths, injuries, when our loved ones, acquaintances, suffer so much. We cannot ensure this peace for ourselves. No technology, no pharmacology, yoga, or physical exercises, or psychiatrists and psychologists can provide what only the Lord gives. What Jesus brought to the house of Martha and Mary. With His gracious presence, which is here and now in this liturgy, in the Word and the Eucharist. With His presence and His grace. Today the Lord wants to give you peace. Today God wants you to accept His love. Our Christ became human so that humans could become God. We have God-given dignity. And neither Putin, nor poverty, nor loneliness can erase this if we keep our hearts, if we listen to God’s proclamation.”
During his homily, the Archbishop also mentioned Bishop-emeritus Basil H. Losten, who, for the first time in a long time, was unable to attend the pilgrimage.
In addition, the faithful had the opportunity to partake in the Mystery of Reconciliation. More than 15 priests from the Eparchy of Stamford heard confessions between 8 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. The lines were long throughout this time, and more than 1800 pilgrims received Holy Communion. The Divine Liturgy concluded with the blessing of flowers and herbs, symbolizing the event when the Apostles found the tomb of the Mother of God filled with flowers and a sweet fragrance instead of her body.
In the afternoon, pilgrims attended the Lourdes Virtual Pilgrimage Experience offered by Our Lady of Lourdes Hospitality North American Volunteers. Those who attended and fulfilled all other requirements (making a Confession with a Catholic priest; receiving the Holy Eucharist; praying for the intentions of the Pope; and having a heart and mind free from all attachment to sin) received a Plenary Indulgence. A Plenary Indulgence “is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven” (CCC 1471).
The pilgrimage concluded with the Moleben Service to the Mother of God, celebrated by Rev. Teodosij Hren, OSBM.
On behalf of all the Sisters Servants of the province, Sister Eliane Ilnitski, SSMI, Provincial Superior, shared words of gratitude for the hard work of everyone involved in the pilgrimage. Here is her statement:
“First of all, we want to give thanks to God through the intercession of our Blessed Mother for the blessings we received this week, such as beautiful weather and the safe arrival and return of over 3,000 pilgrims. We, the Sisters Servants, wish to express our sincerest gratitude to our Metropolitan, His Excellency Borys Gudziak, for celebrating the Divine Liturgy and for his profound words during the homily. He reminded us that pilgrimage is a place of conversion and transformation, emphasizing God’s immense love, demonstrated by sending His only Son to die for us. While we may not remember everything we heard today, we must never forget how much God loves us, that Jesus gave His life for us, and that He overcame death, sin, war, and evil. We also extend our heartfelt thanks to Bishop Bohdan Danylo from the Eparchy of Parma for the special Divine Liturgy for the Sisters on Friday night and for his encouraging words. We are grateful to Bishop Ihor Isichenko from Kharkiv for his presence and prayers. A special thank you goes to our Eparch, Bishop Paul Chomnycky, OSBM, for his long-time support, help, and encouragement. We are also grateful to the Clergy for their participation, assistance, and cooperation as we prepared, hosted, and celebrated the Pilgrimage. To the Clergy, we give thanks for their participation in various ministries and celebrations, for the many hours spent hearing confessions and bringing pilgrims closer to God and to each other, and for concelebrating or helping to distribute Holy Communion. We extend our gratitude to Fr. Bohdan Tymchyshyn and the Seminarians for their help in setting up tables, chairs, kneelers, and many other items in preparation for Saturday and Sunday’s Pilgrimage. Our thanks also go to Fr. Taras Chaparin for his role as moderator, helping to organize, communicate, and encourage the priests. We are deeply grateful to our local and distant volunteers and employees who, with so much love, kindness, and self-giving, worked tirelessly before, during, and after the pilgrimage. Finally, I am grateful to all the pilgrims, who so numerously came to pray with us. While we, the Sisters, can advertise, prepare the place, and host this beautiful and much-needed pilgrimage, we cannot do it without your help.
May God, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother, bless each and every one of you with all the blessings and graces you need.”
