On June 29, a picnic brought together Southern Maryland members and friends of the National Association of Pastoral Musicians’ D.C. Chapter at St. Mary Newport Church in Charlotte Hall.
In celebration of the church’s 350 years as a parish, association board member and church member Mary McCullough led attendees in a morning prayer service which was followed by a tour of the church buildings and grounds including the Shrine of St. John Vianney, and the historic graveyard.
St. Mary Newport was established in 1674 by two Francisican priests; it was the only Franciscan parish in the 13 colonies at the time. The parish passed to the Jesuits in 1698 and was turned over to the archdiocese in 1881.
The old brick church dates to the 1790s, as headstones in the cemetery date from this time. The new, larger church was built in 1906.
French priest St. John Vianney (1786-1859) became the greatest parish priest in the history of the Catholic Church, attracting thousands of people from all over Europe to meet him. He was canonized in 1925 and was named a universal patron of parish priests in 1929. In 1931, the Rev. William Baldus dedicated the Shrine at St. Mary Newport, having obtained a first-class relic (a piece of bone from the saint) and a statue.
Miracles have been attributed to this saint from those who have prayed before the relic. This is the only Shrine of St. John Vianney in the U.S. The church hopes to make the shrine a place for national pilgrimage, and for it to be a place of intercession for priests.
The church also contains a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a Saint Francis of Assisi statue and a statue of Saint Philomena.
Buried at St. Mary’s graveyard are: William Merrick, the only senator from Charles County who cast the deciding vote to admit Texas to the Union; Father William Baldus; Thomas A. Jones, who played a sinister role in the escape of John Wilkes Booth; members of the Union’s 19th Colored Infantry; and several veterans of the army of the Confederacy.
Historical notes: Thomas Jones, b. Port Tobacco 1820; d. Baltimore City 1895, was the ranking Confederate spy in Maryland by the end of the Civil War. He served as an agent for the Confederate mail service and was imprisoned several times by the Union authorities. After Lincoln’s assassination, he helped Booth and his accomplice David Herold cross over the Potomac River to Virginia; he provided supplies to Booth and Herold as they hid in the Pine Thicket near Bel Alton.
Jones transported them from the thicket to the boat he’d secured for them — having kept it hidden until the opportune time to cross. After the war, Jones settled in La Plata and became a Justice of the Peace. He did not speak about his role in Booth’s escape; in 1893 he wrote a book revealing his part in the assassination (it was not a best-seller). He was never prosecuted for aiding Booth.
The Loyola-on-the-Potomac Retreat House acts as steward of his home of Huckleberry in Charles County.
(Historical notes above from Google and from Church of St. Mary Newport brochures.)
For more information on the Church of St. Mary Newport, go to stmarychurchnewport.org.
For more information on the National Association of Pastoral Musicians, go to npm.org.
Important dates
Happy July Fourth birthdays to St. Mary’s countians Barbara Brstilo, Nancy Harwood and Kevin Cioppa;
July 6 is International Kissing Day;
Happy 84th birthday to British rock drummer and singer Ringo Starr on July 7;
Happy 83rd birthday to American folk singer and songwriter Arlo Guthrie (son of Woody Guthrie) on July 10.
Recipe of the week
Crab Imperial
By Ellynne Brice Davis
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat, picked over for shells
1 egg, beaten
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon mustard
½ cup green pepper, finely chopped
½ cup yellow or white onion, finely chopped
2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning
½ teaspoon pepper
1 plum tomato, chopped
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
Directions: Mix together the egg, lemon juice, mustard, green pepper, onion, and seasonings. Carefully fold in the crabmeat. Spoon crab into a large pie plate, gently patting down the mixture; top with chopped tomato. Bake 30 minutes at 325 degrees.
Remove pie plate from oven, top casserole with the shredded cheese and return the dish to the oven for 5 minutes more or until the cheese is hot and bubbly. To serve: cut the crab imperial into wedges to serve with lemon slices on the side.
Please continue to send your news items and recipes to LynnieBDavis@gmail.com. Thank you.
