By Teresa (Stein) Edwards
(50 for 50 series) My mom, Mrs. Regina Stein, was very excited to be going to Rome for Mother Seton’s canonization in September of 1975. She went with a group from Baltimore, and there were quite a few on the trip from our parish of Blessed Sacrament on Old York Road. I was a Sophomore at Seton High that year, and I’m sure that my brothers and sisters who were still living at home, have memories of hearing the records that Mom played over and over with useful phrases in Italian that she was memorizing.
On September 8, 1975 Mom wrote in her travel diary that getting her passport, her lightweight suitcase, and getting her traveler’s checks and flight bag made her particularly aware that she was really going to Rome, but the highpoint of her preparatory highlights for the trip was the Mass for Pilgrims that was offered on the previous Thursday, September 4th at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen on Charles Street. She had had a full day already, “school beforehand and parish council in the evening,” but she “made stew for the family, ate a quick snack at 4:30 and left at 4:45 for the 5:30 Mass.” She took a photo of the stained-glass window that was dedicated to Mother Seton. The Cardinal and the Archbishop gave a special blessing to the pilgrims after Mass, and Mom said that made her feel ready to go.
At the airport on the day of departure, Mom saw many people who she knew, including Fr. Brett. He told her of hopes and plans for a large statue of Mother Seton on Paca Street to be paid partly by donations from parish Sodalities.
Mom has written pages and pages in her journal, recording many details of the trip, including places she visited (the Colosseum, Forum, St. Mary Major, Pompeii, and Ostia Antica). She wrote about delightful details of food that she ate, tour guides who helped, and modes of transportation. She described the times and places that she attended Mass, often as early as 7:00 AM as on Thursday September 11 at St. Mary Major.
Mom’s travel companion was her dear friend Mrs. Helen Oneill. On some days they went sightseeing with the tour group. but more often Mom and Mrs. O’Neill made their own plans, taking care of the navigation details and arrangements for their food. I remember Mom talking about how they sustained themselves with wine, fruit, bread, and cheese that they carried with them in a string bag: very European!
Mom and Mrs. O’Neill’s independent spirit was very evident on the day that they attended the Papal audience, Wednesday September 17. Mom and Mrs. O’Neill left the group and traveled through the crowd to get close to the Pope. They did not have seats and climbed over a barrier to see the Pope very close up. Mom forgot to snap the camera until the Pope had turned away from them, but it was a very special memory for Mom.
Surprisingly, Mom wrote very little about the details of the actual canonization. I was very surprised as I prepared for this write-up that the page in Mom’s journal on that day is half blank. She records that “Our guides got us through the mob to our seats. Mine was broken, but the lady just in back had a folding stool which she loaned me.” Perhaps the impression left on my Mom from that day was beyond words. My sister Veronica made a wonderful observation when I told her recently about it on the phone. “How nice that her experience began with an act of kindness from another congregant.”
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, pray for us!
50 for 50 is a series of stories, quotes, clips, photos, and/or devotional statements from ordinary people to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the canonization of Elizabeth Ann Seton as the first native-born American saint.