by Carol Glatz

LOURDES, France (CNS) – About 60 retired or active duty U.S. military personnel packed their uniforms, flags, wheelchairs, canes and the inevitable emotional baggage of their daily struggles to take part in a pilgrimage to Lourdes.

While many of these men and women, who had been injured in some way in the line of duty, went to seek peace and healing from this sacred place, some said they also found enormous and unexpected blessings from the people they encountered on their journey.

The soldiers, together with family members or caregivers, took part in a “Warriors to Lourdes” pilgrimage, sponsored by the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services and the Knights of Columbus. The Knights covered the costs for the wounded personnel for the weeklong encounter of prayer, healing and friendship. For many of them, the May 13-19 visit to Lourdes – where Mary appeared to St. Bernadette Soubirous in 1858 – was their first pilgrimage ever.

Kirsten Sippel-Klug, a physical therapist at the U.S. Army Health Clinic in Stuttgart, Germany, went on the pilgrimage as a volunteer to serve soldiers needing assistance. At first her idea was just to help others on their spiritual journey; she did not think much about her own.

She said she saw going to Lourdes as a service, as a way to honor her very Catholic grandmother and as a way to get a “jumpstart back to an active religious faith” after fighting stage 3 breast cancer. She said the language and cultural barriers at her local German parish have kept her from truly feeling a part of the faith community.

The pilgrimage “feels like a homecoming,” she said, because she has been able to attend Mass in English, and she went to confession for the first time in 30 years. “The first thing the priest said to me was ‘Welcome back,’ which was a super-smart first line.”

“Right now the door is open, I’ve stepped in and I have a lot of questions” about the Church’s teachings and how they stand up to her more science-oriented mindset.

Beautiful Way Back to Church

“I’m your average lapsed Catholic and I’m so glad I did it. It’s a beautiful way back into the church,” she said. “I want to come back next year and keep coming back to serve” and reflect.

U.S. Army Maj. Derrick Mitchell said long deployments overseas mean spiritual life is “just you and God;” going to church and Scripture studies and discussions are nearly impossible.

Since he returned stateside, he’s been seeking greater closeness to God with his church, and he saw the pilgrimage as an opportunity for “spiritual uplifting and renewal.”

As a member of an African Methodist Episcopal church near Fort Bragg, N.C., Mitchell said he was learning about the significance of lighting candles, the Eucharist and the veneration of Our Lady in Catholicism.

Though the rituals were unfamiliar and new, “the story behind it is the same,” he said. “It’s all about love and taking care of your brother.”

“In the military, we definitely believe in covering the other guy’s back, looking out for him, just like Jesus believed that the stronger should look out for the weaker.”

The warriors pilgrimage “has taught us about love and to [find] the good in the other no matter where you are” in life and to which culture you belong. “We all have that commonality.”

Army Capt. Pamela Duggins, who served in Iraq, had seen the importance of a pilgrimage to Mecca for Muslims during her time in the Middle East. She said when a friend gave her a brochure about the “Warriors to Lourdes” event and she saw a religious pilgrimage “exists for Christians, I was like, ‘Oh my God, seriously? I want to experience that.’”

“I wanted to renew my faith, and my faith is pretty strong, but sometimes you want to be around people who are seeking the same thing,” said the officer, who retired to Arizona on medical disability.

Something Completely Different

She said she had come with a clear idea of what she wanted from God, but instead she “got something completely different.”

“And what’s so amazing is it turns out that ends up being exactly what I needed and you don’t realize it at first because we’re so busy thinking, ‘No, this is what I want.’”

After talking to the many men and women on the trip who were going through even bigger challenges, “I wondered, ‘Why was I complaining?’” Sharing stories and experiences, “you realize people have gone through the same thing and gotten through it.”

Facing a string of difficulties, Duggins credits her Christian faith with keeping her alive and getting her through each day, “one day at a time.”