Florida Catholic | Communion from Pope Benedict XVI

Communion from Pope Benedict XVI

A Sebring couple celebrates their 50th anniversary at the papal Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City by receiving Communion from the Holy Father.

BOB REDDY | FLORIDA CATHOLIC VENICE BUREAU EDITOR

Published: 05.09.08

VENICE | For 50 years, James and Mary Rose McGarry have been inseparable throughout the good and bad times in their marriage.

That fact almost made the couple miss out on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to receive holy Communion from Pope Benedict XVI during a Mass for priests, deacons and religious at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York April 19.

Deacon McGarry of St. Catherine Parish in Sebring had a ticket to the Mass, but nothing was available for his wife. Unbeknownst to them, friends and family worked out a ticket so Mary Rose could attend as well.

The reason? The couple was celebrating their golden wedding anniversary and Mary Rose’s 72nd birthday that day.

“It was out of this world,” Mary Rose said. “We were totally unaware what was going to take place at the cathedral,” where Deacon McGarry had been ordained as a deacon for the Archdiocese of New York in 1999.

Deacon McGarry suspected something was happening when Mary Rose received a ticket to the Mass, which was supposed to be exclusively for priests, deacons and religious from across the country.

Initially seated separately, he was pulled out of his seat by the Secret Service, who said he was in the wrong place. He was brought to a spot next to his wife in the second row in front of the altar. Wearing a pink sweater, Mary Rose was the only nonreligious in the front of the church.

When Pope Benedict entered the cathedral, the couple was so close to him that Deacon McGarry said he could have reached out and touched him.

During Communion, the Secret Service again intervened and asked if they were a couple. When they responded that they were, the McGarrys were held back from receiving Communion.

“They held us back and let everyone else go,” he said. “We again had no idea what was going on. Then we were told that we were going to receive holy Communion from the pope as a couple.”

At the end of the procession, the couple made their way up the steps of the sanctuary and approached the pope.

“As we received Communion, Pope Benedict said, ‘Congratulations.’ He had the most beautiful smile. My heart just melted,” Deacon McGarry said.

When the couple returned to the pew, all of the nuns – who had known what was going to happen – were crying.

Deacon McGarry summed up his feelings on the day, saying: “I’ve had these two sacraments, holy orders and marriage, in my life. When I received the sacrament of holy orders from Cardinal John O’Connor in that same cathedral, it was an uplifting feeling. I had the same feeling when I received holy Communion from the Holy Father. It was at the same hour 50 years ago on the same day as our marriage. Just beautiful.”

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