Priest looks to revitalize Auriesville shrine's appeal

Outreach is the order of the day lately at the National Shrine of the North American Martyrs in Auriesville.

Rev. Peter Murray, SJ, joined the team running the shrine nearly two years ago and became acting director in November. Since then, he's focused most of his efforts on drawing pilgrims to the shrine.

Getting out to parishes has been a big part of his work. Father Murray noted that when he took over, his provincial urged him to do more outreach. Father Murray has now spent time at Immaculate Conception parish in Glenville, Sacred Heart and St. Mary of Mt. Carmel in Gloversville, Blessed Sacrament and Holy Cross in Albany, and St. Francis de Sales in Loudonville.

Networking

At the latter, he found a friend in Rev. David Noone, pastor, who grew up in the Auriesville area. Two groups of parishioners from St. Francis have now made mini-retreats at the shrine as a result.

That's the kind of networking Father Murray hopes will boost the number of visitors to the 119-year-old shrine, which sits on 600 acres of land where Ss. Isaac Jogues, Rene Goupil and John Lalande were martyred, and where Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha was born.

The director affirmed that there are three groups of Catholics in the Albany Diocese: those who know and love the shrine and visit often; those who are remember it because they visited there as children; and those who aren't familiar with it at all.

"I'm working on the second group a lot," he said, chuckling. "I get a lot of people who [visit and] say, `I haven't been here in 40 years.' If enough people do that, there's no crowd, because none of them have been here in 40 years."

Offerings

Last year, Father Murray said, the shrine offered spiritual courses to visitors -- for instance, a six-session course on the psalms.

This year, he hopes to sponsor two short courses, one in May and another later in the summer; possible topics include the Gospel of Luke and themes in Scripture. Missionaries like Albany native Rev. Thomas Shea, CSC, who has spent 36 years in Peru, will also give talks.

Retreat opportunities are still available. Though the shrine's retreat house closed in 1998 and that part of the property is up for sale, the director said day-long retreats are always welcome. What lies ahead

"We're open to ideas," the priest added, noting that one caller had just received permission to bring a group of retreatants from another area to spend time at the shrine.

Plans are underway for more improvements in the coming year or two, as well. The shrine's Pieta statue, made in Germany, was just restored and a "Mary garden" with a reflecting pool is planned. In addition, the website, www.martyrshrine.org, is being updated through the pro-bono efforts of Rich Kosiba or Broadalbin.

On Sept. 11, famed liturgical musician John Michael Talbot will give a concert at the Martyrs' Shrine, billed as "an evening of prayer and music." Tickets go on sale soon for the event, which is expected to bring 1,200 to 1,300 visitors to the shrine.

Anniversary

Father Murray's biggest plans won't come to fruition until 2005: Next year, the shrine will mark its 120th anniversary with a booklet on its history and a variety of events.

The director said the lay board will soon begin "working like mad" on the celebration.

"I feel upbeat," he told The Evangelist. "We need to do something so we can go on into the future."

(For information on the Martyrs' Shrine or to offer suggestions on programs and planning, contact Father Murray at [email protected] or call 853-3033.)

(2/19/04) [[In-content Ad]]