Journey of Healing

July 1, 2026

U.S. service members and veterans seek peace and spiritual transformation during the annual Warriors to Lourdes pilgrimage

By Cecilia Engbert

July 1, 2026

Warriors to Lourdes pilgrims and other military personnel gather for Mass at the Grotto beneath the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary. — Warriors to Lourdes pilgrims and other military personnel gather for Mass at the Grotto beneath the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary on May 24. (Photo by Tamino Petelinšek)

More than 180 wounded, ill or disabled United States service members and veterans participated in the annual Warriors to Lourdes pilgrimage to Lourdes, France, May 19-25, accompanied by family members, chaplains and a delegation of Knights of Columbus led by Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly.

The U.S. pilgrims joined more than 15,000 military personnel from approximately 40 countries who traveled to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes for the 66th annual International Military Pilgrimage.

Supreme Knight Kelly, a retired U.S. Navy captain, was joined by Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA — which co-sponsors Warriors to Lourdes with the Knights of Columbus — and Supreme Master Michael McCusker, a retired U.S. Army major.

“In a world that is marked by conflict and disunity and all sorts of dissensions, this pilgrimage offers hope,” said Supreme Knight Kelly, who was participating in Warriors to Lourdes for the first time. “Obviously, war is a reality in our world, but we are called to hope for peace. … Warriors to Lourdes gives us an opportunity to heal our hearts, to heal our bodies, to come to Lourdes, and really to have hope and to understand the resilience of the human person, which comes from God.”

Service members collect holy water from the spring discovered by St. Bernadette Soubirous. — Service members collect holy water from the spring discovered by St. Bernadette Soubirous in Lourdes, France. (Photo by Tamino Petelinšek)

This year’s pilgrimage theme — “Sentinels of Peace” — invited participants to reflect on their role in fostering peace in their communities and nations. Through prayer, counseling, fellowship and group activities, service members sought healing from the physical, psychological and moral wounds of war.

“This pilgrimage is a real attempt to try and offer healing for those wounds and also offer the opportunity to recognize that those wounds are present, and to try and begin a path of healing,” Archbishop Broglio said. “Because sometimes people may not even be aware of the suffering that is theirs.”

Throughout the week, pilgrims participated in daily Masses, the Stations of the Cross, Marian candlelight processions and immersion in the waters of Lourdes, where the Virgin Mary appeared to St. Bernadette Soubirous in 1858. Military ceremonies and athletic competitions also brought participants from many nations together in a spirit of fraternity.

“The remarkable thing about this pilgrimage is it brings military personnel from all over the world together, to share the camaraderie that we have known as soldiers in all branches of the military,” Supreme Master McCusker said.

“The important part of this experience in Lourdes,” he continued, “is that it has taught me that God needs us all to be patient in our healing, for reasons we may not always understand. But if we remain calm, quiet and listen for his voice and his guidance, he will reveal to us in time the healing and the plans he has for our lives.”

Among those accompanying the pilgrims was Dr. Jo Sornborger, a clinical psychologist specializing in trauma and executive director of UCLA Health Operation Mend, which serves post-9/11 veterans and service members injured in the line of duty. Sornborger said the pilgrimage helps counter one of the most common effects of trauma.

“Isolation is one of the hallmarks of trauma,” she said. “Here they are surrounded by comrades and families with similar experiences. This pilgrimage offers a safe place for them to tell their story and try to gain that hope that’s been lost.”

Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly knights retired Vice Adm. Andrew L. Lewis during an Exemplification of Patriotism outside the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary. — Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly knights retired Vice Adm. Andrew L. Lewis during an Exemplification of Patriotism outside the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary on May 24, formally welcoming him into the Fourth Degree. (Photo by Tamino Petelinšek)

The International Military Pilgrimage was established in 1946 to promote reconciliation and peace after World War II. Each year, Lourdes becomes a place of prayer, healing and friendship for military personnel from around the world.

“Primarily, our military exists as a line of defense to ensure our liberties, to ensure our way of life,” Archbishop Broglio said. “The men and women that I’m privileged to serve fundamentally want peace, because they know what war costs. Some of them have paid with their own bodies and their own psyches for the wages of war, and so I think that makes them all the more sensitive to the importance of peace. And a part of this whole pilgrimage has been a gathering to pray for peace in the world.”

While in Lourdes, Supreme Knight Kelly presented a St. Michael Pilgrim Icon to Archbishop Broglio to mark the 25th anniversary of his episcopal ordination and in gratitude for his service to the Knights. The icon is one of 300 images blessed by Pope Francis that are being distributed to Knights of Columbus councils at military bases around the world.

“The Knights of Columbus has made supporting military veterans such an important part of our mission, precisely because we are an organization that is given to sacrificing for others,” said Supreme Knight Kelly. “That’s really the heart of the Knights — to sacrifice for those who need our help.”

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CECILIA ENGBERT is a content producer for the Knights of Columbus communications department.

Retired U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Buster Miscusi and his wife and daughter participate in Warriors to Lourdes in May — (Photo by Spirit Juice Studios)

‘A Counterpoint to Combat Deployment’

Retired U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Buster Miscusi served in Afghanistan before being medically retired in 2018 following multiple unfavorable medical diagnoses. A member of Msgr. David M. Stotenbur Council 7237 in DeWitt, Michigan, Miscusi first participated in Warriors to Lourdes in 2017 and now serves as a moral injury awareness coordinator during the pilgrimage.

I first came to Lourdes in 2017 as a pilgrim. Later, I attended a moral injury presentation and told the coordinator that I wanted to help translate the theoretical language into something an infantry Marine who barely graduated high school could understand.

Moral injury is an event that violates a person’s deeply held beliefs. We reflect on that experience, and we can’t make sense out of it. We don’t know how to resolve it. At times, we can end up believing that either we, others or God are no longer good, and that shifts our ability to really feel goodness in the present moment.

It’s important to talk about moral injury because the stakes are high. Sometimes it looks like isolation or addiction. Ultimately, the highest risk is suicide.

What the Knights are doing here is really unique. The power of this pilgrimage is that it offers a complete counterpoint to a combat deployment. In a combat deployment, you’re going to a country with people you just met, to a place where you don’t speak the language, and your mission is violence. Here, we travel to a place we’ve never been with people we just met where we don’t speak the language, but the mission is peace, prayer, love and connection.

My hope for this year’s pilgrims is that they find hope in each other, in Our Lady and in the water; that they find the courage to become vulnerable with each other and ask for the help they need.

Retired U.S. Army Sgt. Eduardo Bonilla at Lourdes, France. — (Photo by Spirit Juice Studios)

‘I Felt This Peace Inside’

Retired U.S. Army Sgt. Eduardo Bonilla is a 9/11 survivor and served in the military for 22 years. A former deputy grand knight of Father John G. Siegfried Council 821 in King’s Park, N.Y., he is currently a member of Harry “Hap” J. Hansen Council 12281 in Hampstead, N.C.

For a few years, Msgr. Michael Butler encouraged me to apply, but I was reluctant. I felt that other wounded warriors or veterans were more appropriate than me. I don’t have any visual scars, but I do have internal scars, and I always felt this pilgrimage was for someone who had gone through a lot more than I had.

My wounds mainly come from 9/11. My office was destroyed, but I was able to get out; others perished or were injured, but I was OK. I’ve had PTSD ever since, and it carried over into anxiety and health issues. For years, I kept all those feelings and that pain inside.

But once I got here, the spiritual side just took over. The baths — my goodness — it’s hard to explain. My feet got in and it was a little cold, but then I felt this peace inside of me.

The Stations of the Cross were another powerful experience. For me, it wasn’t until we got to the 12th station that it really hit me. It was a very emotional moment.

What I would like to take home is the fact that I was able to express my feelings here. Someone told me, “If there’s anything special you’re carrying, get a rock and leave it here.” I grabbed a rock and threw it, and it hit another rock and came back. I picked it up and said, “Oh no, you’re staying here,” and threw it again.

Being able to share my story and hear the stories of others was humbling. I’m very grateful to the Knights of Columbus for having this program available because it’s so special and so rewarding.