Traditional prayers for unity and blessing find a new home in a time of trauma

On a sunny July 4 morning when the parades and festivals that traditionally mark the holiday had been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, a small group of men and women gathered at the Evergreen Drive-in on the outskirts of Mt. Pleasant.

Men such as Eric Harris, 62, of East Huntingdon and Ted Czekal, 83, of Mt. Pleasant, said now more than ever, as tensions roil a nation wracked by health and economic peril, it was important to continue the tradition the local chapter of the Knights of Columbus started years ago: They gather to pray the Patriotic Rosary on Memorial Day, July 4 and Labor Day.

Because July 4 fell on a Saturday, their observance of the Patriotic Rosary, an hourlong liturgy, conflicted with Mass schedules at St. Pius and Visitation Church, the Knights had to find an alternative for their gathering.

The three-screen drive-in, located on the edge of town, where Mt. Pleasant begins to give way to a scattering of homes and farm fields, filled the bill.

Drive-in owner Joe Warren said the event and the recent flurry of religious services at drive-ins while churches were closed because of the pandemic is a throwback to a time long ago when many drive-ins across the country hosted religious services.

“I have old film of services way back when,” Warren said as vehicles began to roll into the drive-in where a large American flag festooned the gate.

Harris, who lives nearby and worked the drive-in’s projection booth as a young man, was at home with the sound system that beamed the event into cars on 105.5 FM.

“Now’s the time we have to pray,” he said, as he checked the sound system.

The Patriotic Rosary, penned nearly three decades ago, begins with a “Prayer to Heal Our Land.”

Hail Marys, interspersed with patriotic songs, calls for blessings on all 50 states — each called out by name. Along the way, Harris led the small group in prayers for Congress, the Supreme Court, the presidency and finally, “one last Hail Mary for the place that needs it most, Washington, D.C.”

No politics, just prayers.

Here’s betting the founders would approve.