On pilgrimage during their annual Desert Formation Experience, seminarians blessed by instant-classic encounter with Pope Leo
DETROIT — On June 4, a photo of Pope Leo XIV signing a baseball during his Wednesday morning audience in Rome started to go viral. The image of the Holy Father using a Sharpie marker to sign the iconic symbol of American sports appeared on Vatican News sites, The Pillar, and personal social media accounts.
While the photo caught people’s attention, the story behind it left six seminarians from Detroit’s Sacred Heart Major Seminary feeling stunned by God’s providence and bonded to their Holy Father.
The six men, along with two of their Sacred Heart professors, embarked on a monthlong pilgrimage to Portugal, France, Spain and Italy in May. The pilgrimage, called the Desert Formation Experience, is a long-standing tradition at the seminary at the Configuration II stage of formation.
On May 8, their first full day in Fatima, the bells in the square began to toll, and the group learned that a new pope had been elected, Pope Leo XIV.
“We knew we’d probably be on our pilgrimage when the pope was elected, but we didn’t expect it to be that soon,” said Logan Scott, a seminarian with the Diocese of Kalamazoo. “And it was even more shocking that he’s American.”
The text from home, then the email
That day, Scott received a text from his aunt, Annette, back in Michigan telling him that her late husband, Scott’s uncle Pat, had a cousin, Tom Maroney, who went to K-12 Catholic school and college seminary with Pope Leo. Though he had discerned out of seminary, Maroney had kept in touch with his friend who was now pope.
Feeling bold, Scott asked his aunt whether she could reach out to Maroney and ask him to contact Pope Leo, letting him know they’d be in Rome at his Wednesday audience in a couple weeks. To Scott’s surprise and delight, he received word that Maroney had emailed the pope, and that the pontiff had replied.
“Honestly, I wasn’t expecting anything to come from it, but then I found out Pope Leo responded and said he would be looking for us,” Scott said.
As their pilgrimage continued and their time in Rome drew near, Charles Tackman, a seminarian from the Diocese of Marquette, wondered how they would get Pope Leo’s attention in the massive crowd at the Wednesday audience.
“I knew we couldn’t just yell, ‘We’re the people from the email!’” Tackman said. ”We had to have a way to get his attention and let him know we’re connected to that message from (Maroney).”
He had noticed people holding fabric signs at the papal Mass two days earlier.
During a free afternoon the day before the papal audience, Tackman prayed a holy hour and then ran a few errands: a haircut, a trip to a fabric store, and a final stop for art supplies.
“I praise God for Google Translate because I speak no Italian whatsoever,” Tackman said. “When I went to the fabric store, I typed in: ‘We are going to see the pope tomorrow. I need cheap white fabric for a banner.’”
The fabric shopkeeper found just the right fabric for Tackman.
At dinner that night, the seminarians met up with men from their own dioceses who are studying in Rome at the Pontifical North American College (NAC). They brainstormed what the banner should read to get Pope Leo’s attention. Brevity and clarity would be the key.
The baseball
In the meantime, a Sacred Heart pilgrim from the Diocese of Lansing, Jonathan Galvas, suggested getting a baseball for Pope Leo to sign, an idea suggested by his cousin, Alicia.
One of their dining companions from the NAC, Deacon Jacob Derry from the Diocese of Lansing, found one among the recreation equipment at the college, and conveniently, Galvas had put a Sharpie marker in his backpack when packing for the trip.
After dinner, Tackman and Galvas got to work making the sign, tracing the letters, "Tom Maroney says hi!" They hoped the name would get the pope’s attention.
Tackman worked on the banner on the roof of the NAC, which overlooks St. Peter’s Basilica. He painted the letters, adding the seminary’s name and a drawing of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. At 1:30 a.m., the banner was finished.
On the day of the audience and the last day of the group's pilgrimage, June 4, Scott, Tackman, Galvas, their professors and three other classmates — Matthew Harazin of the Diocese of Kalamazoo; Bro. Andrew Collart, SOLT; and Mason Abbott of the Diocese of Lansing — headed to St. Peter’s Square.
They arrived two hours early to secure a spot along the gate where Pope Leo would pass through. Not getting as as close as they’d hoped, they decided to leave it in God’s hands and sat down to pray while they waited.
Shortly before Pope Leo was to come around in the popemobile, the guards moved a gate, and a space opened up close to the fence.
They nominated the two men with the longest arms to hold the banner. Galvas had the baseball and the marker ready.
“Then the popemobile came around the corner, and we were calling his name,” Scott said. “Pope Leo looked in our direction and saw our sign. He did a double take and then saw all of us wearing our (clerical) collars. We could all see in his eyes the moment it clicked with him who we were. Then he looked at me and gave a big thumbs up.”
Before Pope Leo came through, the seminarians had chatted with a man and his wife next to them who were hoping to have their baby blessed by the pope. In a “Holy Spirit moment,” they learned the man had previously studied at Sacred Heart and discerned out.
When the baby next to them was handed to Pope Leo as he paused by their group, Galvas held up the baseball asked the Holy Father if he would sign it; the pope nodded "yes" and pointed for the ball. With a big smile, he signed the baseball, then nodded at the men from home as he rode away.
“I was so overjoyed. I was crying and shaking, and I couldn’t believe what just happened,” Scott said. “(Galvas) and I talked about how cool it was that he signed the baseball, but even more so, how his humanity was on display. Catholics have a high level of respect for the pope, and sometimes we can forget he’s a person just like us. His taking a moment to sign a baseball showed his humanity in a beautiful way.”
Piecing it all together: seeing God’s providence
All six of the men were moved by the brief but profound moment with Pope Leo.
“I think in that moment, we saw the pope not only as the head of the universal Church, but as a loving father,” Galvas said. “We connected with him in a very authentic way, and saw his joy shine through. And we got to share that moment with thousands of people from around the world who were all equally as excited for the same reasons.”
Galvas says the baseball was the ideal object for the Holy Father to sign because it represents America’s pastime and Pope Leo’s favorite sport. But he also believes it represents something much deeper.
“It’s a symbol of joy and connectivity between so many children and their fathers, and that’s what we felt in that moment with Pope Leo,” Galvas said.
The experience that morning confirmed to the seminarians that God is always working, just as He had been throughout the pilgrimage.
“This is a great story, but the point isn’t to have a cool souvenir,” Tackman said. “The point is that it shows God’s providence, which isn’t immediately obvious if you don’t know the whole story. If you do, you can see that every success that God brings isn’t just Him waving some sort of magic wand. He’s involved at every step along the way, and everyone had to say ‘yes’ at every step and do their part. That’s how the Church works, and that’s how God’s work gets done on earth.
“What happened to us didn’t happen because we are seminarians,” Tackman added. “It’s because we’ve been formed to be ready for God to provide and to do cool and surprising things. That predisposed us to accept that this was a possibility and push to do it. The lesson is not to let your life be shackled by your own expectations. We have to give God the chance to do awesome things in our lives.”
The next day, the six men boarded a plane for home with their baseball and lifelong memories that bonded them as a class and left them feeling blessed by God’s generosity. As one seminarian said, it was the cherry on top of a once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimage.
