PORTLAND — All are welcome to gather for a “Blessing of the Fleet” on Sunday, June 12 at 2:30 p.m. The ceremony is set for the Maine State Pier located at the intersection of Commercial Street and Franklin Street on the Portland waterfront.
“All boats are welcome. This is not an event for Catholics only,” said Fr. Seamus Griesbach, pastor of the Portland Peninsula & Island Parishes.
A video displaying the boat route for the blessing can be found at www.portlandcatholic.org/fleetblessing. All sailors should tune into VHF radio channel 67 for the blessing. All are welcome to come down to the Maine State Pier and watch the boats go by.
The blessing is a Catholic tradition that is celebrated in many maritime communities throughout the world and asks the Lord to bless all recreational boats and current mariners and their vessels at the start of the summer season.
