Father Dabney honored for his lifetime of outreach

Father Philip Dabney was one of five people to receive a St. Edmund’s Medal of Honor on October 25, 2019. The award celebrates those who live lives of grace and virtue that reflect the legacy of St. Edmund, a 13th-century archbishop of Canterbury, England. The honor is presented annually by the Enders Island Catholic retreat center off Mason’s Island in Mystic, Connecticut.

Father Dabney, a former vicar of the Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Boston, was selected for the honor because of his lifetime of spiritual and missionary outreach to the sick and the poor. He was ordained in 1978.

During his 11 years at the basilica, Father Philip was devoted to visiting the sick, especially the terminally ill. He gave spiritual support and comfort to both the dying and their families, in the tradition of Jesus Christ.

Now in residence at the Baltimore Provincial House in Washington, D.C., Father Dabney is a member of the province’s Evangelization Team, working to bring the Good News of Jesus Christ to those who have not yet received the Gospel as Good News. Father Dabney said he began his priesthood by offering his life to Christ and as a result, “Christ has filled my life with his people.” He believes God will continue to do so as he begins a new mission of reaching out to those who have been alienated from the Church.