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Text Box: During the first two weeks of November I was fortunate to be able to go on a pilgrimage to Rome and Assisi with a group of people from several parishes in Mobile. Msgr. Michael Farmer from the Cathedral and Fr. Jim Cink from St. Dominic also were on the trip which we purposely called a pilgrimage rather than merely a trip because our journey had much more than sightseeing as the goal. The words “pilgrimage” and "pilgrim" come from the Latin "peregrinus," meaning "foreigner" or "stranger," and in the deepest sense, that is what all Catholics are: a people whose home is not this world, but the Heavenly Jerusalem, toward which our lives move us. But in the journey of life, we often make smaller journeys, or "pilgrimages" -- that is, journeys made to sacred places for the purpose of veneration, to ask help from or thank God and His Saints. We might journey in a spirit of penance, fasting and giving alms along the way. We might do so joyously, in thanksgiving for blessings received or in a spirit of petition for blessings desired. Or we might do so simply to be blessed by being in the presence of sacred relics or by walking on ground hallowed by Christ or the saints. Whatever our more particular purposes, leaving behind what is comfortable to us and visiting an unfamiliar place is a way to get out of a "spiritual rut" and step outside our normal routines which can sometimes keep us distracted or focused on the wrong things -- or perhaps focused too much on otherwise good things. When made with the

Text Box: right attitude, a pilgrimage is a way to grow in our relationship with God. We departed on October 30th and our pilgrimage took us first to Assisi which is located about two and a half hours north of Rome and is the home of St. Francis and St. Clare. It was in Assisi that St Francis first heard the call to follow the Lord in radical poverty, and it was there that St. Clare followed Francis by founding an order for women known commonly as the Poor Clares. We spent two days in the town and began each day with Mass followed by visits to the major sights. On November 2nd, All Souls Day, we traveled to Rome by motor coach and spent the early afternoon getting settled in the hotel and satisfying my/our craving for authentic Italian food. As an aside, one of the important aspects to our pilgrimage is getting to know Roman culture through not only the religious sights but also through the food, after all we must keep body and soul together! The next day took us to St. Peter’s Basilica where we celebrated Mass in a chapel below the main altar close to the tomb of St. Peter and many other popes including John Paul II. After Mass we were able to visit the basilica on our way to a scavi tour which is a guided walk through the excavations below the main floor of the church. The highlight of the visit is being able to see the actual tomb of St. Peter and spend a few minutes in prayer before his bones. Over the next few days we went to Pope Benedict’s General Audience on Wednesday and celebrated Mass at the other major basilicas besides St. Peter’s; St. Paul outside the Walls where St. Paul is buried, St. John Lateran which is the cathedral of Rome and St. Mary Major which is the oldest church in the west dedicated to Our Lady. Our pilgrimage also included Mass and visits to the Gesù church where our patron St. Ignatius of Loyola is buried, to the Roman forum and the Coliseum, the

Text Box: Vatican Museums as well as to the town of Castel Gandolfo where the Holy Father has a summer residence. The residence overlooks Lake Albano and provides amazing views of Rome below. We wrapped up our day trip to the lake with a magnificent lunch at a restaurant next to the papal residence that included some fantastic food to compliment the view. We did many other things that I could mention (the catacombs) but space is limited, so I will conclude by saying that a pilgrimage is always a moving event for those who give themselves to the spiritual purpose. I can say confidently that I was spiritually renewed by this pilgrimage, and gauging from the prayers, comments, tears, and laughter from my fellow pilgrims I believe they were as well.

December 2007

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