Sometimes we take few steps to the left, sometimes few steps to the right, other times we make few steps back, but when we go on a pilgrimage we are walking toward God. We go to God, not perfect, but as we are- with all of our doubts, crisis, sickness, curiosity, adventure, faith, thanksgiving

to ask for favors and to offer ourselves completely.

Our pilgrimages are usually escorted by a catholic spiritual leader, but are always open to all!

If you want perfection then our pilgrimages are probably not for you. Misconnections, delays, faces we meet, wrong turnings can happen and can lead to unexpected views, and all will be well if we remember where the route  will lead us. The route is towards God.  Whether you make the physical journey is not yet known, but in some ways you are already making it, as you are reading this. You and I are on the pilgrimage and have been since the day we were born and will be until we die. Your future pilgrimages will be compound of the present and the past.  As you head on your journey, the spiritual part is a more important than the physical (hotels, walks, buses..). In many ways, I expect that the detachment of the physical comforts and joys will at times help your spiritual progress. That is if you let it.

It's in the opening of your eyes, heart and the Word of God that you find your journey progresses.

Sometimes the steps are not easy, but each step counts. The steps that leads you from the person you were to the person growing consciousness, and deeper sensitivity to God's view point. There is a path in front of each one of us. Let us move forward with and towards Jesus.

History Of a Pilgrimage

A pilgrimage is a time of prayer and to witness the miraculous signposts God has left for our return to Him. Ask God to bless you with a heart that will be receptive to the treasure chest of graces He desires to shower upon your pilgrimage.  The success of your spiritual journey will depend upon your openness, faith, flexibility, and love.

Pilgrimages - journeys to sacred places  - are as old as civilization.  Since the earliest times, such journeys have been made as acts of devotion, penance, or thanksgiving or in search of blessings or miracles.  The concept crosses all ideological boundaries.  In the ancient Near East, a portion of the harvest was carried to shrines to be offered to the gods in gratitude and homage.  Muslim law prescribes a pilgrimage to Mecca, the birth place of Muhammad, for all who are able to undertake the journey.  For Hindus, a pilgrimage to Varansi (Banares), to bathe in the sacred waters of Ganges, is considered an obligation.

Christian pilgrims, from early in the second century, traveled great distances to venerate places in the Holy Land sanctified by the presence of Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, or the Apostles.  The number of pilgrimages increased greatly in the fourth century, after Emperor Constantine I converted to Christianity and legalized the faith throughout the Roman Empire.  He and his mother, Helena, were themselves the most influential of pilgrims. The historian Eusebius of Caesarea attributed to Constantine the discovery of Christ’s tomb, the Holy Sepulcher; other accounts credit his mother with finding the True Cross.

Word of the discoveries spread, spurring the pilgrimage movement.  Although travel was always difficult and often perilous, by the end of the fourth century pilgrimages to the Holy Land were relatively common.

Rome, as it became the center of the Christian faith, became a frequent pilgrimage destination, as did Greece and Egypt, where the faithful could follow the footsteps of the Apostles.

By the Middle Ages, pilgrimages had become a significant part of Christian devotional life, whether they involved a journey between neighboring cities or across half the civilized world.  Churches and cathedrals throughout Europe holding relics of the Holy Family, the Apostles, and other early saints drew throngs of faithful, from common people and parish priests to emperors and popes.

The role of such relics - particularly those that were instruments of Christ’s Passion - is strong in pilgrimage, and many have survived to our time. Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, for example, enshrines part of the Crown of Thorns, wood from the Cross, and a nail from the Crucifixion.  Kept  in individual reliquaries encased in a gilded ark, they are on view only during Lent.  The Sanctum Sanctorum Chapel in Rome has relics of the Cross, Christ's sandals, and a portrait of Christ “not painted by mortal hands”.  At Aachen, Germany, relics include the infant Jesus’ swaddling clothes and the Virgin’s veil. The Shroud of Turin, believed by many to be Christ’s burial cloth, is world famous despite continuing nit pickings about its origin.  Many highly respected scientists vouch for the Shroud.

Corporeal relics - the bodies of saints, or parts of them - have also formed the basis of many famous shrines.  Prominent among such places in Santiago de Compastela in northern Spain, revered since the early ninth century as the burial place of the remains of Saint James the Apostle, who was beheaded by King Herod in Judea in A.D. 44 and whose body was thrown to dogs.

The heads, hearts, and various limits other saints were sometimes removed - not by their enemies, but after death by their adherents - and enshrined separately.  In Paris, the heart of Saint Vincent de Paul is kept in a reliquary on the alter of his shrine in the mother house of the Sisters of Charity; his bones are incased in a wax figure in the chapel of the Vincentian Fathers.  In Goa, India millions were drawn a few years ago to a week-long exposition of one Saint Francis Xavier’s arms.  Counted among shrines marking the tombs of saints are those of Saint Martin in Tours, France (once most frequented shrine in Europe), and that of his mentor, Saint Hilary, in nearby Poiltiers, both dating from the fourth century.  There are scores of others, on every continent.

Holy objects other then relics have given rise to many other popular shrines.  At Czestochowa, Poland, the icon Our Lady of Czestochowa, also known as the Black Madonna, is believed to possess miraculous powers and has been venerated since fourteenth century.  At the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City, millions come to see the peasant’s cape on which the Blessed Virgin’s image miraculously appeared following an apparition in 1531.  In Brazil, an image of the Virgin was discovered on a rock by a small child and has led to wide cult following.  In Ancona, Italy, a weeping statue of the Virgin has drawn pilgrims since the early nineteenth century.

Numerous places have become the destinations of pilgrims because of apparitions of the Blessed Virgin, particularly in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.  Framed among them are Lourdes and La Salette in France and Fatima in Portugal; at all three, the Virgin appeared to young children and urged mankind’s repentance and prayer.  Pilgrims now number in the millions, and devotion has resulted in numberless reported favors and cures.

Church authorities are cautious about giving credence to accounts of apparitions of Mary and approving of devotion at the places where they occur.  Since the early nineteenth century, about 200 reports of such apparitions have been investigated, and only about 1 in 40 has received canonical sanction.  In addition to Lourdes, La Salette, and Fatima, sanctioned apparitions since 1842 have occurred  at the church of Saint Andrea della Frate in Rome and at Illaca in Croatia, Philippsedorf in Germany, Pontmain in France, Knock in Ireland, and Beauraing and Banneux in Belgium.

No country in Europe is without its Christian shrines.  In England, a number of shrines that were widely known long before the Reformation of the early sixteenth century are the object of growing devotion today.  Cheif among them Waisingham, Glastonbury, and Canterbury (Chaucer’s pilgims of The Canterbury Tales were on their way to the shrine there of the martyred Saint Thomas Becket).  Other shrines honor the founders of religious orders.  Three of these, are in Italy, are the shrines of Saint Benedict at Monte Cassino, Saint Dominic in Bologna, and Saint Francis at Assisi.

Why Does Someone Decides To Book A Pilgrimage?

There are many common reasons:  Increase of Faith, Practice Prayer, Practice Fasting, Learn to Let Go and how to give our problem to God, Pray for Healing, Hear what the Holy Spirit may say, In thankfulness, In Joy and Rejoicing, To Pray for others, To Visit Holy Places, Experience diverse cultures, To escort a family member or a loved one, to travel with their prayer group/church/youth group/leader, and/or for Unity so we can be with people like ourselves. Often we go on a pilgrimage when seeking change, and often, change takes place.  Pilgrimage means focusing on an intention, focusing on a desire, or focusing on resolution of a situation.

A Pilgrim Goes Because he hears "the calling" - They come back to give peace a chance, and not let the jerks of the world get the best of them.
He goes seeking to find peace with their loved one, or for peace in the world. Upon their return they discover, that  in order to find peace with another human, they must first find it with God and in their own heart!  

Unless we find peace in our heart, all the prayers, pilgrimage and travels will not help.  If we go around the corner, or to Paris, we bring our hearts with us.  Only with peace in our heart will we ever see things with clarity.  The Japanese have a beautiful proverb "Stand further to see clearer".  Have you ever stepped into the distance and looked at the situation?  Separate yourself from every day surroundings and look at it again. 

Have You Ever Considered Taking Your Whole  Family On A Pilgrimage?
Have you been wondering what it would be like if your child would meet people in another country?  If he/she saw another culture? 

Our world today is growing and changing at a very fast paste.  Our kids do not remember what it was like to write a letter without an e-mail.  Some of our kids do not remember what it was like without a cell phone.  Our kids want things right now.  It's about instant gratification.  These days kids play with games that offer instant moving images. No time to contemplate, or wonder. No time to pray, dream, imagine how it could be?  Most kids have many games and computers?  What if our child sat by the window and watched the rain fall?  How about if we share our time and take a trip?  How about to another country where they may hear another language, different customs and watch the way other kids pay? 

Most families spend more money on toys then they do on family trips.  What do we fear? Unknown. They would absorb more in a week in another country then they do in a lifetime with all the toys.  So why not venture to another country?

See the World - Meet the World

Did you ever watch little kids going to the park to play?  As soon as they get there they automatically look for other kids who will play with them. They don't care what color, religion, nationality the other kid is… they simply want to know if you want to play with them.  And they do play very happily!!!  Does it matter a fact when they play with a child from another nation - they may even learn a new game.  They are happy.  Their hearts are filled with joy.  Make no mistake, no toy could ever supplement that joy.  Imagine this child, if no one wanted to play with him?   Why are kids unafraid of interacting with others?  My kids are now in their 20's, and they have been blessed to have traveled and met people from around the world.  They understand diverse cultures, and do not judge someone because of their nationality.  Having faith is great.  But share your faith with your loved ones and the world.  One by one.  Take your older parent or your child with you.  If everyone just takes one person to another country we'll be one step closer to peace.  Next time your paths cross with a stranger in another country, give him a chance, you'll be giving world a chance for peace.  Consider that meeting a blessing and movement thoughts peace.  God gives us special stars and judges our successes by the obstacles we had to overcome.

Remember, to make try and make at least one pilgrimage. Invite someone to come with you, spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around (in this world as we know it) forever and neither will you.  Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.  Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent. Remember, to say, "I love you" to your loved ones, but most of all mean it.  A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.  Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again.  Give time to love, to meet new friends, to see the world, give time to speak and give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.  No matter what - always give time for God.

I pray that one day you book a pilgrimage.  Invite your family and friends to separate themselves from the "every day rut".  You'll come back refreshed and with more peace in your heart.  When you return, perhaps you can plan another pilgrimage, but the next time you invite more people to join you and share with them what you have learned yourself.  In doing so, you will help others, you will acquire the knowledge and you will be making some great friends from different parts of the world.