Making a pilgrimage during the Year of Mercy

Prayer groups, families, adult faith formation classes, RCIA programs as well as individuals could plan one or more visits to the six Holy Door sites in our diocese, which include St. Elizabeth of Hungary in Alice; St. Joseph in Beeville; Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Corpus Christi; St. Joseph in Kingsville; Chapel at Our Lady of Schoenstatt in Lamar; and the Corpus Christi Cathedral.

Families on vacation next summer can create their own pilgrimage by researching online the places they plan to visit. For example, every cathedral in Texas has a Holy Door and can be used to earn an indulgence. Cathedrals can be found in Brownsville, Laredo, Victoria, San Antonio, Austin, Houston, Galveston, Beaumont, Tyler, Dallas, Fort Worth, Amarillo, Lubbock, El Paso and San Angelo. Other basilicas, such as the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Little Flower and San Jose Mission are also pilgrimage sites. There are many others; consider “Catholic Pilgrimage Sites” as a good starting point on the Web.

If you or your group intends to participate in a pilgrimage, consider including the corporal works of mercy such as donating food to the Food Bank or blood to the Blood Bank. While these works of mercy are appreciated anytime, the summer months tend to be lean ones for many agencies.

Pilgrimages have a long, honored tradition in the Church and you will be sharing in that tradition. Your experience will be greatly enriched if you do some background reading on its history. Consider going to confession and Mass as a group or make a Holy Hour together first. Decide if you want to visit just one door, begin and end at the same door or begin at one door then drive to another.

Also consider including stops along the way. One year I taught a morality class for adults. On the last day of class, we made a rosary pilgrimage to different places in Corpus Christi. At each stop I lead the group in praying a decade of the rosary. The group could make “a stations of the cross” pilgrimage, that is, stopping to pray at such places as a funeral home (Jesus dies on the cross) or a cemetery (Jesus is laid in the tomb). A rosary pilgrimage could include stopping at a hospital (Jesus cures the sick). For those who would prefer the traditional mysteries of the rosary, these can be prayed instead. We are Catholic therefore we celebrate. Bring the pilgrimage to a fitting close with a potluck supper or eating out.

Families can make a mini pilgrimage if travel is not possible. Families can create their own Holy Door to honor the fact they are the “domestic church.” Stations can be set up throughout the house or in a room. These could be teachable moments in helping children learn their prayers. If your parish has been designated a Holy Door site, photograph the door and hang the picture in a place of honor in your home. This, too, can be part of your indoor pilgrimage.

Teachers can also create a classroom pilgrimage by using the above ideas. Both families and teachers can use the various parts of their church. For example, stop at the baptismal font and pray for: the newly baptized, those who have left the Church, and those who have lost their faith. A stop at the confessional could include prayers for reconciliation and those preparing for First Communion. The chaplet of Divine Mercy could be prayed at this “station.”

I often share with people that Jesus wants to give his mercy to those who are in the most need of it. Prayers during a stop at the altar might be said for an increase of priestly vocations and for married couples. Finally, if the oils for the sick are prominently displayed, pray for those whose names appear in the bulletin. A picture of the Holy Door at St. Peter’s in the classroom could be a starting point of this mini-pilgrimage.

If the group wants to be more engaged with the event, they can duplicate what the medieval pilgrims wore. This includes a staff, a hat and clothing. Pictures of these items can be found online.

Martin Sheen, himself a devout Catholic, stars in the 2010 movie entitled The Way. He plays Tom, the main character who must travel to France to claim the body of his son who died while walking the Way of St. James. Tom decides to finish the pilgrimage for his son and in so doing discovers more than he expected. Before or after the pilgrimage, the group could watch and then discuss the movie. If pot luck is planned, discussion took take place at the meal.

In conclusion, however you travel during this year, “Vaya con Dios.”