SPIRITUAL PILGRIMAGE TO

THE HOLY LAND

with the Pilgrim Center of Hopea Catholic Evangelization Ministry

GOD TOUCHES OUR LIVES IN MANY WAYS, but when we seek Him with fervor, we are making an eternal investment which will have everlasting rewards.

A pilgrimage is such an investment. It is a journey of faith that not only benefits us as individuals, but it is also good for the whole Church, which we know as the ‘Body of Christ’.

WHAT IS A PILGRIMAGE?

A PILGRIMAGE IS A CALLING, IT IS A VOCATION, and the response is from the heart and mind, an act of the will. It is with this in mind that pilgrims traveling on pilgrimages build up the Body of Christ through prayer, through the participation in daily Mass, various devotions, as well as visiting with the local church.

Fr. Gerald Vann, in his book, Heart of Compassion, says, “the salvation of many depends on the prayers and penances of Christ’s faithful and on the part they play in sharing His work.”

WHAT IS A PILGRIMAGE?

A PILGRIMAGE TAKES YOU not just around the world, but inside yourself. Pilgrimages are also very much for the individual person; because it is a journey of faith with a motive to grow closer to God and to seek spiritual renewal.

WHAT IS A PILGRIMAGE?

PILGRIMAGES HAVE spiritual, mental, physical & social benefits:

• Opportunity for a new vision of one’s life & relationship with God

• Experience an encounter with the Risen Lord

• Discovery of the rich history of the Church

• New cultural experiences

• Occasions to practice acts of charity & develop an attitude of tolerance and patience

• Encounter the ‘living stones’—visit local church communities while in the Holy Land.

WHAT IS A PILGRIMAGE?

THE SEVEN WAYS pilgrimages affect a pilgrim:

• The sense of identity

• The sense of friendship

• The sense of Truth

• The sense of Beauty

• The sense of effort

• The sense of one’s body

• The sense of God

WHAT IS A PILGRIMAGE?

THESE ARE EXPERIENCED and made aware during the pilgrimage. Our human person must be transformed by our pilgrimage on earth.

Why did God lead His people for a long pilgrimage in the desert? Why did He choose to start the renewal of humanity with Abraham and with Mary, by a pilgrimage?

Isn’t it because a pilgrimage is unique experience which involves all the dimensions of our person: the sense of our identity, the friendship, the research of truth, the sense of art, the virtues, the body, the adoration?

Our human person can really be transformed by a pilgrimage.

- Fr. Thomas Joachim, Congregation of St. John

WHAT IS A PILGRIMAGE?

AT THE PILGRIM CENTER OF HOPE, we invite those who cannot physically journey with us on pilgrimage to unite with us spiritually on a ‘spiritual pilgrimage.’ Spiritual pilgrimage unites you with the entire Church, particularly with the local Catholics (whom we call ‘Mother Church’, since they live where our Faith began)!

WHAT IS A ‘SPIRITUAL PILGRIMAGE’?

AS YOU SEND YOUR PRAYER INTENTIONS TO US, we offer them at the holy sites. Throughout our journey, we “carry” your concerns, worries, prayers of thanksgiving, and other intentions as we retrace the footsteps of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Each day of the pilgrimage, we invite you to learn about the holy places that we encounter each day through our website. Meditate upon the events that took place at each site. Allow the reality of each place to renew your Faith.

As a spiritual pilgrim, you journey with us in spirit, sharing in the graces that we receive. Come, journey with us.

WHAT IS A ‘SPIRITUAL PILGRIMAGE’?

LET US SET OUT IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF CHRIST!

- Venerable Pope John Paul II