The Face
you've longed to see...
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The Trip you've dreamed of... Thirty-eight pilgrims made a wonderful pilgrimage to Italy in April. The highlight of the trip was the privilege to venerate and pray before The Holy Shroud of Turin, the burial cloth of Jesus Christ as He lay in the tomb awaiting His Resurrection. It was a spiritual experience that had a profound impact on everyone in our group. Under the spiritual direction of Rev. Steven Porter, STL, KCHS, pastor of St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Rialto, we came from eight parishes in our diocese, and four states. Our trip began with a morning flight into Milan where we went directly to The Duomo (Cathedral) of Milan, a magnificent Gothic church, for the opening Mass of our pilgrimage. We spent the entire day seeing the most important and beautiful places of the city. The opportunity to make a pilgrimage to visit The Shroud was the primary factor in setting the date for our nine-day trip to Rome, Milan and Turin. A special 40-day exhibition period had been authorized by Pope Benedict XVI for April and May this year. With two and a half million people expected to journey to Turin, we planned to arrive soon after the exhibition opened, and were there on day six. We travelled to Turin for our Noon reservation for viewing The Shroud. At the Cathedral of Turin, we entered a large room that could easily hold two hundred people, but was not full as the crowds were small that day. A large screen completely filled one wall. A film began with the playing of music that helped everyone focus on the only thing shown on the screen, an image of The Shroud. There was no talking on the film, only titles displayed in six languages as the image changed: The Face; The Chest; The Hands; The Legs; The Back of the Head; The Back; The Back of the Legs. A spotlight shone on each area one-by-one, as that image was enlarged so the details could be clearly seen. We were silent as the atmosphere in the room shifted to one of prayer, and of love for Our Lord, whose passion and death was clearly etched on the cloth. The blood on The Shroud is human blood, Christ’s blood. The merciful love that Jesus has for each of us was deeply felt. Our group stood directly in front of The Shroud. So profound was the experience and the depth of prayer that we lost sense of time and were eventually led in a prayer written by the Archbishop of Turin for the occasion. We were later told that we had been granted fifteen minutes directly in front of The Holy Shroud. As we departed, there were rooms for Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and for confessions. Most people in our group visited one or both of those places. The following day we traveled by express train to Rome for a five-night stay. Mass in The Vatican Grottoes, tours of the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica and even the Scavi (excavations) beneath St. Peter’s, where were prayed before the bones of St. Peter, were some highlights. Daily Mass in a beautiful church or basilica was our community prayer. We had great fun visiting the major sights in Rome: the Coliseum, the Forum, Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon and the beautiful Spanish Steps. We ate delicious Italian food, took nighttime walks, shopped, ate gelato and relished the opportunity to know each other as only pilgrims can. We departed for home inspired, refreshed and appreciative of having experienced, “The trip of a lifetime”. This was the fourth pilgrimage that Fr. Porter has lead in the last three and one-half years. |
Photos
Questions? Future Trips? |
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