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pilgrimage, pilgrimages, St. Pius X Pilgrimage, Fatima, Lourdes, Rome, Santiago
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THE
HOLY LAND
MARCH 2004 |
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As some of our pilgrims told us afterwards, this was a 5-star pilgrimage, as there was nothing comparable to walking in the footsteps of Our Lord, the Blessed Mother and St. Joseph. Though it was our first time there, it will certainly not be our last! |
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First, we ascended Mt. Sinai to where Moses received the Ten Commandments from God, something which should not be missed if you ever go to Egypt and the Holy Land! Because we had to ride camels partially up the mountain, Fr. Carl
Pulvermacher, OFM cap (a traditional Capuchin who has been a long-time friend of the SSPX) nicknamed us afterwards,
"the camel humps".
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Camel
humping
up Mt. Sinai |
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The
Burning Bush still
intact atop Mt. Sinai |
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While in the Holy Land we saw the Dead Sea and the Qumram Caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. We went to Jericho, the oldest town in existence, where we were told, no American had been in 4 years, so it was a treat to be able to visit
Jericho. There we also saw the Sycamore Tree of
Zechariah and traveling to Bethany,
we saw the tomb of Lazarus. |
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Mass
at the
Shepherd's Field
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In
Bethlehem, we went to the Church of the Nativity
where Our Lord was born. Some of the remains of the Crib are
kept here too. In the nearby
Shepherd's Field, Fr. Carl Pulvermacher said Mass, and we were able to visit the Milk Grotto.
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We then traveled to Ein Karem, where the Blessed Mother went to visit her cousin, St. Elizabeth, and the place where St. John the Baptist was born. It was also here that Our Lady uttered her famous
Magnificat ("My Soul doth magnify the
Lord"). This little town was nothing like I expected and it was a long way for Our Lady to travel by foot from Nazareth to Ein Karem. Of course, while at Nazareth in Galilee, we saw where the Holy Family lived and St. Joseph had his workshop.
We went to the Church of the Wedding in Cana where the first miracle of Our Lord took place and there, Fr. Pulvermacher blessed all those in our group who were married. We then took a ride in an wooden boat on the Lake of Tiberias, just like Our Lord would have done.
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Finally in Jerusalem, we visited all the shrines, and even made the
Via Crucis (the Way of the Cross), carrying a cross just like Our Lord. Our
Via Crucis ended on Golgotha itself where one can put their hands in the hole where the Cross stood. A very emotional time for all of us.
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The
Via Crucis
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Such a pilgrimage effected a change upon all of us. In fact, when we say our Rosary now (or make the Stations), we can actually place ourselves at the very spots of the Mysteries (or Stations), which allows us to unite ourselves more closely to Our Lord and Lady.
We will be going to the Holy Land again in March 2005.
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pilgrimage, pilgrimages, St. Pius X Pilgrimage, Rome, Guadalupe, Santiago, Holy Land |
