An Inexpensive Pilgrimage?

A pilgrimage is one of the many joys and treasures of being a Roman Catholic. It is wonderful to stand on the streets in Rome, Jerusalem, or other cities and look back over 2,000 years and see the sights He had seen or would become significant to our faith. While tourists of any faith would probably find the sites to be significant and moving, looking through the lens of 2,000 years of history provides a unique vantage point for Catholics.

Can’t Afford a Pilgrimage to Europe or the Holy Land?

However, most of us cannot afford a pilgrimage to Europe or the Holy Land. At today’s prices, a trip to Rome is over $1500 simply for the airfare for one person.  Add the cost for a hotel, food, and everything else, for two people, or a family and the cost becomes many thousands of dollars. For a tiny fraction of that cost, you can visit one of the local Catholic shrines or similar places.

There are many web search engines, and typing in the words “Catholic shrines” will result in pages of sites to explore or visit.  There are several sites which are listings of most of the shrines in the United States.  The following is not a complete list, and the reader is encouraged to explore the multiple resources which will come up during a web search, but, here are a couple of samples sites which are available:

• http://catholicplaces.org/
• http://www.catholicshrines.net/
• http://www.thecatholictravelguide.com/USA.html
• http://religioustravelplanningguide.com/10-top-catholic-shrines-in-the-u-s/

Each of these pilgrimage sites list the shrines, basilicas, grottos, within many different states.  For most people, the trips would be only a couple of hundred to a few hundred miles.

Domestic Destinations

For example, if you live in or around Boston, Ma., a radius of 250 miles allows you to travel to:

• the Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette in Enfield, NH,
• the La Salette Shrine in Attleboro,
• Mary, Queen of the Universe National Shrine in East Boston,
• St. Joseph the Worker Shrine in Lowell, or
• the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy in Stockbridge,

Another reader may say, “That is fine and good for Easterners, and I am pleased, but I am here in Oklahoma, what is there for me?” There many other pilgrimage sites throughout the States. Well, you may wish to try the Our Lady of the Annunciation Clear Creek Monastery in Hubert or The Kateri Shrine in Pawhuska.

These shrines may not be directly in your back yard, but they are certainly within reach of a day trip or an extended weekend. These grottos, basilicas may be relatively small, to intermediate size to grand.  They may be found in major cities, as is The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC, or in less well-populated places.  A spot not typically considered a tourist destination, for people living in Des Moines, may be The Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend, Iowa which covers a city block and is composed of nine grottos each depicting one of the scenes from the life of Christ.  This grotto was begun by one man, Rev. Fr. Paul Dobberstein, and he worked on it for more than 40 years.

In 1985, Rev. Fr. Harold Cooper, in Sioux City, Iowa began construction on a multi-acre project at Trinity Heights. Items included here are a 30-foot statue of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Queen of Peace, a 30-foot status of her son, a life-sized statue of the Last Supper and a variety of other works, statuary, and displays. Sioux City is only a hop, skip and jump away from many areas in the heartland.

A Touch of Rome

Hanceville Alabama may not spring immediately to mind as a pilgrimage destination, but this is the location of Our Lady of the Angels Monastery and the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament which had been started by Mother M. Angelica. This site is over 400 acres in size and is truly breathtaking.

Standing in the middle of the piazza with the colonnades extending out as if to embrace the visitor, the mind’s eye goes off to a sight it has seen many times, which is the images of the area in front of St. Peter’s in Rome.  While the piazza in Hanceville is small in comparison, it is truly inspiring.

The shrine and its grounds provide the pilgrim with a replica of the Shroud of Turin, a replica of the crèche of St. Francis of Assisi, and many other items of interest and significance.

It is not at all required for a pilgrim take out a loan of many thousands of dollars, or save for any number of years to go to places which are meaningful, promote prayer, meditation or reflection. Rome need not be the only destination, the painted churches of South Texas, the outside stations of the cross at a local church, a small garden and grotto can all be of tremendous benefit to a pilgrim in search of quiet, away time.

A tank of gas, a picnic lunch, and a few hours are all which are required.  Please simply go and try it.  Pray the rosary on the way to, or from, or there, and the experience will be magnified.