A Pilgrimage of the Heart

All aboard? Little did we know how deeply the journey would take us into the heart of our faith as Catholic Christians. We set out on May 31 as 33 individual pilgrims representing the Diocese of Corpus Christi – 28 young adults, among whom two seminarians. The trip, sponsored by the Office of Young Adult Ministry with Siobhan O’Connor and the Newman Center Corpus Christi and Kingsville, was led by two priests, two consecrated Focolare members, and the TAMUCC Campus Minister. We returned on June 9 as a family, transformed by the experience of the Jubilee Pilgrimage. Since it was the first trip outside of Texas for many, our itinerary, which included holy sites in Perugia, Assisi, Orvieto and Rome, opened unimagined new horizons.

As Marie Webb, member of the Young Catholic Adults (YCA), shares, “I grew up reading the lives of saints and seeing pictures of basilicas; I never once thought I’d be able to actually visit these places and walk the same paths that St. Francis, Clare, and many others walked. I’ll carry these memories and the spiritual moments shared with my fellow pilgrims for the rest of my life.” Crystal Tam, a Texas A&M College Station alumna, echoes, “This pilgrimage was an opportunity to connect deeper with my faith and with our fellow pilgrims. Walking in the steps of many saints we admire serves as a reminder that they were once just like us. It’s a beautiful reminder that we are not alone in our journeys.”

At a time when young people may be cast as a “lost generation,” Christian De La Rosa, music minister at St. Joseph Parish in Beeville, asserts, “Seeing Blessed Carlo Acutis’ remains, I couldn’t help but think that all is not lost, and that the Holy Spirit is still moving, ready to turn ordinary people into saints!” The Eucharistic miracle highlighted by Blessed Carlo then came to full view as we beheld the corporal in the Cathedral of Orvieto, which held drops of Christ’s blood. Ian Longoria, a Texas A&M Corpus Christi (TAMUCC) junior, comments: “To be able to see concrete evidence of our faith in the form of tombs and relics was amazing. Seeing the beauty in the sacrifice people have made for centuries in the name of Christ has provided me with the courage to live out my faith more boldly.”

We went through the Holy Doors of the four main basilicas of St. Peter, St. Paul-outside-the-Walls, St. John Lateran and St. Mary Major, with Fr. Carlos De La Rosa bringing the prayer intentions of the Diocese to St. Peter. TAMUCC alumna Juliana Gomez summarizes, “To pass through the Holy Doors was a deeply moving and transformative experience. Standing in the heart of the Church, surrounded by centuries of faith and tradition, strengthened my spiritual journey and brought me closer to God.”

As in any authentic pilgrimage, daily physical demands also contributed to spiritual growth. Many had never taken the Metro, the only way to get around in Rome’s inner city or walked that much daily in their lives. As Carmen Almeida, a recent graduate of Del Mar College describes the visit to the Holy Stairs, “Walking up the steps on our knees helped me feel a smidge of what Jesus felt on His way to be crucified; this pilgrimage helped me realize that love isn’t always the nice, romantic stuff we see on TV or media, but it is the uncomfortable, tiredness, and humble actions that  can also be love; and we see that in Jesus’ death and the life of the saints.”

Whether celebrating daily Mass in various chapels, saying the rosary in front of Mary’s icon, making a late-night visit to the Blessed Sacrament, or saying the Rosary in front of the Colosseum, every moment was an opportunity to go deeper in and witness to our faith. TAMUCC graduate student Emily McGhee shares, “This pilgrimage was a journey that took me through the steps of Christ. It was a great reminder that every day is a pilgrimage, and that God is working in us right now.” Monique Gonzalez (YCA) concurs, “I found a lot of hope and peace during this trip. Overall, a very empowering experience.”

Perhaps YCA President Sophia Rodriguez captures it best: “Leaving Rome feels like stepping from a dream, yet returning feels like awakening – awakened to a fire within that will never dim. I am not the same woman who arrived. I am renewed, inflamed by love, humbled by grace, and infinitely grateful for the God who patiently shapes us in His image. Rome has etched itself into my soul – not as a place on a map, but as a pilgrimage of the heart. Here, I found a sacred home in the unity of faith, a glimpse of heaven on earth.”

Marked by that Pentecost experience, we are now called to live out Pope Leo’s concluding words, “May the strong wind of the Spirit … open the borders of our hearts, grant us the grace of encounter with God, enlarge the horizons of our love and sustain our efforts to build a world in which peace reigns.”