Getting Ready for the Jubilee Pilgrimage

They are getting ready to make memories for a lifetime and deepen their faith: 28 young people from our diocese will travel to Assisi and Rome from May 31 to June 9, accompanied by Liana Badillo and Chiara Catipon from the Newman Center at TAMUCC, Fr. Charles Silva, Fr. Carlos De Rosa, and Vocation Director Bob Cummings. And you can join them spiritually - they'll bring your prayer intentions to St. Peter's Basilica!
 
The young people—mostly students from Corpus Christi and Kingsville, along with some members of the Young Catholic Adults group from our diocese—will first go to Assisi to learn about the place where St. Francis and St. Clare lived and to visit the tomb of the soon-to-be saint Blessed Carlo Acutis. Then, they will proceed to Rome to visit the main basilicas and walk through one or more Holy Doors.
 
All are very excited: “I am most looking forward to seeing the Sistine Chapel, the St. Peter's Basilica, and the St. Clare of Assisi Basilica, because those three alone, I think, just have a special place in my heart, especially with Saint Peter, who I've gone very close to within these past couple of months,” says Abby Lamas from Texas A&M. She wants to deepen her faith on this trip, “Because when I'm walking through these Holy Doors and seeing all these beautiful basilicas and, you know, relics, I do want to pray to God and lay it all out on the altar while being there.”
 
Emily McGhee, a graduate student in Marine Biology, says, “I'm excited to see all the people that travel from all over the world to come to these holy places and experience God's love … but also looking into what all of these places mean in history.” Some of the young adults have never left the U.S.
 
While meeting every other month at the Newman Center, the participants learned about the places they would visit, got to know each other, and studied the most basic phrases in Italian. With adoration, Mass, and prayer time together, they also want to ensure that the excitement doesn’t distract them from the deeper meaning of their journey: making a pilgrimage in the Year of Hope with the chance to start anew in their faith life.
 
While in Rome, they will walk through the Holy Doors of the major basilicas. Grateful for this opportunity, they aim to bring the prayer intentions of everyone in the Diocese with them, praying for special graces for all these needs and requests. Fr. Carlos De la Rosa, chaplain of the Newman Center at TAMUCC, will collect all intentions in an envelope printed in a tiny font to fit, walk with them through the Holy Door of St. Peter, and pray for them in the basilica. The group will document this historic moment on our social media channels! So, please submit your prayer intentions here before May 19:
https://form.jotform.com/communicationsdofcc/prayer-intentions-to-rome
And pray for a safe trip and many graces for our pilgrims!