Our plane landed in Rome on November 27 and the pilgrimage began! Words cannot express the joy and awe that we felt each day. We boarded our tour bus and were greeted by Elena – the world’s greatest tour guide, and Salvatore, our wonderful bus driver.

Our first stop as we traveled through the beautiful countryside was Orvieto, where in 1262 a Eucharistic miracle took place, which subsequently leads to the institution of Corpus Christi. We checked into our lovely hotel, had dinner, and spent the evening admiring the village of Assisi. It is one of the best-preserved medieval cities in Italy, and as the birthplace of both Francis and Clare holds special significance for pilgrims. The two churches came to be built as places of pilgrimage, meditation, and burial for the two saints.

On Wednesday, we began with Mass at the Basilica of St. Francesco and time to visit the tomb of St. Francis. We continued to the lower town of Assisi to the beautiful Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels. After a walking tour of Assisi, we viewed the San Damiano crucifix that spoke to St. Francis housed in the Church of St. Clare, then visited the Hermitage of the Carceri to experience what Francis found in his search for a vocation and where the caves on Mt. Subasio offered him a place of prayer. The spirit of Saint Francis surrounded us this day.

On Thursday we traveled through the Tuscany area, known for its landscapes and artistic legacy, to the city of Siena where we celebrated Mass at the Dominican Church which commemorates Saint Catherine. We spent some time that afternoon at the Piazza del Campo, the principal public space of Siena and one of Europe's greatest medieval squares.

Friday morning we continued our pilgrimage with Mass in Loreto. The Holy House of Loreto is one of the most revered Marian shrines in the world. Since medieval times, the Holy House has been believed to be the very home in which the Virgin Mary lived, conceived and raised the young Jesus. Many of us knelt in reverence at the altar of the Madonna. Our travels continued southward along the costal highway to Montesilvano Pescara, arriving at our beachside hotel on the shores of the Adriatic Sea. This stopover allowed us time to relax, stroll the sandy beach, and view the magnificent sunset.

Lanciano is a small, medieval town, nestled halfway between San Giovanni Rotondo and Loreto. On Saturday morning we visited Lanciano to see the site of the oldest Eucharistic Miracle certified by the Church. During Holy Mass the host was changed into live Flesh and the wine was changed into live Blood as a divine response to a Basilian monk's doubt about Jesus' Real Presence in the Eucharist. The miracle is ongoing. The Host-turned-Flesh, and the wine-turned-Blood, without the use of any form of preservative, is still present in the reliquary after almost eight centuries. Next we continued on to San Giovanni Rotondo where we celebrated Mass at the tomb of Saint Padre Pio. The Shrine of Padre Pio is the second-most visited Catholic shrine in the world. It centers around the tomb of Saint Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, a Capuchin friar, priest and mystic known for his devotion to God, supernatural gifts, and the stigmata. He died in 1968 and was declared a saint in 2002.

The first Sunday of Advent began in Subiaco where Saint Benedict and his sister Scolastica built five monasteries. We visited the Monastery of St. Benedict and the Sacred Cave where Benedict lived as a hermit for three years. We celebrated Mass in the Monastery before traveling to Rome.

On Monday we divided into two groups. One group remained in Rome for a walking tour while the majority headed to Pompeii for a tour of the ancient city. Pompeii was destroyed, and completely buried, during a catastrophic eruption of the volcano Mount Vesuvius spanning two days on 24 August 79 AD. It was lost for nearly 1700 years before its accidental rediscovery in 1748. Its excavation provided an extraordinarily detailed insight into the life of a city at the height of the Roman Empire.

Tuesday was an eventful day taking us to the many sites that Rome has to offer. We toured the extraordinary Saint Peter’s Basilica. It is the most prominent building inside the Vatican City and built on the ruins of Old Saint Peter's Basilica. Words cannot express the beauty we saw and the magnificence of the works of Bernini, Botticelli, Michelangelo, and the like in the Sistine Chapel, and the Vatican Museum. Our day continued with time at the Coliseum, an iconic symbol of Imperial Rome and a tour of the Catacombs. The Catacombs of Rome are ancient Jewish and Christian underground burial places.

Wednesday morning began with our audience with Pope Benedict XVI. This was an extraordinary experience for all. (A copy of his address to us can be seen below.) The highlight was receiving the Papal Blessing bestowed on all of us and our families. Two of our group members, Janice and Keith Smith, were privileged to receive a personal blessing from the Pope onstage. That afternoon we visited the major Basilicas of St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major, St. Peter in Chains to view Michelangelo’s sculpture, The Moses and St. Paul where Father Paul celebrated Mass for us.

Thursday morning we boarded the plane back to the USA with amazing memories, a closer connection to our Catholic Church, and thousands of pictures!

This does not even begin to touch on the multitude of things we saw and did during these 11 days. We enjoyed many delicious meals together. Some stayed up late at night enjoying a friendly game of Rook; others enjoyed a chat by the fire or a glass of wine with old and new friends. Some took time to buy souvenirs and keepsakes, while others searched for the gelato (Italian ice cream) shops. Our cameras flashed constantly. All who attended feel blessed by this experience. Our trip was not only memorable, it was fun as well.

A special and heartfelt thanks to Father Paul Beach for organizing our pilgrimage.

I think the most impressive thing to me was how these massive structures were built with none of the technology we have in place today and how the original roads and water systems are still in use to a certain extent hundreds of years later. There is no doubt that God had a hand into these projects! Debbie Jones
 
 The Basilicas and the places where the Saints lived were a humbling experience for me to see. They are an inspiration for all of us. Deacon Mike Jones

"I’ve learned of many shrines, miracles, and facts of Saints' lives that challenge me where I am spiritually and where I need to go." Deacon Bob Caspar

" I appreciate, most of all, being in the space of Assisi that St. Francis occupied. I feel a closeness to him that makes him more human to me and, therefore, more of a model to imitate. He surely loved all of God's creatures, especially those who were most needy, and all that he had was shared with them." Ann Caspar

"I enjoyed learning the following about my faith’s history and leaders: Virgin Mary’s childhood home is preserved in Italy. St. Catherine was named a doctorate of Catholic theology. Padre Pio suffered the stigmata for over 50 years and knew peoples sins before they even spoke. The First Eucharistic miracle has only one strand of chromosomes in the DNA since the Holy Ghost doesn’t have DNA.

Father Paul Beach won his first game of Kentucky Rook in Rome, Italy.

The trip was especially fun for me because I got to share it with my sister-in-law Karen Stiff." Carol Stiff Hubbard

The pilgrimage impressed me with the humanity of the saints. Walking some of the same paths walked by St. Francis was peaceful. The saints were always seeking peace for themselves. As a result they inspired their colleagues to seek peace. I realized that some of these saints had detours in their faith journey. Throughout history man has sought to understand the meaning of life. The saints were no different. They showed us that this search can lead us closer to our God.

Vatican City was the favorite part of the pilgrimage for me. Many talented people built Vatican City. These people had a great love for their Church and their God. The audience with Pope Benedict XVI was a moving experience. By reaching out to the Muslim world in his recent trip to Turkey, I believe that he will continue the ecumenical spirit of his predecessors. Joe Sipes

It would be difficult to choose just one part of the trip that I enjoyed the most. I was very impressed with the village of Assisi. I found the information on Padre Pio moving as well as interesting. Pompeii was amazing and Vatican City beautiful. Seeing the sites of Rome and the audience with Pope Benedict was wonderful. However, experiencing it all with my daughter made it even more special. Monica Lucas

Everything on the pilgrimage was wonderful and awesome. I can still see the Cistine Chapel when I close my eyes and think about it. Such magnificent art work. WOW!!! We had a great group and I enjoyed sharing those days with them. I felt so blessed to have Mass in a different church everyday. (Thanks to Father Paul and Father David)

We survived even after the taxi cab rides in Rome. But I have to mention also that even though I fell off the bus and Theresa had a start on burning the hotel down with the blow dryer the whole trip was awesome. Would love to go back on another piligrimage. I really, really appreciate Father Paul getting the pilgrimage together. Judy Sipes

OVERWHELMING, AWESOME, AMAZING, SPECTACULAR…I’m trying to find one word that best describes our pilgrimage to Italy---it’s impossible to describe in one word! Each day brought incredible sites and facts about people and places that we have all read and learned about throughout our lives as Catholics. It was very humbling to walk the very streets and wooded paths that many of them walked so many years ago. Vatican City was breathtaking, and for me the highlight of the trip was getting to be in audience with Pope Benedict XVI. I’m very grateful to have been able to take part in the pilgrimage with such a wonderful group of people. I made new friends and became reacquainted with others. It was an incredible journey and I feel that it has renewed and strengthened my catholic faith! Karen Stiff

"This Pilgrimage showed me just how ignorant I am of the history of not only my Catholic Religion, but of the history of Christianity. Father Paul is very knowledgable in this area, and has offered to provide me with reading materials so I can continue to learn." Karen Bonn

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VATICAN CITY, DEC 5, 2007 (VIS) - In today's general audience, which was held in the Paul VI Hall, Benedict XVI dedicated his remarks to the figure of St. Chromatius, bishop of Aquileia in northern Italy, "a dynamic center of Christian life located in the 'Decima regione' of the Roman empire, 'Venetia et Histria'."

"Between the middle of the third century and the early years of the fourth," said the Pope, "the persecutions of Decius, Valerian and Diocletian had produced a large number of martyrs." At the same time, the Church of Aquileia was facing "the threat of the Arian heresy."

In 381 Chromatius, then a priest and the expert assistant of Bishop Valerian of Aquileia, participated in a synod "to eliminate the last residues of Arianism in the West."

The Holy Father recalled how Chromatius was born in Aquileia in the year 345, "he was ordained a deacon then a priest and finally elected as pastor of that church in 388. Having received episcopal consecration from St. Ambrose, he dedicated himself courageously and energetically to a task of immense proportions because of the vastness of the lands entrusted to his care: the ecclesial jurisdiction of Aquileia stretched to what is currently the territory of Switzerland, Bavaria, Austria and Slovenia, even reaching as far as Hungary." The saintly bishop died an exile in Grado in 407, the same year as St. John Chrysostom.

The Holy Father indicated that of St. Chromatius' works, more than 40 sermons and over 60 commentaries on the Gospel of St. Mark survive. "He was wise master and a zealous pastor," said the Pope. "In his teaching he always began from the Word of God and to that he always returned. Among subjects particularly dear to him were, primarily, the Trinitarian mystery which he considered in its revelation throughout the history of salvation, the theme of the Holy Spirit, ... and the mystery of Christ. The incarnate Word is true God and true man: He fully assumed the human condition so as to give it His own divinity."

His "insistence on the human nature of Christ led Chromatius to speak of the Virgin Mary," said the Pope, pointing out how the saint described Mary in various ways such as "the evangelical virgin capable of accepting God," and compared her with the Church, both being "virgins and mothers." The Holy Father then explained that "Chromatius' ecclesiology is developed above all in his commentary on Matthew," where he writes that "the Church is unique, she is born from the blood of Christ."

Chromatius "knew how to address his people using a fresh, vivacious and incisive language." As a "good pastor, in troubled times such as his own marked by the barbarian incursions, he stood alongside the faithful to comfort them and open their souls to faith in God, Who never abandons His children."

In off-the-cuff remarks at the end of his talk, the Pope noted how "St. Chromatius reminds us that Advent is a time of prayer, in which we must enter into contact with God. God knows us, He knows me, He knows each of us. He loves me, He does not abandon me. Thus trustingly, let us proceed into the liturgical time that has just begun."
AG/ST. CHROMATIUS/...VIS 071205 (560)