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March 25, 2023
Solemnity of the Annunciation
Dear fellow Pilgrim,
We invite you to join us in our Carmelite Eucharistic Pilgrimage in the regions of Italy to the Eucharistic Miracle Shrines of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, Mother of Priests.
Our world particularly our Church is so wounded. The different spheres of life, the sanctity of marriage, the value and dignity of human life has been degraded.
We are in a time of grace of a most needed National Eucharistic Revival.
Our Lord Jesus invites us to return to the source and summit of our faith in the Eucharistic celebration, to restore our understanding and renew our devotion to the greatest of all mysteries, and deepen our worship in the awesomeness of the enduring and dynamic Real Presence of the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Most Holy Eucharist.
Prayerfully read the well planned day to day itinerary. Ask the Holy Spirit for discernment with the help of OHF St. Joseph, all our Carmelite Saints, and the Heavenly Hosts with our Blessed Mother Who became the first Tabernacle when She said ‘Yes’ to our Lord, and Who always tells us: “Do whatever He tells you.”
In Our Lady, the flower of Carmel,
Gloria O. Sison, OCDS
(Maria Gloria of the Eucharist)
908 623 6258
Today, we depart our home airport to connect with our overnight flight to Rome. We enjoy in-flight movies, dinner, and breakfast while aloft.
This morning, we arrive in Rome and are met by our tour guide as we board our motorcoach and proceed to St. Peter’s for an audience with Pope Francis (pending if he is in residence). Afterwards we make our way to visit the General Curia of the Discalced Carmelite Order. We will stop for lunch on our own along the way before arriving at the Generalate. We will celebrate our first pilgrims’ Mass at the Generalate Chapel and with schedule permitting will meet our Superior General before checking into our hotel and enjoying our “welcome” dinner at our hotel.
Today we venerate our Lady in a less well known apparition in Rome, where the faithful celebrated last year the 75th anniversary of a vision of the Virgin Mary. It is known as the Virgin of Revelation. Locals also call the apparition, the Virgin of the 3 Fountains because fountains are near where she appeared. In 1947, an Italian man saw the Blessed Virgin several times. Nine years later, Pope Pius XII approved the construction of a chapel on the site. Holy Mass here. Afterwards we travel to Santi Vincenzo e Anastasio a Trevi, which was constructed in 1646AD on top of the original site, which dates back centuries earlier and is adjacent to Quirinal Palace and the famous Trevi Fountain. Here, in special reliquaries are the hearts of 22 Popes from Pope Sixtus V in the 16th century to Pope Leo XIII, in the 19th century. The altar features a depiction of the martyrdom of both saints Vincent and Anastasius and the artist is actually buried on site! Following some time for veneration, we admire the square outside the church, as well as its famous fountain! We proceed to our next stop, the Church of Pudenziana, named after the daughter of a Roman Senator who befriended St. Peter, the Apostle. Both of his daughters were known to reverently wipe the blood of the martyrs slain for their faith in the nearby arenas after their torture and execution. On the floor of this church, near the alter steps, is a permanent stain of blood left by a host the celebrant carelessly let fall. Since he was having a personal crisis in believing the real presence of Jesus, the blood stain was a reminder for all. It is still visible to this day! We’ll have Holy Hour here. Dinner and overnight at our hotel.
This morning, we visit the Basilica of the Holy Cross of Jerusalem. Built in 325AD to house the “Passion Relics”, which St. Helena had brought back from the Holy Land. The floor was originally covered in dirt, not because it was unfinished but because the dirt was also brought back from Jerusalem so as to give the “pilgrim” the true experience of being in the Holy Land! Located inside and open under strict guidelines, the Chapel of the Relics, as well as the Chapel of St. Helena, hold some very amazing treasures of our Catholic faith! Following our celebration of Mass and our Holy Hour, we will have ample time for veneration before we depart for lunch on our own as we journey just south of Rome to the town of Alatri, where in 1228AD, a Eucharistic miracle happened. According to Vatican documents, a woman was asked to “steal” a consecrated host from her church by a sorceress who promised she could restore the woman’s lost love. As she received Holy Eucharist, she held it on the side of her mouth until she could remove it and place it in her handkerchief. When she reopened the handkerchief a few days later, the host had been transformed to a piece of bleeding flesh! The blood-stained handkerchief remains protected in a reliquary at the Cathedral of St. Paul, the Apostle. We conclude our day at our hotel for dinner and overnight.
Today, we travel south to the coast as we drive along the famous Amalfi Coast road. We stop in the village of Amalfi for a visit to the stunning Cathedral of Amalfi, home to the relics of St. Andrew the Apostle, the patron and protector of Amalfi. Afterwards, following a break for lunch on our own, we continue to Pompeii, the ancient Roman City of 65,000 that was destroyed yet preserved by the volcanic ash of nearby Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. While there, we visit the Pontifical Shrine of the Virgin of the Rosary of Pompeii, visited by Pope St. John Paul II shortly before his death. After the Mass here we take part in a Marian procession to Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary before departing and continue back to Rome for dinner and overnight.
This morning, we head north to the region of Tuscany. Following the start of our journey north, we will break for lunch on our own along the way. We arrive in the town of Volterra and briefly visit the Cathedral of Volterra, where in 1472AD, a Eucharistic miracle occurred, when a soldier stole an ivory chalice containing consecrated hosts from the Cathedral. Once outside, he flung the chalice against the exterior of the church but instead of the hosts falling to the ground and being corrupted, they began to float and illuminate at the same time. The documentation of this miraculous event is stored in Assisi, at the Church of St. Francis. We proceed east through the picturesque Italian countryside of Umbria, arriving in the magnificent city of Siena, which invites us to stroll through its Gothic streets. We visit the Dominican Church commemorating St. Catherine and walk down to the famous Piazza del Campo. This shell shaped square is the dramatic setting for the annual Palio bareback horserace. The piazza’s focal point is the Palazzo Pubblico, the public palace, which dates to 1250AD. While there, we also visit the Basilica of San Francesco, where an entire Eucharistic chalice was stolen in 1740AD. The 351 consecrated hosts still maintain the look of “freshly consecrated” hosts! We then proceed uphill to visit the monumental Cathedral dedicated to the Virgin Mary, where we celebrate Mass and our Holy Hour before departing for our hotel for dinner and overnight.
Today, we make our first stop in the nearby town of Perugia. In the Cathedral Church of San Lorenzo, we find the reliquary containing the “Santo Anello” or Holy Ring of Mary. Tradition has it that this is the very ring Blessed St. Joseph placed on Our Blessed Mother the day of their wedding in St. Anne and St. Joachim’s home! We have free time to venerate this sacred relic before continuing on our journey to Assisi. Our next stop is in the lower town of Assisi as we visit the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels, and the Portiuncula, Francis’ Church of the Little Portion. We thank St. Francis for two of his most notable gifts to humanity and the Catholic Church, the Nativity Scene and the Stations of the Cross. We stop for lunch on our own before we continue to the hilltop upper village of Assisi, the home of St. Francis! We make our way to the Basilica of St. Francesco for a visit before we celebrate Mass and Holy Hour. After our visit of the Basilica and the tomb of beloved St. Francis, we enjoy a walking tour of the village. Included, is a visit to the Church of St. Clare to view the crucifix which spoke to St. Francis. A significant Eucharistic miracle is attributed to St. Clare which is worth noting. In 1240AD, a band of Saracen soldiers were attacking Assisi and had reached the cloistered convent of a now sickly St. Clare. In fear that the soldiers would harm her sisters, she prayed in front of the Blessed Sacrament for protection. Tradition tells us that Our Lord assured her His protections and when she held the monstrance in front of the soldiers, they fled! We pass by the famous Temple of Minerva in the Piazza del Comune, and return to the bottom of the hill for our hotel check in and dinner. Overnight in Assisi.
This morning, we return to the lower village of Assisi and visit the Sanctuary of the Renunciation at the Church of Mary Major. This marks the spot young Francis disrobed and adopted a simple “beggar’s robe”, which became the symbol of the Franciscan Order. While there we also visit the tomb containing the glass sarcophagus of Blessed Carlo Acutis, the “Millennial Saint” who made it is passion to create a website that documented all the Eucharistic Miracle sites across the globe before he died! It is in his tribute that we have so many Eucharistic Miracle sites on our fabulous itinerary. After time for veneration, we travel southeast to the town of Cascia, where we make a brief stop at the Basilica of St. Rita. The Basilica not only contains her tomb with its glass sarcophagus, but also the relic of the Eucharistic Miracle of Cascia. In 1330AD, a local priest had been called to visit an ill woman and bring her the Holy Eucharist. Oddly, rather than carry it reverently, he simply placed the host between a few pages in his prayer book. When he arrived to give her communion, the host had turned to blood and the blood stained both pages it was placed between! We stop for lunch on our own before continuing east towards Ancona and the Adriatic coast. Our next stop, we visit and celebrate Mass at Loreto, the site of the “Santa Casa” or Holy House. Ancient tradition tells us that to avoid destruction by Muslim invaders to the Holy Land, on May 10, 1291, seven angels carried the house of the Holy Family from Nazareth to Dalmatia (modern day Trsat, Croatia) and then Italy, where it eventually rested in Loreto. After our visit, we spend some time with our Carmelites Nuns in Loreto before we continue southwards via the coastal highway to the Montesilvano Pescara area for dinner and overnight at our hotel on the shores of the enchanting Adriatic Sea.
Today, we visit and pray at Lanciano, the site of the oldest Eucharistic Miracle certified by the Catholic Church! After almost eight centuries, the Body and the Blood still maintain all the characteristics of fresh human material! Following our time in Lanciano, we continue south, stopping for lunch on our own along our route before arriving at San Giovanni Rotondo, where we celebrate Mass at the tomb of St. Padre Pio and our Holy Hour in the sanctuary on this feast day of Pope St. John XXIII. We conclude our visit and our day as we transfer to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
This morning, we celebrate Mass at a Carmelite Monastery and, following our Holy Hour, visit with our Nuns before we proceed to St. Padre Pio’s nearby hometown of Pietrelcina, where we visit his boyhood home, now a museum. We enjoy lunch on our own while there before proceeding to back to Rome, arriving in time for dinner and overnight at our hotel.
Today, we start our day in honor of Our Lady of Fatima Feast at Santuario di Nostra Signora di Fatima a San Vittorino, located on the outskirts of Rome but well worth our time. There we celebrate Mass and our Holy Hour and procession in honor of Our Blessed Mother and her appearance to those special children in Fatima a century ago. Afterwards we return to Rome to visit Vatican City to honor the late Pope Benedict XVI. Remainder of the day to be determined. This evening we enjoy our “farewell” dinner and overnight at our hotel.
Today, following Mass (depending on final flight arrangements), we transfer to the airport with renewed spirit, for our flight back home to U.S.
