To be a pilgrim

Why do we go on a pilgrimage? What moves us? How do we prepare? How would it be like to see friends again after all these years? What awaits us at our destination?

I had these considerations in mind as I embarked on a 12-day Marian and Jubilee of Hope pilgrimage with friends I have known in Beijing almost 20 years ago and with friends I have only met in cyberspace. The rhythm of our life is of a coming and going. The bond of our sisterhood conjoins with the fragility of separation: we either go back to a home country or move to a new posting. But we always have had a common ground. It’s not a place, but a ritual: every Tuesday when we gather virtually to pray the rosary, with and through Mother Mary.

In our Catholic tradition, the rosary is a devotion where each Hail Mary echoes as a sublime refrain, while we contemplate on the life of Jesus through its mysteries. These mysteries are also resonances of our individual lives – joyful, sorrowful, glorious yet always illumined by light. A light that shines with hope – in the belief of a living God and a blessed mother who loves us beyond our faults.

Apart from paying homage to the Blessed Virgin in her places of apparition, we participated in the celebration of the Jubilee of Hope. The DIY trip was a year in the making, mostly organized by our Europe-based friends. Someone has already done similar trips in the past so her advice on what flights to take, what itinerary to follow or which other churches or places to visit proved extremely valuable. Technology was of much help in booking flights, train rides, foyers, hotels, dining places and side tours.

There were 15 of us yet our numbers varied when one or two opted to skip certain places they had visited in the past.  Two of us flew out of the US with the rest coming from Austria, Canada, China, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Singapore and the Philippines, with our Paris-based friend welcoming us to the city of love, the first leg of our trip.

In her opening talk, our sister Maricel Camacho mentioned some of our aspirations as pilgrims. To lift our special intentions, to pray for sick family members and friends, to atone for our past sins or to simply get closer to our Lord and the Blessed Mother. These are my goals, too, and I prayed in earnest for the Philippines, for our people and for the end of wars.

In Paris, we basked at the grandeur of mass celebrated in French at the Notre Dame Cathedral. I followed the readings in English through an app then kept my phone for the remaining of the liturgy. I thought of how our Lord speaks to us in a language our heart understands. For me, God’s message of love reverberated through the sacred hymns, at greetings of peace, from a smile of a fellow pilgrim and through our French-speaking friend Susan, who after mass translated to us the bishop-celebrant’s homily that centered on perseverance in prayer, on mercy and the transformative power of hope.

From the Chapel of Miraculous Medal, where the Virgin Mary is believed to have appeared thrice to St. Catherine Laboure (her incorrupt body lies in a tomb at the right side of the church nave), to the Basilica of Sacre Coure nestled on top of Montmartre, also known as the “Hill of Martyrs,” up to the quaint town of Lourdes where the Blessed Mother is said to have appeared 18 times to St. Bernadette Soubirous, we knew that a supernatural force, one that’s beyond our human understanding, guided and protected us all along.

Tired and sleep deprived, I marveled at how I would wake up each morning energized and joyful, looking forward to the events of the day. As we gathered at the sanctuary, we realized it was a Tuesday – the day of the week when we would log in from various time zones to pray the rosary virtually. On that crisp autumn morning in Lourdes, we were together, sisters in faith with our Blessed Mother palpably present in our midst while the nippy air billowed, and the golden leaves danced. We held hands, said our prayers of thanksgiving as our eyes welled and our hearts swelled.

We spent our time in Lourdes attending masses, following in the footsteps of St. Bernadette through a guided tour, joining the Blessed Sacrament and torchlight processions, where the rosary was solemnly recited in different languages. I treasured my personal moments of contemplation, searching inwardly, at times asking how to consistently keep my inner peace amidst the world’s noise and life’s uncertainty. Then I turned my gaze to the grotto of Massabielle where Our Lady stands. I smiled and said to myself, to be a pilgrim is to trust.

The late Pope Francis has designated the 2025 Holy Year as a time to renew ourselves as pilgrims of hope. We fulfilled our obligation on “this special year of reconciliation, pilgrimage and coming home” as we visited, passed through and said our prayers while entering the holy doors of Rome’s major basilicas: St. Peter, St. Mary Major, St. John Lateran and St. Paul’s Outside the Walls.

To enter St. Peter’s Square, we lined up as early as 6 a.m. to join thousands of pilgrims from around the world for the 9:30 a.m. papal general audience. More than three hours later, our patience paid off when we saw Pope Leo from a much closer range! The pope mobile stopped for a few seconds by the area where our group stood. We witnessed how his eyes scanned our bright blue banner that read: Ladies of the Rosary. Then he waved. Ecstatic, we screamed and chanted “Pope Leo, we love you!” The jubilant crowd nearby cheered along.

To be a pilgrim is to be hopeful, exultant and grateful.

Point of view To be a pilgrim

Dorothy Delgado Novicio

Why do we go on a pilgrimage? What moves us? How do we prepare? How would it be like to see friends again after all these years? What awaits us at our destination?

I had these considerations in mind as I embarked on a 12-day Marian and Jubilee of Hope pilgrimage with friends I have known in Beijing almost 20 years ago and with friends I have only met in cyberspace. The rhythm of our life is of a coming and going. The bond of our sisterhood conjoins with the fragility of separation: we either go back to a home country or move to a new posting. But we always have had a common ground. It’s not a place, but a ritual: every Tuesday when we gather virtually to pray the rosary, with and through Mother Mary.

In our Catholic tradition, the rosary is a devotion where each Hail Mary echoes as a sublime refrain, while we contemplate on the life of Jesus through its mysteries. These mysteries are also resonances of our individual lives – joyful, sorrowful, glorious yet always illumined by light. A light that shines with hope – in the belief of a living God and a blessed mother who loves us beyond our faults.

Apart from paying homage to the Blessed Virgin in her places of apparition, we participated in the celebration of the Jubilee of Hope. The DIY trip was a year in the making, mostly organized by our Europe-based friends. Someone has already done similar trips in the past so her advice on what flights to take, what itinerary to follow or which other churches or places to visit proved extremely valuable. Technology was of much help in booking flights, train rides, foyers, hotels, dining places and side tours.

There were 15 of us yet our numbers varied when one or two opted to skip certain places they had visited in the past.  Two of us flew out of the US with the rest coming from Austria, Canada, China, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Singapore and the Philippines, with our Paris-based friend welcoming us to the city of love, the first leg of our trip.

In her opening talk, our sister Maricel Camacho mentioned some of our aspirations as pilgrims. To lift our special intentions, to pray for sick family members and friends, to atone for our past sins or to simply get closer to our Lord and the Blessed Mother. These are my goals, too, and I prayed in earnest for the Philippines, for our people and for the end of wars.

In Paris, we basked at the grandeur of mass celebrated in French at the Notre Dame Cathedral. I followed the readings in English through an app then kept my phone for the remaining of the liturgy. I thought of how our Lord speaks to us in a language our heart understands. For me, God’s message of love reverberated through the sacred hymns, at greetings of peace, from a smile of a fellow pilgrim and through our French-speaking friend Susan, who after mass translated to us the bishop-celebrant’s homily that centered on perseverance in prayer, on mercy and the transformative power of hope.

From the Chapel of Miraculous Medal, where the Virgin Mary is believed to have appeared thrice to St. Catherine Laboure (her incorrupt body lies in a tomb at the right side of the church nave), to the Basilica of Sacre Coure nestled on top of Montmartre, also known as the “Hill of Martyrs,” up to the quaint town of Lourdes where the Blessed Mother is said to have appeared 18 times to St. Bernadette Soubirous, we knew that a supernatural force, one that’s beyond our human understanding, guided and protected us all along.

Tired and sleep deprived, I marveled at how I would wake up each morning energized and joyful, looking forward to the events of the day. As we gathered at the sanctuary, we realized it was a Tuesday – the day of the week when we would log in from various time zones to pray the rosary virtually. On that crisp autumn morning in Lourdes, we were together, sisters in faith with our Blessed Mother palpably present in our midst while the nippy air billowed, and the golden leaves danced. We held hands, said our prayers of thanksgiving as our eyes welled and our hearts swelled.

We spent our time in Lourdes attending masses, following in the footsteps of St. Bernadette through a guided tour, joining the Blessed Sacrament and torchlight processions, where the rosary was solemnly recited in different languages. I treasured my personal moments of contemplation, searching inwardly, at times asking how to consistently keep my inner peace amidst the world’s noise and life’s uncertainty. Then I turned my gaze to the grotto of Massabielle where Our Lady stands. I smiled and said to myself, to be a pilgrim is to trust.

The late Pope Francis has designated the 2025 Holy Year as a time to renew ourselves as pilgrims of hope. We fulfilled our obligation on “this special year of reconciliation, pilgrimage and coming home” as we visited, passed through and said our prayers while entering the holy doors of Rome’s major basilicas: St. Peter, St. Mary Major, St. John Lateran and St. Paul’s Outside the Walls.

To enter St. Peter’s Square, we lined up as early as 6 a.m. to join thousands of pilgrims from around the world for the 9:30 a.m. papal general audience. More than three hours later, our patience paid off when we saw Pope Leo from a much closer range! The pope mobile stopped for a few seconds by the area where our group stood. We witnessed how his eyes scanned our bright blue banner that read: Ladies of the Rosary. Then he waved. Ecstatic, we screamed and chanted “Pope Leo, we love you!” The jubilant crowd nearby cheered along.

To be a pilgrim is to be hopeful, exultant and grateful.