Pilrgimage, National Shrine

[Michael_C]

I went on my first pilgimage. It was a trip from New York to the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculte Conception. I’ve been on retreats but never a pilgrimage. The experience was awesome. The prayers and songs set the mood for when we arrived. I found the Shrine to be so beautiful and holy. When I saw the chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows I was moved to tears it was so moving. We were there 6 hours and it wasn’t enough. With COnfession, the rosary and Mass my wife and I didn’t even get to see the downstairs fully. We intend to go back.

Anyone have any comments on Pilgimages or the Basilica?

 

[baltobetsy]

I just love the National Shrine. My husband and I go there from Baltimore whenever we both have a free Sunday (not often - I’m a professional chorister). My favorite part is the Crypt Church downstairs. I could just stay there and pray all day, and sometimes I do. My husband goes around taking pictures and I just settle in the Crypt. I also like to go to Confession - you never know what kind of priest you’ll end up with. I just pray that he’ll be the Voice of the Shepherd for me - whatever God wants to say to me through him.

One day we went when there was to be exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. For some reason it could not be held in the large Crypt church, so there was a procession to the Lourdes chapel with the Blessed Sacrament, and exposition there. That was wonderful, too.

Have you ever heard the choir? They’re small and professional and always do a full Mass setting by a serious composer and two anthems. I dream of singing with them. The only thing that keeps me from doing it is where I live.

And the bookstore is fabulous, too. And the gift shop. And even the cafeteria. Now you have me wanting to go back!

I hope you can visit again soon. Until then, they do have a website where you can get regular updates on happenings there. They have a wonderful section about the installation of the new mosaics in the Redemption Dome.

Betsy

 

[Veritas41]

The only pilgrimage I’ve been on was a visit to the Shrine of the Blessed Sacrament in Hanceville, Alabama (Mother Angelica’s monastery is there). It is absolutely beautiful, and the Mass is the most reverent and beautiful I have ever attended. The nuns sounded like angels singing, and even my husband was impressed, something that doesn’t happen easily . I would love to go back some day and would encourage others to go there as well.

I am hoping to go on a pilgrimage in the spring to Poland and Czechoslovakia to visit the important places in the lives of three saints very dear to me: St. Faustina Kowalska, St. Maximilian Kolbe and John Paul II.