On Sept. 27, Bishop Luis Zarama and nearly 100 pilgrams from the Diocese of Raleigh embarked on a 12-day tour of the Marian shrines of France, Portugal and Spain.
As the group honors St. Bernadette in Lourdes, visits the homes of the visionaries in Fatima and enjoys time in Madrid and Barcelona, we will be sharing photos and insights on this spiritual journey in which the group will also celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the Diocese of Raleigh.
Itinerary
Fatima
Pilgrims visit the Basilica and Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima and the birthplaces of Francisco, Jacinta and Lucia, to whom the Virgin appeared for the first time on May 13, 1917. They participate in diocesan 100th anniversary celebrations and join the International Rosary Procession.
Guadalupe
The journey continues to Guadalupe (Caceres) in the province of the Cathedral of San Juan – a very impressive building built between the 13th and 16th centuries. The shrine to Our Lady of Guadalupe was the most important Marian shrine in the medieval kingdom of Castile. The original effigy, a Romanesque black Madonna, is almost completely occluded by her pyramidal robes. The cathedral is predominantly gothic and Romanesque, with three aisles and twelve inner chapels. The Monastery of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Madrid
Pilgrimg travel into Madrid where they visit highlights of Madrid, capital of Spain, including the Gran Via Plaza de España, the Viaduct, Plaza Major, passing by the Bull Ring, Independence and Cibeles Squares, the University, and the Paseo de la Castellana. They celebrate Mass at the cathedral.
Zaragoza
Traversing Spain, pilgrims arrive in Zaragoza, where they visit the Cathedral-Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar. The basilica venerates the Blessed Virgin, Our Lady of the Pillar, praised as Mother of the Hispanic Peoples by Saint John Paul II. It is the first known church dedicated to Mary in history. Local traditions take the history of this basilica to the dawn of Christianity in Spain. It is attributed to an apparition of the Virgin Mary to Saint James the Great, the Apostle, who brought Christianity to Spain. This is the only reported apparition of Mary said to have occurred before her Assumption. The city itself, which was founded by the Romans, boasts luxuriant vegetation and many cascades and grottos, making it a miniature Switzerland in the middle of arid upper Aragon.
Lourdes
In Lourdes, pilgrims spend time in devotion to Our Lady of Lourdes by celebrating Mass at the Grotto. They visit the shrine and take a walking tour of Lourdes, visiting Boly Mill, where St. Bernadette was born, the Cachot, formerly used as a jail, where she lived during the apparitions, and the parish church. Evening offers a torchlight Marian procession. Free time allows for private devotions, Eucharistic procession, the Blessing of the Sick and the legendary, healing waters of the miraculous Lourdes spring, as well as visits to the baths or walking the Stations of the Cross.
Montserrat
Traversing the Pyrenees southward, the group enters northern Spain, driving to Montserrat on the outskirts of Barcelona and celebrating Mass at the monastery housing the Black Virgin of Montserrat, one of the nation’s most revered religious icons.
Barcelona
After celebrating Mass at the cathedral, the group tours the Gothic quarter, bisected by the famous Ramblas, and see important new developments at the pleasure port, where many of the Olympic events were held in 1992. This last stop of the tour offers: a spectacular view from the top of the Montjuic hill, a pass by the exchange, a visit to the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia, the still uncompleted masterpiece of Antoni Gaudi, and a visit to UNESCO World Heritage “Park Guell,” one of Gaudi’s Masterpieces of landscape architecture.
Photos
