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St. Patrick’s Purgatory, Ireland

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Take a spiritual journey with Deacon Tom and Mary Jane Fox to St. Patrick’s Purgatory in Lough Derg, Ireland. Today, it is Europe’s oldest pilgrimage destination offering peace and tranquility. Over the last 1500 years, pilgrims have been coming here from throughout Europe for this extraordinary spiritual experience. Tune in as we learn:

  • What do St. Patrick and purgatory have to do with each other?
  • Who would visit such an Island named Purgatory?
  • What if people I know don’t believe in Purgatory –what do I say?
  • Much, much more

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Jewel For The Journey:

By Christ’s Passion, our weakness was cured. By His Resurrection death was conquered. Still, we have to be sorrowful for the world, as well as joyful in the Lord, sorrowful in penance, joyful in gratitude. – St. Ambrose of Milan

The Prayer of St. Gertrude the Great for the Souls in Purgatory:

Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal Church, those in my own home, and within my family. Amen.

Payer for the Souls in Purgatory:

Eternal Rest grant unto them O Lord, may their souls and the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace.
Amen.

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Image Credit: CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Assisi Part III – Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels – NEW DATE

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Thank you for joining us for the conclusion to our 3 part virtual pilgrimage to Assisi, Italy. Deacon Tom and Mary Jane Fox bring us along to the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels. Built over a very small church called the Porziuncola, which translates from Italian, means “little portion.” Listen in as we learn about the rich history of this holy site!

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Jewel For The Journey: 

“The deeds you do may be the only sermon some persons will hear today.” – St. Francis of Assisi 

Top of Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels
Porziuncola
Habit of St. Francis

Assisi Part II – St. Clare & San Damiano

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Welcome back for part 2 of a 3 part virtual pilgrimage to Assisi, Italy. Our Host, Mary Jane Fox introduces us to St. Clare and San Damiano.

  • Did St. Clare come from humble beginnings?
  • Was she friends with St. Francis?
  • What is the significance of the San Damiano crucifix?

We learn about this and much more!

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JEWEL FOR THE JOURNEY

Blessed be you O God for having created me! – St. Clare of Assisi

San Damiano Crucifix
Assisi Village

Assisi Part I – St. Francis & the Basilica of St. Francis

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Join Mary Jane Fox for part 1 of a 3 part virtual pilgrimage to Assisi, Italy. You may have heard the name of this town –Assisi –a small town made famous by two people–Francis and Clare who lived there in the 13thcentury. There is so much to learn about Saints Francis and Clare, their town of Assisi, their experiences, and Franciscan spirituality! This is part I of a three-part series on Assisi. We will take a stroll through this ancient town of Assisi and finally visit the Basilica of St. Francis that contains the tomb of Francis and you will be introduced to St. Francis and learn how he encountered Christ.

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Visit PilgrimCenterofHope.org for more information.

Jewel for the Journey

Start by doing what is necessary, then what is possible, and suddenly you are doing the impossible. – St. Francis of Assisi

Front of Basilica of St. Francis
St. Francis speaking to birds.
Angela Sealana

St. Mary’s Cathedral – Sydney, Australia

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Take a spiritual journey with us ‘Down Under’ to historic St. Mary’s Cathedral of Sydney, Australia. Located near the city’s beautiful Hyde Park, this grand church—rich in symbolism and spirituality—is where Pope Benedict XVI began the Stations of the Cross during World Youth Day 2008.

Angela Sealana was there, just a few yards from the pope. Join us to hear about that experience, plus…

  • Learn about the Catholic and Australian symbols in the cathedral’s art & architecture
  • Gain encouragement from the courageous story of St. Mary of the Cross MacKillop, who lived in Sydney
  • Find hope & strength for your own daily life

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Making a Journey of Hope to a Cemetery

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How can we make our next trip to a cemetery a journey of hope? Join Deacon Tom & Mary Jane Fox for this encouraging & enlightening conversation on this truest sense of “journey of hope.”

During this program, learn:

  • What happens during a Catholic burial?
  • When visiting the grave sites of loved ones, what is good for my family & I do?
  • What is the purpose & origin of All Souls Day?
  • How can we have hope today amidst so much suffering & loss?

Closing Prayer

This is a prayer asking St. Joseph’s intercession for a holy death. He is the patron saint of the dying.

Begin with +Sign of the Cross

O glorious St. Joseph, behold I choose thee today for my special patron in life and at the hour of my death. Preserve and increase in me the spirit of prayer and fervor in the service of God. Remove far from me every kind of sin; obtain for me that my death may not come upon me unawares, but that I may have time to confess my sins sacramentally and to bewail them with a most perfect understanding and a most sincere and perfect contrition, in order that I may breathe forth my soul into the hands of Jesus and Mary. Amen.

Avila, Spain

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Come on a journey to the medieval city of Avila! The entire Old Town of Avila was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985.

For pilgrims, the city of Avila is important because of its association with the great mystic and reformer St. Teresa de Jesus, better known as St. Teresa of Avila. Teresa was a 16th century Carmelite nun who is the female patron saint of Spain and was the first woman to be honored as a Doctor of the Church.

  • Explore the Convento de Santa Teresa (Convent of St. Teresa), containing her relics, and the Monasterio de la Encarnacion (Monastery of the Incarnation) where St. Teresa lived.
  • Learn about this fascinating person; St. Teresa, who reformed the Carmelites alongside St. John of the Cross
  • Receive precious spiritual insights you can learn for your daily life from St. Teresa’s practical wisdom.

PRAYER of ST. TERESA:

Let nothing disturb you,
Let nothing frighten you,
All things are passing away;
God never changes.
Patience obtains all things.
Whoever has God lacks nothing;
God alone suffices.
Amen.

Basilica of St. Therese – Lisieux, France

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Come on a journey with Mary Jane Fox to the Basilica of St. Therese of Lisieux, the young Carmelite saint who is also known as the “Little Flower”.

Join us as we explore her home where she lived from the age of four to 15, the Carmelite Convent where she lived as a cloistered nun, and we will spiritually visit the Basilica built in her honor and where her parents are entombed.

Jewel for the Journey:
One word or a pleasing smile is often enough to raise up a saddened and wounded soul. I understood that all we accomplish, however brilliant, is worth nothing without love. – St. Therese of Lisieux

Magdala – Ancient Palestine

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Join Deacon Tom and Mary Jane Fox for a virtual journey to the ancient city of Magdala on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Tradition tells us that Jesus and the Apostles visited this fishing port and that Christ preached at the 1st century synagogue, the ruins of which were discovered in 2009.

Our journey to this crossroads of Jewish & Christian history will include:

  • a visit to the ancient ruins of the synagogue, town market, and Duc in Altum church
  • descriptions of the Sacred Art located in the chapels of the church
  • a reflection on the stone pavement where Jesus walked and encountered the Hemorrhaging Woman
  • a look at St. Mary Magdalene and what we can learn from her example

Jewel for the Journey:
The secret of happiness is to live moment by moment and to thank God for all that He, in His goodness, sends to us day after day.         — St. Gianna Molla

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Shrine Our Lady of Torreciudad – Aragon, Spain

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Travel with Robert Rodriguez and Angela Sealana to a mountain top in the Pyrenees for a visit to the modern-day Shrine of Our Lady of Torreciudad. This expansive Marian Shrine has been described as both a “work of art,” and “heaven on earth.”

Each year, thousands travel to Torreciudad to venerate an 11th century black Madonna icon which was originally enshrined in a nearby hermitage. The newer massive shrine completed in 1975 was the brainchild of St. Josemaria Escriva, founder of Opus Dei.

During this program you will:

  • Experience a virtual tour of this spectacular shrine
  • Discover why this place was so important to St. Josemaria
  • Learn how this shrine spotlights the Family and the Sacrament of Reconciliation
  • Gain spiritual insights for your daily life

Jewel for the Journey:
When you have God close to you everything is carried differently.  — St. Josemaria Escriva

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