Day 3 - Friday Penance

Our afternoon was time for some Friday Penance. It all began with catching a couple of buses out to the Scala Sancti (the Holy Stairs), which are believed to the steps that Jesus climbed up to Pilate. There are 28 steps in total and the only way to climb these steps is on one's knees and they are not the smoothest set of steps. But a bit of pain and penance does us a lot of good, so we're told. I believe each one of us found it a very moving experience.

After the Scala Sancti we crosses over the road to visit San Giovanni Laterano (St John Lateran). It is the Diocesan Basilica of Rome and the Pope's Church. We spent some time praying there before walking on over to Santa Maria Maggiore. Santa Maria Maggiore is beautiful and is situated on one of the hills of Rome.

On our way to Santa Maria Maggiore we stopped in for a moment at St Alfonso's Church since we have our own Alfonso with us. The Church of St Alfonso is also a shrine to Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

From Santa Maria Maggiore we started the 'short' walk to meet some friends of Father's who had invited us over for supper. Our 'short' walk turned into an hour long march as we realised it was further out the road than first thought! Oh well, on the bright side we had walked off whatever dinner we were about to receive! We had a wonderful time with Father's friends who were very welcoming to us.

This trip has been fantastic, there really is so much to see in Rome and although we are only here a short time we are seeing loads. Keep checking back for updates of what we are doing and hopefully when we get back we will update with more information in some of the places we have seen.

Day 1-Finding our way around

As mentioned above we had Mass at 3pm. Isn't it handy to have a priest in your group!? We grabbed some lunch after Mass and then began our tour of Rome. We went to St Peter's Square first so we could all see St Peter's, the sun was shining so brightly it was difficult to look up at The basilica. From St Peter's we began to walk up one of Rome's seven hills, passing the North American College (NAC) on our way, where we shall be having Mass and lunch on Sunday morning. At the top of the hill we sat down and looked out over the city of Rome. Fr Alex explained some of the history of Rome to us and pointed out some of the main sites of Rome.

From there we walked down through some of the city visiting different Churches on our way. We visited Santa Maria in Trastevere, which was so beautiful. We took time to pray in the small Church that is built where St Benedict's residence was in Rome. We visited a few other Churches as we wandered around Rome, each one of them was beautiful and truly fit for giving glory to God. The artwork and general design of each Church is unbelievable, there are no words to describe it.

As we walked around we crossed over a bridge which dates from (oops I forget the date it said on the sign but definitely before the time of Jesus) - which means Peter and Paul and others would have actually walked on that exact bridge! Really brings it all alive to you to think that not only are you standing where they would have stood but you are actually standing on what they would have stood!

To finish the evening off we had a lovely supper and then it was back to the hotel to get some much needed sleep.

Catholicism Course

Last night we held our first session of the Catholicism Course, which appears to have been a successful night.  The evening began with a short social time and a chance to grab some soup and snacks before the actual presentation began at 7pm.  After a hymn and prayer we started the DVD of Fr Robert Barron.  In this session it was looking at 'the revelation of God become man.'  Fr Robert Barron focused on and explained the conviction of the Catholic Faith that Jesus of Nazareth is the promised Messiah.  He showed how Jesus fulfils the four tasks of the Messiah and how it is proclaimed by the Church.  Once we had watched the DVD we broke off into smaller groups where we could discuss the contents of the DVD, how it spoke to each of us where we are in our lives and work together on answering some questions, including the question that Jesus Himself asked His disciples - 'Who do you say that I am?'  We were joined by Bishop Peter Elliott, Auxiliary Bishop of Melbourne in Australia.  Bishop Elliott and Fr Alexander took some time at the end of the night to answer questions that had arose during the group discussions.

Bishop Elliott answering some questions

Although we have completed the first session of the course we are still allowing others to register.  So if you are interested or know someone who is please email Ciara at spes@stpatricksoho.org

'No Pain No Gain'

'No Pain No Gain' - this beautiful truth became more familiar to us than ever before on Sunday 29th October when we joined a group of pilgrims on their 20-mile-in-one-day (!) walk from Westmister Cathedral to Hampton Wick (Kingston). For some of them it was a reunion after their walking pilgrimage to Walsingham in the summer, but for the rest (including us - SPES) it was a venture into the unknown.





Some of the group waiting to cross the road

The pilgrimage was organised by Sr Hyacinthe and Joanna Bogle - two women inexhaustible in their passion for walking and bringing people to God. We first attended Mass, then marched along the Thames path and after 7 hours reached our destination which was the Shrine of Our Lady of Westminster. This is where we gladly offered Our Lady our blisters and sore feet.

Striding along listening to Sr Hyacinthe

However incredible it sounds, the pleasure of walking 20 miles brought us many joys - we made new friends, enjoyed the picturesque views but, most importantly, prayed for the conversion of England and gave witness to our faith by saying the Rosary and listening to Sr Hyacinthe's talks on the Church. Being in the company of Catholics of all ages and walks of life strengthened our faith and gave us the sense that although we're all different we form one community in Our Lord Jesus. Praise be to Him!


Still smiling at the end (even after our train was cancelled!)

SPES @ Medjugorje Youth Festival Part 2

Wednesday 1st August was the official start of the Youth Festival.  We started off our day in the usual way with breakfast, prayer and Mass.  Medjugorje had already been busy with people since we arrived but there seemed to be more and more young people arriving each day.  Around the Church it was starting to get more crowded and colourful as each group of young people brought with them their flags and banners.  There was also a giant helium Rosary floating around all week, it looked awesome!

As the Youth Festival was not kicking off until the evening time we joined an afternoon talk and presentation by Pure in Heart (http://www.pureinheartireland.com), an International Catholic Movement of young adults who through prayer and friendship, strive together to learn, live and share the truth, beauty and meaning of human sexuality.  The presentation covered many topics including: What is Love?; Dating and relationships; Sex and sexuality; Modesty and Respect; and Chastity - the forgotten virtue.  Although I have met the team and heard the presentation many times there is always something new in it for me and their personal testimonies are so inspiring.

The Youth Festival began with a time of welcome from each of the countries who were in Medjugorje for the Youth Festival.  Our group were given the opportunity to do the welcome for Scotland so armed with some Scottish flags, the signpost for Scotland and the all important Scottish accent they headed for the main stage to encourage all the young people to have a brave heart and let Jesus give them His Freedom!  Following all the welcomes there was an International Mass.  One of the most important things you need if you ever go to Medjugorje is your radio, otherwise you’ll be lost.  Thankfully with a simple little radio you will get the translation for everything that is happening.  After Mass there was a beautiful time of Adoration and reflection.  The young people were encouraged to love God now, to love Him wherever we are in life, that if we wait until we are saints or holier then we may never love Him.  Jesus is standing knocking at the door of our hearts, waiting for us to open it and to let Him in and to love Him.


Thursday was the first full day of the Youth Festival.  Both the morning and afternoon sessions were packed with lectures, music and amazing testimonies.  The choir, made up of young people from many different countries, was fantastic.  And how could we not mention the Dancing Nuns, absolutely amazing.  They had us all up on our feet dancing to all the songs.  Although the young people came from many different nations, countries and languages we were united through our faith, the celebration of the Sacraments and song.

Medjugorje has been called the ‘confessional of the world’; this is very true.  Everywhere you look there are queues of people waiting to go to confessions and although this year a new block of confessional was opened there were still many priests hearing confessions outside.  Many people come to Medjugorje looking for something and feeling overburdened, many want to get close to God but do not know how.  Through the loving care of our Mother Mary we find the courage to respond to her call and to allow her to guide us to her Son.   Our desire is to better our lives in the love of Christ.  We kneel before Jesus and we ask Him to transform and change us.  Through the graces that are poured out in confession, Mass, and Adoration we are strengthen in our desire to follow Christ.

Word on Fire ministries: CATHOLICISM (mid-way point)

What does it mean to be Catholic? If that question is echoing in your head, do not be worried! It is a good sign that suggests we are getting serious about our Faith. Faith is such a gift that we need to hand over to others. And... here we are, between 80 and 100 Catholics and non-Catholics gather together in St. Patricks Community Centre to deepen their Faith or discover the truth every Wednesday (with a one-off session yesterday!). Yes, this program called Catholicism is making headway across parishes and dioceses all over the world – even as you read. It was developed and produced by Word On Fire ministries and is hosted by New Evangelisation advocate Fr. Robert Barron. Each episode of the 10 session course focuses on a specific aspect of the Catholic faith, for example, Jesus is Lord or the communion of saints.

We open the sessiosn with music and prayer, then an introduction is given from Fr. Richard Nesbitt, who is the vocations director to the Diocese of Westminster and also heading the course . Afterward, we watch the film together, which leads on to group discussions – which are an essential part of the pilgrimage of Catholicism. We ae divided into 9 groups for reflection, discussion and passing the Faith onto one another.

The Catechesis, even though really good, is singular in direction. We realise that our Faith is relational, and has vertical and horizontal components. Here, we have lovely group which is pretty much a family in Christ. We have been given the grace to develop our Christian friendships with each other and grow in it. Thanks be to God, people look enthusiastic, are full of spirit; and obviously that is the work of the Holy Spirit that we have been seeing so far. For this reason, we think that the small group sharing is one of the most important aspects of this course.

We are grateful because two weeks ago, Fr. Robert Barron came along to St. Patrick’s. He gave some talks, and a Q and A session to the audiences about the Faith and also some “behind the scene” stories. He talked about His experience involved with this project related with the new evangelisation.What led him to produce this series, he shared,was his concern about the culture of the world, and his desperation about what to do to evangelise. Based on that situation, His friend asked him, “What would you do?”. We might ask that question as well to ourselves, “What would I do to pass on the Faith, Hope and Love of Christ and His Church?”. Let’s think about the small things in our daily life, but we do it with a big heart! God bless...

Carmel