Italy Pilgrimage with Dan & Stephanie Burke

Embark on our pilgrimage with an overnight flight to Rome. Enjoy meals and refreshments served on the plane.

Welcome to Rome! After gathering our bags and transferring to our hotel, we will prepare for an evening Mass before our Welcome Dinner. Overnight in Rome.

Today we begin our pilgrimage by visiting the Church of Santa Maria della Vittoria, known for its display of Bernini’s Ecstasy of Saint Teresa sculpture from the 17th century. We will then take a panoramic bus tour of Ancient Rome, the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, and ruins of ancient government buildings. Before noon, we will transfer via deluxe motorcoach into the lower valley of Assisi. Here we will visit the beautiful Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels, home of the Chapel Portiuncula, Francis’ Church of the Little Portion, where he lived and worked after founding the Franciscan order, and where the Blessed Mother appeared to him in 1216. We will have Mass and then visit the miracle garden of the thornless rose bush and the cave where the saint retreated for prayer. Dinner and overnight in Assisi.

Following breakfast, we will visit the quaint hilltop birthplace of St. Francis that still retains the atmosphere of the early 1200s, when St. Francis began his ministry. We will proceed to the Basilica of St. Francis where we will celebrate Mass and pray by his tomb. Next, we will visit Chiesa Nuova, built in 1615 on the site of the birthplace of St. Francis. Then, we will visit the crucifix which spoke to St. Francis, saying, “Francis, rebuild my Church,” and which is now displayed at the Church of St. Clare. St. Clare was the foundress of the Order of Poor Clares. Here, we will venerate her tomb and pray for her intercession. In the year 1240, a band of Saracen soldiers were attacking Assisi and had reached the cloistered convent of a now sickly St. Clare. In fear that the soldiers would harm her sisters, she prayed in front of the Blessed Sacrament for protection. Tradition tells us that Our Lord assured her His protections and when she held the monstrance in front of the soldiers, they fled! This afternoon, at St. Mary Major in the Shrine of the Renunciation, we will visit the glass sarcophagus of Blessed Carlo Acutis, the “Millennial Saint” who created a website documenting all the world’s Eucharistic Miracle sites, including the one of St. Clare just mentioned. Dinner and overnight in Assisi.

We will depart Assisi this morning enroute to San Giovanni Rotondo. Along the way, we will visit the town of Loreto and celebrate Mass at the Basilica Della Santa Casa, housing The Holy House of Loreto. Tradition tells us that to avoid destruction by Muslim invaders to the Holy Land, on May 10, 1291, seven angels carried the house of the Holy Family from Nazareth to Dalmatia (modern day Trsat, Croatia) and then Italy, where it eventually rested in Loreto. Continuing our journey, we will visit Lanciano, the site of a Eucharistic Miracle from the eighth century. Finally, we will head to San Giovanni Rotondo. Dinner and overnight in San Giovanni Rotondo.

Today is dedicated to the town where St. Padre Pio lived for most of his life. We will visit the church of Santa Maria Della Grazie and the Shrine of St. Padre Pio, where the tomb of St. Padre Pio is located, and celebrate Mass. In the afternoon, we will visit the Sanctuary of Monte Sant’Angelo, a church built over a cave where St. Michael the Archangel appeared in the fifth century. Dinner and overnight in San Giovanni Rotondo.

We start the day with breakfast.
All roads lead to Rome… We will depart for Rome and enroute visit the beautiful Monte Cassino Abbey, founded by Saint Benedict in 529, where we will celebrate our Mass on the Feast of Pentecost. Next, we will drive to Alatri to visit The Cathedral of St. Paul the Apostle, the site of another Eucharistic Miracle from the year 1228. Upon arrival in Rome, we will check-in to our hotel and have some time at leisure before dinner. Overnight in Rome.

After breakfast this morning, we will start the day at Saint Cecilia’s Basilica before continuing onto the Basilica of St. Bartholomew and then the Museum of the Holy Souls in Purgatory. After some leisure time, we will continue our tour at the Church of Saint Maria sopra Minerva where we will venerate the tomb of St. Catherine of Siena, a Doctor of the Church who offered life for unity of the Church during the Great Schism. We will also visit the Basilica of the Holy Cross of Jerusalem, home to many Passion relics rescued from the Holy Land by St. Helena in the fourth century, including relics of the True Cross and one of the nails used in the Crucifixion. Finally, we will visit the Church of the Gesù, the mother church of the Jesuit Order. Dinner and overnight in Rome.

After breakfast, we will visit the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, the Basilica of St. Mary Major, and the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran. Here, we will have the opportunity to climb the Lateran Steps and attend Mass. After lunch, we will visit the Capuchin Crypts (subject to availability) and afterwards we will make our way to visit the General Curia of the Discalced Carmelite Order. Dinner and overnight in Rome.

In the morning, we will head to Saint Peter’s Square for the general audience with Pope Francis (subject to the pope’s schedule). Afterward, we will have a private Mass nearby. Following a brief lunch break, we will embark on a tour of the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica. This afternoon we will also visit San Gregorio Magno al Cielo Convent, the Roman motherhouse of the Missionaries of Charity, where Saint Teresa of Calcutta stayed when she visited her sisters in Rome (pending approval). Farewell dinner and overnight in Rome.

With a renewed sense of pilgrimage, we will transfer to Rome Fiumicino Airport and board our return flight(s) home.