France Pilgrimage Pictures...

View pictures of the pilgrimage to France here...

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See...Bordeaux, Lourdes, Avignon, Lyon, Ars, Paray le Monial, Lisieux and Paris

Pentecost Homily 2011

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mass in ars

on wednesday we visited ars a second day and celebrated mass at the altar of the relic of saint john vianney, beneath his body, using his own chalice. it was perhaps the most sacred and meaningful mass i have ever celebrated. it was deeply moving for both of us and the fulfillment of a long time dream. last night we came to paris for dinner.

today we took a day trip to lisieux, to see the remains and basilica of st therese. it is also a moving and beautiful sight. back in paris we visited the chapel of the miraculous medal.

i have been given so many grace filled moments and spiritual insights and opportunities for prayer on this pilgrimage. i pray that i can live the wisdom of god revealed in these holy places.

i have prayed for the intentions sent to me and fo all my family friends and brother priests at lources ars lisieux paray le monial lisieux and paris, in a number of sacred shrines and churches.

tonight is our last night on the town in paris and tomorrow we fly home. thanks for following our pilgrimage. keep visiting the blog forma link to pictures...i hope. ;)

god bless you!

Ars Mass

today we also took a side trip to paray le monial to visit the tomb and basilica of st margaret mary. it was beautiful and i was able to offer prayers for my mother...margaret...and my family. her body is in the church where jesus revealed to her his sacred heart and she is the origin of the sacred heart devotion so many people love. this pilgrimage is incredibly exciting and grace filled!

tomorrow we will celebrate a private mass on the altar at the tomb of st john vianney at four a m est...ten here. a priest at the shrine said people can watch on the website/webcam of the shrine...arsnet...but i cant find it. youre welcome to try. please join us in prayer at ten/four and make a spiritual communion. god bless you!

Ars

this morning we visited ars...the highlight and major purpose of our trip and a sacred place i have desired to see for over a decade. words cannot fully describe its significance nor that of the visit to me as a priest. it took us a while to find the tiny village...appropriate since vianney himself had trouble. :) when we arrived and almost life sized statue greeted us...i held the cure's hand and almost cried. i was finally in ars! i saw the confessional st john vianney used, touched the pulpit from which he preached and the cabinet where he vested, toured the house where he lived and saw the school he founded. we walked to the statue which commemorates the boy antoine telling the cure how to find ars and walked the road he would have walked into the town. i had a beautiful confession and we concelebrated mass in the basilica that is now built around vianney's original parish church. i also spent a good bit of time in quiet prayer. the nuns at the shrine and the people in the town are wonderful and seem to have absorbed vianney's spirit and keep his legacy alive. i beg god to be a holy priest like john vianney.

avignon

yesterday and this morning we visited avignon...the city where the popes lived for a century when they moved from rome for largely political reasons. the papal palace is incredible! we ate our lunch on the rooftop...in a cafe built on what was once an audience reception area for the popes guests. avignon is still a walled city...as in medieval times. it is a truly beautiful and deeply historic place.

tonight we are in lyon and we drive to ars in our rented mercedes benz...a mistake in the resrvation got us a cheap upgrade because it was the only automatic tranny left! :) i canno wait to see ars. i have waited eleven years...ever since i heard of it from msgr farley at the pontifinium.

pray for me

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im sorry i cant post pics here...when i get home i will make them available.

god bless and good night!

candlelight procession two

i apologize for the technical difficulties...

so we concelebrated mass at eleven pm in the grotto where bernadette saw mary! it was in italian so msgr was in his glory...especially reciting part of the canon. adoration flowed from the brief liturgy until midnight. what a spectacular day of peaceful prayer and devotion! i am imprssed by the reverence of the faithful and the devotion of the priests. it is wonderful to be catholic!

sunday...blessed trinity sunday!

today is the festal anniversary of my first mass.

we concelebratec in the upper church and are now preparing to head off to avignon...more there...

candlelight procession

after attending mass we had pizza for supper and then joined in the nightly candlelight procession. i saw priests and a bishop up front so we we ran up and snuck in. what a blessing that we did. we were able to pray the rosary with our brother priests all around the grounds...and then sit up front on the church steps with the priests for the final prayers. the bishop invited all the priests to join in giving the blessing! its cool to be a priest! :) at the end i asked for the bishops blessing personally...again in latin. jube domne benedicere. it was deeply moving to see all the sick people being wheeled up for the blessing. what a testament to faith and hope that they come streaming in seeking healing! we visited the adoration chapel for a bit. then at eleven pm we oncelebrated mass...my third mass and second concelebration mof the day...but

saturday in lourdes

yesterday after our delicious three hour lunch we boarded the train for lourdes. the countryside was lovely...dragging the fifty two pound suitcase now with a broken wheel from the cobblestones a mile to the train station was less lovely. :)

this morning i awoke and donned my cassock for a walk to the sanctuary of lourdes. the basilica is stunning and i concelebrated masst ten. it was in french but i know how it goes. :) when another priest pointed me to a station for communion i said the formula in latin...corpus christi. all the priests wave and smile at each other though we speak different languages and cannot talk when we meet on the streets or grotto grounds. praise god for the brotherhood of the priesthood. they made me feel welcome and beloved in the sacristy. i lit a candle at the grotto and prayed for all the intentions given to me by family and friends. i stood in the line with everyone else to tough the stone...and filled a bottle with holy water. what a glorious morning of prayer. msgr and i met up for lunch...a little nap...and then back to the shrine...

lunch friday...

this morning we found saint paul church...beautiful mass...extraordinary music...thank god for the dominicans!!! it was a lovely liturgical experience. we walked a bit more in bordeaux and are having lunch at a wine bar...goat cheese...prisciutto...local vintages...just perfect!

thursday...day three...

the five hour wine tour was lovely! we visited a few chateau and tasted exquisite bordeaux wines. im learning slowly how the french wine system works. the architecture here is so beautiful. we visited the cathedral of st andre...facade begun in ninth century and the rest completed in the twelfth...what an architectural difference...and what marvels faith can inspire without technology! lamb stew for dinner...provincial and delicious. walking the city is delightful. its a different world and its enriching to see how another culture lives. the wine tour guide and our british companions were lovely. i couldnt help but defend america against false impressions of how we do not appreciate the special relationship we have with england...america is not necesarily presented authentically by those who happen to represent us publicly. more later....

pilgrimage day one and two...

internet access temporary and sketchy. small screen so please dont mind the poor grammar. i hope this keeps working...keep checking back... we left tuesday and the plane had one bad fuel pump. we sat for five hours...flew to ny jfk...then switched planes for the trans atlantic flight. allergies affected by the recycled air. with train all in all 21 hours of travel to reach bordeaux. the lord wants me to do penance for my sins. :) restaurant on the place de victoire was fabulous...steak and local red wine of course. today...thursday...had a good rest and breakfast...were leaving soon to walk the city and we have a five hour tour of wineries in the afternoon. the adventure continues... i am reading three books...two small...fifteen days with the cure d ars and reflections of msgr marini the papal master of ceremonies...and one big book...bonhoeffer. i went to a french bathroom and found sweedish toilets and british seat covers...truly a global economy! our delyed delta plane was shuffled between gates and then parked on the tarmac...we walked down steps to a bus...when the bus parked at the terminal they opened one of six doors...perhaps a bias against the americans who inconveniened their schedule

Homily Solemnity of the Ascension

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