The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches us that in the new covenant, prayer is the living relationship of the children of God with their Father, who is good beyond measure, with His Son Jesus Christ and with the Holy Spirit. The grace of the kingdom is “the union of the entire holy and royal Trinity … with the whole human spirit.” (St. Gregory of Nazianzus, Oratio)
Thus, the life of prayer is the habit of being in the presence of the thrice-holy God and in communion with Him. Through baptism, we have already been united with Christ. Prayer is Christian insofar as it is communion with Christ and extends throughout the Church, which is His body. Its dimensions are those of Christ’s love. (Eph 3:18-21)
The Church is thus bound together most fully when it is bound in prayer and, most completely, when it is….” bound in eucharistic prayer in the celebration of the holy Mass. Many of us join in quiet or contemplative prayer, uniting with the communion of saints or through special prayers or devotions to heavenly patrons. These devotions lead us to special moments of quiet solitude with particular saints in heaven who then lead us, through God’s grace, to accomplish works of charity or actions and help us move ever more closely to daily acts of human kindness.
We are often led to seek quiet times and places to retreat from our daily routines and spend time with God in prayer. Such pilgrimages allow us to enter special times of grace and peace that rejuvenate our spiritual lives with new insights and particular opportunities to hear God’s special plans for our lives.
We may have destinations, churches or chapels where we enter into time with God and with our favorite patron saints. If we plan ahead and make the time, we may be able to “come aside and rest for a while,” as Jesus often encouraged His disciples to do.
Taking time to make a pilgrimage may not always require days or weeks to accomplish. We may find that we can go to our own parish church or even discover a nearby church where we find blissful silence for an afternoon—or even just an hour or so.
Our diocese is blessed to have our lovely St. Joseph the Workman Cathedral and the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration’s St. Mary of the Angels Chapel. Many of our parishes also offer chapels to adore the Most Blessed Sacrament. We may seek solace amid life’s joys and sorrows in these parish havens—there are so many ways to find peace and tranquility in the wild and challenging world.
You may find time to go into a favorite prayer book, sit down at the kitchen table and say a prayer you haven’t said in a while. This time in prayer may bring peace you have forgotten and renew old joy. Pilgrimages are also possible from your computer. A computer allows you to take a virtual pilgrimage to St. Peter’s in Rome or “travel” to the church where you were baptized, confirmed or married. These journeys will ignite new spiritual fires in your soul. These prayers will help you to experience the Mass in your home parish in a new and more profound way.
Travel spiritually with your favorite saints and with your guardian angel. When you celebrate the Mass in your parish church, remember you are together with the Communion of Saints and are close to God, who loves you.
Story by Most Reverend William Patrick Callahan, Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of La Crosse
Published in the May/June 2024 issue of Catholic Life Magazine