Ancient Stones, Living Stones Pilgrimage

Holy Land • • Assisi • Cairo

11-25 May 2013

Spiritual Director: Archbishop William Slattery OFM Saturday, May 11: We meet at Johannesburg International Airport to depart on our flight to Cairo at 21:45.

Sunday, May 12: We arrive in Cairo and take a short connecting flight to Tel Aviv. There we are met by our guide and driver to proceed to Nazareth for Mass in the Basilica of the Annunciation, where we can see the grotto in which the Archangel Gabriel addressed Our Lady with the news that she had been chosen to bear the Saviour. So our pilgrimage starts where the story of Salvation began. Overnight: Nazareth

Mary’s Grotto in Annunciation Basilica, Nazareth Monday, May 13: We explore Nazareth , including Mary’s Well, where Our Lady drew water (it was the town’s only well) and other sites associated with the Holy Family. At Nazareth Village we observe a faithful recreation of life in the town in the time of Jesus: how the people lived, worked and farmed, what clothes they wore and how they ate etc. We then drive to Mount Tabor , site of the Trans - figuration. In Cana , where Our Lord performed his first public miracle by turning water into wine, our married couples will have an opportunity to renew their wedding vows. Overnight: Nazareth

Tuesday, May 14: We take the short drive to the Sea of Galilee , around which most of Jesus’ public ministry took place. At Capernaum we can see the remains of Pilgrims on the Sea of Galilee Peter’s house and of a fourth-century synagogue built on top of the one in which Jesus probably preached (the foundations of which we can still see). A Tabgha a church recalls the miracle of the Loaves and Fishes, and the nearby chapel of Peter’s Primacy marks the place where Christ entrusted the Church to St Peter. We drive up Mount of Beatitudes, on the slopes of which Jesus delivered his famous sermon. A highlight of the pilgrimage is the boat-ride on the Sea of Galilee on a recreation of a first-century fishing vessel, a time for fun and for prayerful reflection. Overnight: Nazareth

Wednesday, May 15: We leave Galilee and drive through the Jordan Valley , stopping at Jericho . We visit the Qasr El Yahood baptismal site, which for many years was off-

Capernaum limits to pilgrims. At the Dead Sea , the lowest point on earth, we can float on the mineral-rich water. Like Jesus did before before arriving in Jerusalem, we stop at Bethany . In Bethany, Jesus would visit his friends Martha and Mary, and there he raised Lazarus from the dead. Overnight: Jerusalem

Thursday, May 16: We visit Bethlehem , with the ancient Basilica of the Nativity , which marks the place of Jesus’ birth, and the Milk Grotto , where the Holy Family hid before their flight to Egypt. Shepherds’ Field , where the angels announced the birth of the Messiah to the shepherds, is one of the Holy Land’s loveliest sites. At Ein Kerem , today a part of West Jerusalem, we remember in two beautiful churches the birth of John the Baptist and Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth, and Our Lady’s Magnificat . Overnight: Jerusalem The place of Jesus’ birth Friday, May 17: Jerusalem! We begin our visit to the Holy City on top of the Mount of Olives at the small chapel, now a mosque, which marks the spot from which Catholics believe Christ ascended into Heaven (see his reputed foot - print in a stone there). As we walk down the mount we visit Paternoster Church , where the Lord’s Prayer is displayed in hundreds of languages, and Dominus Flevit Church , which is on the spot where Jesus wept for Jerusalem. At the foot of the mount we arrive at the Gethsemane with its ancient olive trees, and the magnificent Church of All Nations with the rock on which Jesus is believed to have prayed before his arrest. Across the street we visit Mary’s Tomb , from which Our Lady was assumed into heaven. View from the church of Dominus Flevit, Mt of Olives We then drive to Mount Zion to visit the impressive Dormition Abbey , where Our Lady fell asleep, the Cenacle (Upper Room) which commemo - rates the Last Supper, and the Church of St Peter in Gallicantu , where Jesus was tried by the Sanhedrin and where Peter denounced Our Lord three times. See the steps in which we know Jesus actually walked! Overnight: Jerusalem

Saturday, May 18: This is the day when follow the Stations of the Cross, the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem. The Way of the Cross culminates in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre , our faith’s most sacred site. Here you can touch the rock where the cross stood and pray in the tomb from which Our Lord rose from the dead. We also visit the lovely St Anne’s Church , a Crusader church on the Steps on which Jesus walked on Mount Zion site of the home of Ss Anne & Joachim, parents of the Blessed Virgin, and the Pools of Bethesda , where Our Lord cured the lame man. We see the Western (or Wailing) Wall, the last remnant of the Jewish Temple which was razed by the Romans in 70 AD, where Blessed John Paul II prayed so memorably in the Jubilee Year 2000. Overnight: Jerusalem

On some occasions during our stay we will have opportunity to meet and worship with local Christians, the “Living Stones” of the Holy Land.

Sunday, May 19: After a final Mass we leave the Holy Land for Cairo , where we see the pyramids and the Sphinx . In the evening we enjoy a Nile Cruise , with a meal and entertainment, including a genuine derwish! Overnight: Cairo Pilgrims walk the Via Dolorosa

Monday, May 20: We fly to Rome , arriving in the early afternoon. From the airport we drive to the Basilica of St Paul’s Outside the Walls , where archaeologists have found what most probably are the remains of St Paul. The gorgeous church, one of Rome’s four major basilicas, depicts every pope in history. Overnight: Rome

Tuesday, May 21: We visit the other three major basilicas: St Peter’s , the world’s most famous church with the tombs of popes such as Blessed John Paul II and Blessed

John XXIII. We plan to have Mass in one of the chapels here. We will see St Sphinx and pyramid, Cairo Peter’s Square again the following day!

The Basilica of St John Lateran is actually the parish church of the pope, since he is the Bishop of Rome. The magnificent church houses many art treasures. The Basilica of Mary Major is the largest of Rome’s 25 churches dedicated to Our Lady. It is also one of the oldest churches in the world, having originally been built in the 5th century. We also explore the catacombs , the long underground cemeteries which the early Christians used as a place of hiding to escape persecution.

In the afternoon we enjoy a tour of Baroque Rome , with famous sights such as the Trevi Fountain, the Piazza di Spagna, with its theatrical staircase of the Trinity of Mounts, Navona Square, the Pantheon etc. Overnight: Rome The Basilica of St Paul’s Outside the Walls

Wednesday, May 22: The big day: We attend a Papal Audience in St Peter’s Square (provided the Holy Father plays ball and doesn’t take a foreign trip!). It is an unforgettable experience! Listen to the pope as he greets pilgrim groups from around the world, including South Africa!

After the papal audience we explore Ancient Rome with places such as the Capitol, the Roman forums, the Arch of Constantine and the Colosseum (unfortunately only from the outside). We then leave for Assisi, the town of St Francis and St Claire. Overnight: Assisi

Pope Benedict greets pilgrims at an audience Thursday, May 23: Assisi is one of Italy’s best-loved towns. We visit the Basilica of St Francis which recounts the life of the saint through the frescoes by Cimabue and, above all, the celebrated cycle of the life of St Francis by Giotto. The Basilica of St Claire houses the Crucifix which, according to tradition, spoke to St Francis. We see artefacts such as the genuine cloaks worn by St Francis and St Claire. Outside old Assisi (which we reach by escalator!) we visit the basilica of St Mary of the Angels , inside which the small church in the meadow that St Francis built is beautifully preserved.

We then return to Rome, but make a stop at a place few pilgrims go to: the beautiful Valley in the region, where St Francis and companions St Francis’ robe, preserved in Assisi moved to after they left Assisi. Here we visit the Santuario Francescano del Presepio in Greccio , where St Francis invented the Nativity Scene, and Fonte Colombo with the San Michele Church, where St Francis wrote the Rule for his order and where we can see the rock he used as a bed. Overnight: Rome

Friday, May 24: Our pilgrimage is coming to an end. We have our final Mass, perhaps a chance to do some last-minute shopping, and then make our way to Fiumicino Airport for our way home via Cairo.

Saturday, May 25: After an unforgettable fortnight we land in South Africa, physically tired but St Francis Sanctuary in Greccio spiritually refreshed!

The Southern Cross Ancient Stones, Living Stones Pilgrimage will be led by Archbishop William Slattery OFM of Pretoria (right). The Franciscan archbishop has lived in both the Holy Land and Rome, and knows Assisi very well. In the Holy Land, the group will be guided by a professor from the University of Bethlehem.

Mass will be celebrated every day Price: R 29,300 (sharing, ex-Jhb; subject to currency, air travel price fluctuations)

Includes: All flights ex-Johannesburg (incl. airport taxes), accommodation with breakfast and dinner, transfers, travel insurance, travelling on air-conditioned buses, English-speaking tour guides, entrance fees.

Excludes: Tips, hotel taxes, visas, personal expenses.

We will organise the visas for you!

30 passengers minimum.

A pilgrimage is a prayerful time... A deposit of R2,500 secures your place on this unforgettable pilgrimage.

To book or for more information, please contact Gail at 076 352-3809 or [email protected] or fax 021 465-3850

www.scross.co.za/pilgrimage-2013

...and a time to see great sights