Young pilgrims commemorate in Rome to Church doctors and patrons from Europe

On March 8, a special jubilee pilgrimage will be held in Rome, mostly destined for young people, to honor the doctors of the Church and patrons of Europe.

The tour will be made by six iconic Roman churches linked to these holy women. In each of them a brief biography and texts related to some theme of his charism will be read, in a climate of prayer.

Lorella Congiunti, a professor of metaphysics and professor at the Pontifical Urbanian University of Rome, is part of the Organizing Committee. Speaking to ACI Press, he explained that the event will revolve around “Six extraordinary saints”: Santa Teresa de Lisieux, Santa Teresa de Jesús, Santa Teresa Benedicta de la Cruz, Santa Catalina de Siena, Santa Brígida and Santa Hildegarda.

“We will commemorate them, first of all, knowing them better, reflecting on their thinking and praying with them. The route between one stage and another will be a meditation occasion and, for this, we will provide abundant material about the holy, starting with their biographies, ”he said below.

A tour with “Six extraordinary holy”

The pilgrimage will begin in the Church of the Trinità Dei Monti, linked to France, so it is the place “memory of Santa Teresa del Niño Jesús.” In fact, Congiunti said that “there are some of its relics during the jubilee year.” This first stop will be organized by the French community Enmanuel.

Then, they will go to the church of Santa María de la Victoria to commemorate Santa Teresa de Ávila, where they can also contemplate “the extraordinary sculpture” of Ecstasymade by Bernini. This stop will be carried out by the Catholic University “Santa Teresa de Jesús” in Ávila (Spain).

Subsequently, they will move to the church of San Agustín to remember Santa Teresa Benedicta de la Cruz, by the Pontifical Latarenense University. The tour will continue to the church of Santa María Sopra Minerva to commemorate Santa Catalina de Siena, where there will also be a pause for lunch and time to approach the sacrament of reconciliation.

They will then walk to the church of Santa Brígida in the Farnese square And, finally, the pilgrimage will conclude in Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, “where we will remember Santa Hildegarda, the Holy of Harmony.”

In this last stage a concert is planned by the choir Radix Harmonicadirected by the teacher Giuseppe Pecce, in which songs composed of Santa Hildegarda will be interpreted.

“The true encounter with the saints leads to the Lord”

Congiunti hopes that the pilgrimage “be a path of proximity lived with the holy and that, of this closeness, is born a friendship with them.” In addition, it shows his desire to “this friendship helps each person to be more with himself within God’s project. The real encounter with the saints leads to the Lord, ”he said.

From the Pastoral of the Catholic University of Ávila (Spain), the chaplain P. Luis Carlos Hernández prepares a group of young people who will participate in this event and also in the jubilee of the volunteers, which begins a day later, on March 9 . Speaking to ACI Press, he stressed that “being an Abulense community, it is specially illusion for us to represent, through its texts, Santa Teresa de Ávila.”

“From our university we will participate around 16 people among teachers, administrative staff and students. We have hope that it is an encounter that strengthens our faith, our commitment to the Church and we can then be light among our relatives and colleagues, ”said the priest. At the moment a total of one hundred people will participate.

Karen Benavides, also from the Catholic University of Ávila, stood out in conversation with Aci Prensa that “Santa Teresa de Jesus has a lot of news” because, from his experience of prayer and his teachings of the deep knowledge of the soul, “he responds many times to the question of the modern man who is in search of a sense of life. ”

In addition, it emphasizes that the date of this jubilee coincides with the International Women’s Day, highlighting that “it is of special importance to continue spreading the true female genius that many holy women have left in the Church and in the world.”

Lorella Congiunti, together with the professors Fermina Álvarez, of the Pontifical Universidad Latranense, and Silvia Mas, of the Pontifical University of La Santa Cruz, have already held two congresses and a day of study in 2023 on the “Women doctors of the Church and Patronas from Europe ”. In addition, they have written two books dedicated to the holiness of women, as inspiration models for today’s women.