SAINT Anthony Shrine in Sampaloc, Manila is organizing a Marian pilgrimage to seven Churches in Batangas, Laguna and Rizal in observance of the Marian month of October.
Dubbed as a journey of faith, the pilgrimage hopes to help devotees reminisce the development and history of the Marian devotion.
Fr. Cielo Almazan, OFM, parish priest of St. Anthony Shrine and one of the pilgrimage chaplains said the activity is being organized to give the devotees and Shriners the opportunity to deepen their understanding and appreciation of the Catholic faith.
“This gives a purpose to our pilgrimage other than just idle curiosity,” explained Almazan. “Sure, we will all be excited to see our countryside in Laguna, Batangas and Rizal, but we will try to add in a balance way, a Catholic spiritual experience. We add a dimension of faith,” he said.
The priest said the pilgrimage is a special project of the Education Ministry of St Anthony Shrine.
“No Marian organizations are involved here. This is being organized in-house, so to speak,” the pastor said.
Almazan also mentioned this is the first time the parish community, the devotees and the mass-goers of St Anthony Shrine are being invited to join.
The pilgrimage will visit Marian churches known to be miraculous and flocked to by people, like the Our Lady of Caysasay in Taal, Our Lady of Lourdes in Tagaytay, Our Lady of Mediatrix of All Grace in Lipa, Our Lady of Perpetual Help (Redemptorist Divino Amor) also in Lipa, Our Lady of Turumba in Pakil, Our Lady of Guadalupe in Pagsanjan, and Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage in Antipolo.
According to Almazan these Marian Churches and Shrines “are known and flocked to by people because they contain images which ordinary Catholics believe are miraculous or they have been found miraculously.”
The pilgrimage includes catechesis, singing of Marian songs and celebration of the sacraments.
“In every church we will visit, we will pray one decade of the Franciscan Crown, which recalls the 7 joys of Mary, promoted by the Franciscans in the middle ages, especially St. Bernardine of Siena,” said Almazan.
A Franciscan Crown is a rosary consisting of seven decades that commemorates the seven joys of the Blessed Virgin (the Annunciation, Visitation, Birth of our Lord, Adoration of the Magi, Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple, the Resurrection of our Lord, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin and her Coronation in heaven), in use among the members of the three orders of St. Francis.
Fr. Long Gutay, OFM, the historian of the Franciscans in the Philippines, will explain to the pilgrims the history of the Marian devotion, while Fr. Almazan, a bible scholar, will give a biblical perspective of the Blessed Mother as an ordinary girl.
Almazan said the upcoming pilgrimage is the parish’s response of giving life to the archdiocesan vision of having and being “with Mary as companion.”
While other parishes and schools express their devotion to Mary in the forms of exhibits or pilgrimages abroad, the parish community of St. Anthony, instead have opted to express their devotion through a local pilgrimage.
“Our community at St. Anthony Shrine has chosen to have a local pilgrimage, south of Manila, where the pilgrims will also see churches built by the Franciscans,” opined Almazan.
The pilgrimage has the theme, ‘A Journey of Faith with Mama Mary as Companion’.
The pilgrimage is scheduled on October 6, 2007 with a fee of P1,200.00 per person inclusive of transport, meals and prayer materials. Interested pilgrims may register at the St. Anthony Shrine’s Office, or call Ging-ging/Elma at 734-65-26. Due to limited seats, only 45 pilgrims can be accommodated. Last day of registration will be September 25, 2007. For enquiries, please contact Angie at 0917-6285827 or Marie 0916-2066461.
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