Mea culpa! My apologies for the delay in our first post from the pilgrimage to Italy. A combination of jet lag and wifi connectivity issues delayed my updating you!
If you are new to the idea of pilgrimage, I invite you to join us as way to understand this beautiful tradition of our faith. The posts with the tag, Year of Mercy Pilgrimage, will offer you some highlights and reflections from the current pilgrimage.
As we are a few days into our journey, I will have a few posts scheduled to go up once or twice a day (usually first thing in the morning and last thing at night in Italy - so remember the time difference and you'll have a ball park of when to expect some new posts.
We arrived safely in Florence on Friday afternoon, November 11. Today's post will have some details on the Friday and Saturday steps in our journey.
Our flights were uneventful and we were grateful to reach our lovely hotel in Florence and have a few minutes to settle before we headed to our first Mass. Our Mass was said at St. Joseph's, just a few minutes' walk. As it was raining and a bit chilly, we didn't mind how close the church was!
Fr. Brad and Fr. Matt led us in a wonderful opening liturgy for our pilgrimage. Part of what makes pilgrimage so different from that European vacation you may have taken, is that we are rooted in prayer - as individuals, in community, and through Mass. Please know that while we are offering our own intentions, we are praying for you too.
However, the exhaustion of an overnight flight left us all barely awake for dinner after Mass and we all turned in early.
After a good night's rest, we were ready for a day in the city of Florence. Our Saturday morning took us on a walking tour through many of the major sites of Florence. From seeing The David to the Duomo to the major squares, we were given a great taste for the beautiful city.
The walking tour also helped us gain our bearings for our afternoon that would be free and to help us determine what we wanted to do and experience during those free hours.
In addition, the multitude of religious art in the city offered us a chance to see as if through snapshots moments in the theological understanding of our faith, glimpses of how we humans see the divine, and steps in humanity's journey to better relate to our God.
In the afternoon and evening, we dispersed into small groups. Some went to the museums, some found new churches to explore, some wandered the streets taking in the reality of their presence in this new country.
A few of those groups found each other in the hotel for dinner where we were able to share stories from the day, some wonderful time getting to know each other better, and quite a few laughs over fantastic pastas and Florentine steak!
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