Pilgrimage to Italy

A group of 17 – 15 Ursuline Associates and Sisters Mary McCormick and Norma Raupple – recently returned from a two-week trip to Italy that started in Milan and ended in Rome, with visits to Desenzano and Brescia in between.

One of the hotels the group stayed in was on the shore of Lake Garda. Everyone agreed it was a highlight to visit Ursuline Sisters founder St. Angela Merici’s house and the Duomo where she was baptized.

Ursuline Associate Linda McClure said the group found the visit very emotional. “When we set foot on the driveway of this home, there were unexpected tears.”

The group also participated in events for the Holy Year of Hope. One highlight was having Mass in St. Peter’s Square with Pope Leo!  So many Italians congratulated our group as American pilgrims, saying, “We have an Americano Pope!”

“So very exciting to be able to celebrate Mass there with 70,000 others,” Linda says.

The experience resonated with the entire group, Sister Mary says.

“The pilgrimage was a wonderful experience on many levels as we were bonded in the presence and history of Angela,” Sister Norma says. “We established deeper relationships to carry us into the future of our charism.”

“The pilgrimage to Italy was an experience that deepened my rootedness in St. Angela and the charism she left for the church and the world,” Sister Mary adds.

Ursuline Associate Marianne Potina adds, “My experience in Italy has enhanced my understanding of the quiet power of a woman who listens to God’s call and acts, risking new things, and ready for big surprises!”

“We were able to visit many of the sites where St. Angela lived and worked,” she continues. “And we reflected on the ways that Sisters and Associates carry the charism in the 21st century.”