Program of Spiritual Renewal for Priests in the Holy Land
See what the
Apostles saw! Revive your priesthood in the footsteps of Christ.
This pilgrimage is a singular experience of Christ that
will inflame your heart and soul with a love
that cannot be contained, in order to return to
ministry and pass on “what we have seen and heard,
that which our hands have touched – the Word
of Life.” (see 1 John 1)
DATES
2013
Monday, July 15
- Saturday, August 3
2014
Monday, January 20 - Saturday, February 8
Monday,
July 14 - Saturday, August 2
2015
Monday, January 19 - Saturday, February 7
Monday, July 13 - Saturday, August 1
DIRECTIVE COMMITTEE (subject to change)
Gabriel González, LC, Course director
Juan Solana, LC,
LC: Chargé of Notre Dame Center
Alfonso Corona,
LC, Course secretary
PROGRAM
•Spiritual Exercises
Three days of Ignatian
Spiritual exercises to start off the renewal.
•Pilgrimage to the Holy Sites
Quality time spent in each of the Holy Sites,
as well as the cultural and historical explanation.
•Priestly spirituality seminar
Conferences on
the following themes of priestly spirituality.
“I no longer call you servants, but friends”
(John 15:15):
Personal friendship with Christ
“Stay with us, Lord” (Luke 24:29):
The
Eucharist, the center of a priest’s life
“Lord, teach us how to pray” (Luke 11:1):
Prayer, school of priestly life
•Pastoral workshops
SPECIAL GUESTS
(subject to change)
His Beatitude Fouad Twal
Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem
“The
Catholic Church and the Holy Land”
His
Excellency Archbishop Antonio Franco
Apostolic Nuncio for Israel and
Cyprus
Apostolic Delegate for Jerusalem and Palestine
“The Catholic Church: Israel and Palestine”
Rabbi David Rosen KCSG
International Director of
Interreligious Affairs
American Jewish Committee
“The People of
the Torah”
Mustafa Abu Sway
Director,
Islamic Research Center, Al-Quds University
“Introduction to
the muslim world”
Fr. Pierbattista Pizzaballa,
OFM
Custos of the Holy Land
“The Franciscans in the Holy Land”
And others….
ACTIVITIES
• Daily Eucharistic adoration
• Common liturgical prayer
• Renewal of baptismal and priestly promises
• Guided
visits and Eucharistic concelebrations in the Holy Sites
•
Jerusalem
• Bethlehem, Ain Karem, Emmaus and Jericho
• Maritime Caesarea
• Tabor, Beth Shean, Nazareth
and Cana
• Capernaum, Tabgha and Lake of Tiberius
• Jordan River, Dead Sea and Mount of Temptations
• Ecumenical encounters
• Personal study of spirituality,
the Church Fathers and Sacred Scripture
Winter 2013 Calendar
Click
here to see a sample itinerary from
2011.
SUMMARY (subject to change)
Day 1: Arrival, introduction to Jerusalem
Day 2: Bethlehem
Day 3: Western Wall / Temple
Mount / Pool of Bethesda
Day 4: Spiritual Exercises
Day 5: Spiritual Exercises
Day 6: Spiritual Exercises
Day 7: Jordan River / Jericho / Mount Tabor
Day 8: Nazareth / Cana
Day 9: Capernaum
/ Tabgha
Day 10: Sea of Galilee / Mount
Carmel / Caesarea Maritima
Day 11: Mount of Olives
/ Mount Zion / Gethsemane
Day 12: Holy Sepulcher
/ Calvary / Mount Zion / Way of the Cross
Day 13: Holy Tomb / Holy Shroud Exhibition
Day 14: Visit to parishes
Day 15: Emmaus Shrine
in Qubeibeh / Jacob´s Well
Day 16: Bethany /
Masada / Dead Sea / Qumran
Day 17: Ain
Karen / Workshop
Day 18: Mount of Olives /
Shrine of the Pater Noster / Basilica of the Dormition
/ Workshop
Day 19: Free time in morning /
Closing Ceremony / Farewell Dinner
Day 20: Departure
COST:
•€1,750 (subject to change)
•Includes:
room (double occupancy), visit to Jerusalem, four-day trip to
Galilee, entrance fee and guides to historic places, conferences
and classroom materials.
•Not included: airfare,
insurance, medical expenses and visits on free days.
•Additional fee for individual room: €310 (subject
to change)
LANGUAGES
English
– Spanish – Italian
With simultaneous translation
WORDS OF ENDORSEMENT
"The Spiritual Renewal for Priests Course in Jerusalem is summed
up for me in a word, the word is
´joy´. Joy that we are one Faith, one Church
and one Priesthood. It made no difference in the program
what language we spoke, what country we came from
or if we were recently ordained or a veteran
priest. The ability to celebrate Mass in the locations where
scriptural events took place, to relive the Triduum and
the renewal our baptismal and priestly promises in the
company of other priests in the locations where the
sacraments originated was a moving experience. The program enabled
me to understand the events of our faith on a
far deeper and more personal level. The ability to
interact with local Christians and show our unity and
solidarity with them is an experience that helped me
to understand not only matters of faith but current events.
Experiences gained through the Spiritual Renewal Course for Priests
will help me and the people to whom I
minister for years to come."
-Fr. John
Williams, Archdiocese of Hartford
“My
experiences at the Priest Renewal Course in the Holy Land
have really made a positive impact on my spiritual
life and priestly ministry. First of all, simply spending
time at table in conversation with 65 priests from
25 countries was to encounter priestly fraternity in a unique
and invigorating manner and was a vivid reminder of
the universality of Catholicism. Secondly, the theological lectures and
opportunities for discussion and feedback served to feed an
intellectual hunger that had arisen in my life as
a parish priest. Finally, and most importantly, to walk
in the footsteps of the High Priest Jesus Christ and
to offer the Mass where the pivotal moments of
His life and ministry occurred was an honor which
defies explanation. To be in the Eucharistic Presence of
Jesus in His land is an opportunity that no priest
should pass by!”
-Rev. Michael Caridi, Diocese
of Pittsburg, PA
"My three
weeks in the Holy Land continue to bring the Gospel
alive and contributes greatly to my preaching on passages
where I have actually been and seen for myself.
I learned a lot from the excellent tour guides
who accompanied us on our pilgrimage. But what I appreciate
the most is not seeing the sites of our
Lord´s life which have changed in 2000 years, but
rather experiencing the culture of the Holy Land today and
leaving with a better understanding of the issues the
people deal with who live there. At first I
was amazed at how peaceful it is and easy to
travel around Israel given the negative impression by news
reports of violence and conflict, but it is a
security that Israel enjoys at a cost - the
cost of disrupting lives of and angering further the Palestinian
people who suffer through lack of employment and isolation
from work by the new security wall. We spent
a day in the Palestinian parish of Aboud and
heard firsthand of what life is like for the Christians
there. And when a Jewish rabbi gave us a
conference at the Notre Dame Center, I realized how
vital Christians are to the Holy Land, which the rabbi
acknowledged as a sort of God-given responsibility for Christians
to be instruments of peace and understanding for all
peoples and religions of this region, God´s Holy Land.
So much of world politics and interfaith relations centers
on Jerusalem, and so much of the Bible centers on
Jerusalem; every priest should take this opportunity to get
to know Jerusalem. ´If I forget you Jerusalem, let
my right hand wither...´"
-Rev. Daniel Vacca,
Diocese of Wichita, KS
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