Over the summer many Catholics will have made their way to pilgrimage sites all over the world. Pilgrimage is as important as ever, with the revival of many ancient pilgrim routes and sites taking place over the last couple of decades.
However, it is not always necessary to travel long distances at great expense to enjoy the spiritual benefits of a pilgrimage. We can achieve the goal of pilgrimage in simple ways much nearer to our homes. Pope Benedict XVI said that “To go on pilgrimage really means to step out of ourselves in order to encounter God where he has revealed himself, where his grace has shone with particular splendour and produced rich fruits of conversion and holiness among those who believe.”
