In Milford, a rest stop for Francis-focused pilgrims
The pilgrim is familiar in folklore: someone journeying over hill and dale to arrive at a sacred space, a dusty-footed wanderer relying on the kindness of strangers.
A modern-day pilgrimage will look like this: Dozens of Canadian Catholics traveling 2,900 miles and bedding down in a Milford church hall for the night, then taking a bus to Philadelphia to be in the presence of their Holy Father.
Families with children will rest on mats and sleeping bags on the floor. The group will take repeated bus trips to the city and back over several days, braving traffic and crowds on little sleep. One visitor is two years old; another is 82.
At St. John the Apostle Church in Milford, which is hosting most of the visitors for their four-night stay, Michael Darcy understands the pull of seeing the pope in person. In his time with the Catholic Church, he has been to Vatican City more than once, and briefly spoke to Pope John Paul II during an audience with him there in 1989.
“Even if you only see him on a Jumbotron screen, nevertheless, there’s something about being there and being present,” Darcy said. “It is a pilgrimage, and sometimes a pilgrimage involves hardship. It’s not a vacation.”
For many of the pilgrims, this will be the first time they’re visiting the eastern U.S., said Connie Shepherd, a member of Vancouver’s Blessed Sacrament Parish. Shepherd and her husband were tasked by church leaders with organizing the visit.
“We have no experience in organizing pilgrimages,” Shepherd says earnestly. “We’re accountants.” But they have pulled it off nonetheless.
Shepherd and her fellow parishioners are a part of the Neocatechumenal Way, an organization within the Catholic Church dedicated to encouraging Catholic belief among adults. Spread among some 40,000 like-minded parishes around the world, the movement has around 1 million members.
A friend of Darcy’s who also belongs to the Neocatechumenal Way learned of the Canadians’ desire to see Pope Francis in Philadelphia and connected them to the Milford church.
“I’m looking forward to a word from God that will enlighten my life,” Shepherd said of the pilgrimage. “It’s a very moving journey.”
To make the adventure work, Shepherd and her group will arrive on flights landing in Baltimore and Philadelphia late on Friday night and take buses to the Milford church. On Saturday, they’ll leave Milford in the afternoon to attend the World Meeting of Families at the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
The group won’t get back to Milford until around 1 a.m. Sunday morning. By 11 a.m. Sunday, they’ll head north again, returning to the city to witness Francis’s 4 p.m. mass in downtown Philly.
Francis is departing the city Sunday night, but the Canadians will head back to Philadelphia one more time Monday for a meeting of Neocatechumenal Way adherents led by a founder of the movement, Francisco ‘Kiko’ Argüello, in the Wells Fargo Center.
While most of the pilgrims traveling with children will bunk at the church, some older visitors will stay at a Milford hotel, said Fr. Vittorio Scomparin, the pastor of the Vancouver church.
Scomparin is Italian, and he says he has attended many papal masses in his lifetime. He said he’s been telling parishioners who will be going to their first one this weekend to find strength in what they’ll see: a broad, swelling family of Catholic believers all around them.
“To stretch our horizon,” Scomparin said, is a main purpose of the pilgrimage. “We are not alone. The universality of the church, it is very encouraging.”
The Milford church was not exactly designed for temporary use as a dormitory, so members of St. Jude have offered to bring the pilgrims to and from their houses in and around Milford for showers, Darcy said.
Darcy himself will not be traveling to Philadelphia. Duty calls, and he must hold mass on the weekend as usual.
But he has encouraged his parishioners to make the journey if they want to.
“My desire is probably the same, if I may presume, as the Holy Father’s desire,” Darcy said. “I want my people to get closer to Jesus.”
SO, what's the story here? Some Canadian NCW members will be staying with some Milford NCW members. That's amazing. And they'll all go off to see the wizard together
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous at 10:33 am,
DeleteIs this how you address the Pope? You call the Pope a wizard? The NCW organized and helped others on their pilgrimage to see the Pope, not Kiko Arguello. According to the above article:
"At St. John the Apostle Church in Milford, which is hosting most of the visitors for their four-night stay, Michael Darcy understands the pull of seeing the pope in person. In his time with the Catholic Church, he has been to Vatican City more than once, and briefly spoke to Pope John Paul II during an audience with him there in 1989."
What part in that single paragraph did you not comprehend? Members of the NCW were accommodating visitors to see the Pope.
At 10:33 When your Time comes maybe you see the Wizard or Satan ??
Delete"Is this how you address the Pope? You call the Pope a wizard?"
DeleteNo, I was referring to the prophet Kiko. All hail Kiko!
"What part in that single paragraph did you not comprehend?"
I comprehend perfectly well. NCW members are hosting other NCW members from elsewhere. That's very noble of them.
Just in case you do not "comprehend" I'll paste in the bit about Kiko:
Delete"Francis is departing the city Sunday night, but the Canadians will head back to Philadelphia one more time Monday for a meeting of Neocatechumenal Way adherents led by a founder of the movement, Francisco ‘Kiko’ Argüello, in the Wells Fargo Center."
Dear Anonymous at 2:37 pm,
DeleteOnly the members of the NCW will see Kiko since he is the founder. The NCW did not put Kiko above the Pope because they went to see the Pope first and helped other pilgrims to see the Pope.
Have you not even read your own post?
Delete"Shepherd and her fellow parishioners are a part of the Neocatechumenal Way"
Shepherd is one of the Canadian "pilgrims".
"A friend of Darcy’s who also belongs to the Neocatechumenal Way learned of the Canadians’ desire to see Pope Francis in Philadelphia and connected them to the Milford church."
So, the "pilgrims" are Neo, and the hosts (or at least the ones who "helped") are alos Neo. As I said, this is very noble of them.
As for the last sentence:
" The NCW did not put Kiko above the Pope because they went to see the Pope first and helped other pilgrims to see the Pope. "
every time the Mass is celebrated illicitly according to the instructions from Kiko, the NCW put Kiko "above the Pope".
Dear Anonymous at 7:07 pm,
DeleteI was the one who said that the NCW was helping pilgrims see the Pope just as the article stated. I did not twist the words of the article to interpret it to mean that the NCW was helping pilgrims to see Kiko. It is only natural for the NCW members to see the Founder of NCW who also took the time to follow the Pope to the U.S.
"I was the one who said that the NCW was helping pilgrims see the Pope"
DeleteYes, you were. And I was not disputing this. All I was pointing out is that the "pilgrims" were also NCW members. So the article could also be titled "NCW Helping the NCW", which is not really surprising, is it?
Secondly, the article clearly says that the "pilgrims" will be travelling to see Kiko as well as the pope, so it is hardly "twisting the words" to point that out.
"And this new name is not something to be proud of. What MAN would want to be called "little"? "
DeleteA humble man
Dear Anonymous at 9:58 pm,
DeleteIt is twisting words because no where in the article did it say that the NCW was helping the pilgrims to see Kiko. That was only you saying it.
Dear Anonymous at 10:00 pm,
DeleteA humble man would not be clowning around making videos to humiliate people.
Dear Diana at 10.51. Please read the article again. It says that the Canadian NCW "pilgrims" will be arriving on Friday. It says that the NCW hosts will be accommodating them for a" four-night stay". That would presumably be Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday nights.
DeleteWhen are they seeing Kiko? During the day on Monday.
It is not, therefore, "twisting words". The local NCW hosts will be assisting the pilgrim NCW with accommodation before and after the visit to Kiko.
And it is not only me "saying it". This is quite clear from the article YOU posted.
Dear Diana at 11.03. No-one said John Toves was humble. You asked a question though, and the answer is valid. A humble man would not mind being called "little". Only a proud man would care.
DeleteDear Anonymous at 11:37 pm,
DeleteThat is true. You have a point. Unfortunately, there are very few men who are humble.
Dear Anonymous at 11:36 pm,
DeletePlease read the article. It says: "At St. John the Apostle Church in Milford, which is hosting most of the visitors for their four-night stay, Michael Darcy understands the pull of seeing the pope in person."
Please do not leave out the other half of the sentence. The goal was to see the Pope, the main attraction.
I've always invited any name calling you people wish. I do not care if I was "thrown under the bus." Those things don't matter. What does is that my messages including the clowning around bring awareness so people an decide for themselves. People need to take a stand. It does not matter to me if I look foolish. Sincere people will hear the message.
DeleteDear Little John Mosquito,
DeleteThat name was given to you by the jungle, not by anyone on this blog.