September 12, 2008

Holy Land pilgrimage begins activities marking 175th anniversary of Archdiocese of Indianapolis

175th anniversary logoCriterion staff report

Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein will lead a pilgrimage to the Holy Land from Sept. 17-27 to launch the observance of the 175th anniversary of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.

Archbishop Buechlein and 42 other pilgrims from the archdiocese and Diocese of Evansville will travel throughout Israel visiting sacred sites where Jesus walked and where the Catholic Church was born.

The pilgrims will pray for a special intention each day, and Archbishop Buechlein is inviting all of the archdiocese’s parishes, schools, missions and individuals to pray for the intentions listed further down.

“It is fitting that we begin the observance of our 175th anniversary with a pilgrimage to the place where Jesus was born, and where our Catholic faith and Church have their roots,” Archbishop Buechlein said. “We will be keeping all of the members of our local Church in our thoughts and our prayers as we make this journey to thank God for all of the blessings we have received and to ask him to guide us through the next 175 years.”

The Archdiocese of Indianapolis, originally established as the Diocese of Vincennes, was founded on May 6, 1834.

The theme for the anniversary is titled “We Have Seen the Lord: Come and See.” There will be many events during the next several months to mark this historic occasion, and to reach out to people and invite them to “come and see” the Lord.

The 175th anniversary celebration will culminate with a Mass at the new Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on May 3, 2009. It is expected that as many as 40,000 people will attend the Mass.

The special intentions for the pilgrimage to the Holy Land for each day are:

  • Thursday, Sept. 18—Tel Aviv, Netanya, Seasons Hotel, for God’s blessing for our archdiocese’s 175th anniversary, Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein, O.S.B., celebrant.
  • Friday, Sept. 19—Cana, Church of Cana, for the intentions of our married couples, Father Scott Nobbe, celebrant.
  • Saturday, Sept. 20—Nazareth, Grotto in the Basilica of the Annunciation, for our children, Father Rick Nagel, celebrant.
  • Sunday, Sept. 21—Galilee, Chapel of the Beatitudes, for our priests, deacons and seminarians, Archbishop Buechlein, celebrant.
  • Monday, Sept. 22—Bethlehem, Church of the Nativity, for consecrated religious women and men, Father Nobbe, celebrant.
  • Tuesday, Sept. 23—Jerusalem, Garden of Gethsemane, Basilica of the Agony, for our youth, young adults and single people, Father Nobbe, celebrant.
  • Wednesday, Sept. 24—Jerusalem, Old City,
  • St. Ann Church, for our elderly, sick and homebound, Archbishop Buechlein, celebrant.
  • Thursday, Sept. 25—Ein Karem, Church of the Visitation, for our ministries of charity and evangelization, Father Nobbe, celebrant.
  • Friday, Sept. 26—Jerusalem, Notre Dame Center, for vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life, Father Nagel, celebrant.
  • Saturday, Sept. 27—Jerusalem, Dormition Abbey, in thanksgiving for blessings on our archdiocese, Archbishop Buechlein, celebrant.
  • Saturday, Sept. 27—Jerusalem, Old City, Church of the Holy Sepulchre, anticipation Mass for Sunday, Sept. 28, in thanksgiving for the gift of our Catholic faith and the success of the pilgrimage, Archbishop Buechlein, celebrant. †

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