Pilgrimage

The Sisters are encouraged to go on a pilgrimage to Assisi, Italy – the home of Saint Francis and Clare. Sister Mary Lonan is one Sister who has gone, and she explained that it is “an in-depth look at the persons that we claim to be following in Franciscanism…”1

“It gave you a whole new look at what you promised… How Francis lived… and how he attracted people because of his lifestyle." -Sister Mary Lonan

At the time of Sister Mary Lonan’s early years, there were not many books on Franciscanism or Saint Francis; therefore, a pilgrimage was a wonderful learning experience for her. Although many more books exist today, Sister Mary Lonan explains that there is such power in visiting, which cannot be found inside a book: “It gave you a whole new look at what you promised… How Francis lived… and how he attracted people because of his lifestyle.”2

  1. Sister Mary Lonan, interview by Nami Sumida, Assisi Heights, May 20, 2014. ↩

  1. Sister Mary Lonan, interview by Nami Sumida, Assisi Heights, May 20, 2014. ↩

Sister Mary Lonan described a typical day on the pilgrimage consisting of classes in the morning and of traveling or exploration time in the afternoon. In her one-month stay, she saw many of the places and things about which she had read and learned, including the remains of Francis contained in a casket above the altar of the Basilica of St. Francis. In reflecting on her experience, she called it “the highlight of my whole life.”3 She explains: “Just to be in Assisi where he spent his life, it renewed my religious life.”4

In hopes of bringing about similar experiences, the Congregation sends a few Sisters to go on pilgrimages every year.

 

 

  1. Sister Mary Lonan, interview by Nami Sumida, Assisi Heights, May 20, 2014. ↩

  1. Sister Mary Lonan, interview by Nami Sumida, Assisi Heights, May 20, 2014. ↩