This time we are off to Fatima, and will be part of the July Centenary Celebrations at the famous Shrine in Portugal. There will be 32 Pilgrims in our group, led by Fr. Boniface Hill of Downside Abbey, and Fr. Jean-Patrice Coulon of Holy Ghost Church, Yeovil, Somerset. We have a pretty busy schedule for the five days that we are there, but hopefully I can give you a little "taste" of what we will be seeing and doing!
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| Pilgrims at Downside Abbey for the Visitation of the NPVS |
We were most fortunate at Downside to be visited by the National Pilgrim Virgin Statue (NPVS) on 4 May 2017.
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| The NPVS entering Downside Abbey, that was full to overflowing! You can just see the two children dressed as SS Francisco and Jacinta to the right of the pic. |
The NPVS was accompanied by the relics of SS Francisco and Jacinta, the first non-martyred child Saints of the Catholic Church. Many of the Downside Pilgrims were able to attend, together with hundreds of other pilgrims and students from 12 local Catholic Schools, including Downside School, founded by the Benedictine Monks of Downside over 400 years ago.
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| The NPVS is manoeuvred into position, with a Knight of St. Columba looking on holding the Relics |
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| Downside's smaller statue of Our Lady of Fatima on the Sanctuary of the Abbey Church on 13 May 2017, with Fr. Boniface at the Altar |
All of the group are getting very excited about our forthcoming journey. This is strange as quite a number of us are being "squeezed" into triple rooms, hence my description of our trip as the "SARDINE PILGRIMAGE"! Whether we will all be speaking to one another at the end of the 5 days is another matter, but we are on pilgrimage! Please do follow us, and see what happens! It will definitely not be dull.
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| Procession bringing the NPVS and Relics of SS. Francisco and Jacinta into Downside Abbey |
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