Day 1
Have a good breakfast at your home or bring your own breakfast.

Pick up pilgrims at 6:30 AM beside Holy Name Church on West 33rd Street and Cambie Street in Vancouver.

After passing the Canada-US border, we pray and meditate on the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary and sing songs joyfully.  At midday, we pray the Angelus.  Stopover to buy your own lunch and to shop at the Tacoma Mall.

We proceed to Olympia, Washington to visit the Shrine of Our Mother of Perpetual Help on the outside grounds.  We pray to Our Blessed Mother and ask for her intercession. 

The Shrine of Our Lady Of Perpetual Help, Olympia, Washington, is the shrine of the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Phoenix, which serves Byzantine Catholics in the Western United States.  Byzantine Catholics are in communion with our Holy Father Francis, Pope of Rome. However, they worship in the ancient Byzantine liturgical tradition which is descended from Constantinople.  The story of the miraculous icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help involves a journey from the Mediterranean island of Crete to Rome.

Source:  https://www.olph-shrine.org/#!

Afterwards, we walk to St. George’s Byzantine Catholic Church that is located on the same grounds. 

What is the Byzantine Catholic Church? The Byzantine Catholic Church is one of many churches that make up the one, holy catholic and apostolic Church founded by Jesus Christ. The one Church is made up of Eastern and Western Catholic traditions. The Eastern tradition originates in ancient sees of Antioch, Alexandria and Constantinople while the Western tradition originates in the ancient see of Rome.

Eastern and Western Christians expressed the same basic truths of their Catholic faith in unique ways and worshiped differently. All Catholics share three important things (cf. Acts 2:42): Apostolic Faith; Apostolic Worship (the Sacred Mysteries/Sacraments) and Apostolic Leadership (Bishops in Unity with Each Other and the Pope of Rome, the Successor of St. Peter).

Source: https://www.stgeorgeolympia.org/ourfaith

At St. George’s Byzantine Catholic Church, we visit the Blessed Sacrament and sing praises, pray and ask Jesus for special favors.

• Sing “O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine.  All praise and all thanksgiving, be every moment Thine.  Be every moment Thine.”
• Pray five (5) times the Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be in honor of the (5) wounds of Jesus.
• Sing . “O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine.  All praise and all thanksgiving, be every moment Thine.  Be every moment Thine.”
• Ask Jesus for three (3) special favors.

Before leaving the church, we receive the blessings of the pastor, subject to his available presence.

We then drive to Portland, Oregon.  We pray and meditate on the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet on the way. 

We check in at Guesthouse & Retreat Center of Mount Angel Abbey. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is available in the evening at the Abbey Church. We join the monks in saying the Vespers before supper and the Compline after supper. A special Mass for our group will be offered by Fr. Pius Harding, OSB, the Abbey Guest Master, at 8:00 pm in the Chapel of the Guesthouse. Kindly give your Mass offering during the offertory. (S)

See https://www.mountangelabbey.org/.

Day 2
After breakfast, we drive to the Grotto, an internationally known Catholic shrine with beautiful botanical gardens.

This is the Sanctuary of Our Sorrowful Mother managed by the Order of Servants of Mary aka Servites.  They lead a community life in the tradition of the mendicant orders.  The Servite Order was founded in 1233 AD when a group of cloth merchants of Florence, Italy, left their city, families and professions to retire outside the city on a mountain known as Monte Senario for a life of poverty and penance. These men are known as the Seven Holy Founders; they were canonized by Pope Leo XIII in 1888. 

Source:  https://thegrotto.org/

At the Chapel of Mary, we visit the Blessed Sacrament, pray and meditate.  Confession is available and we encourage everyone to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  We participate in the Healing Mass of St. Peregrine with choir music liturgy, blessing of the sick and veneration of St. Peregrine’s relic.

Buy your own lunch in an all-you-can eat restaurant with Chinese, Japanese and American foods.  

After lunch, we return to the Grotto. We make the Stations of the Cross. Those wishing to see the beautiful, botanical Grotto gardens may buy their own tokens at the Gift Shop or the Conference Center.  The gardens are in the plaza level and in the upper level of the Grotto.  We will shop last minute at the Gift Shop prior to leaving the Grotto. We continue our shopping at Woodburn Store Outlets.

On the way back to Mount Angel Abbey, we visit the Queen of Angels Monastery, the home of the Benedictine Sisters, that is located in historic Mount Angel, Oregon. The grounds include a chapel, grotto, meeting space, library, gift shop, and hospitality center. 

For the past 137 years, the Benedictine Sisters have lived a life dedicated to daily prayer, community, service and hospitality according to the 1500-year-old Rule of St. Benedict. The Benedictine Sisters are the founders of the Providence Benedictine Nursing Center, St. Joseph Shelter, and Mission Benedict.  Today, their ministries include private retreats, spiritual direction and hospitality.

See https://www.benedictine-srs.org/.

We return to the Mount Angel Abbey for Vespers, supper, Compline and sweet dreams during the night. (B,S)

Day 3
After breakfast and check out, we participate at the Sunday Mass at Mount Angel Abbey with the monks and the faithful. The Mass is sung by the monks and accompanied by a Benedictine nun playing the organ. We have lunch prior to departure. (B, L)

We drive to the Woodburn Premium Outlets, where you will have time for shopping tax free goods.

We visit St. Mary’s Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon.  We visit the Blessed Sacrament.

Opened in 1926, the cathedral has the Romanesque style with some Byzantine features and covers an area of 12,000 square feet.  Statues of the Sacred Heart and the Blessed Mother were brought in by the Benedictine monks of Mount Angel. The Stations of the Cross and the Povey Brothers dome above the altar date from 1926. 

Source:  http://www.maryscathedral.com/

On the way home, we pray and meditate on the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet. We sing hymns joyfully.

It is time to say goodbye. We take with us unforgettable, holy, spiritual memories, friendship, and the love and mercy of God.  We adore God, praise Him and thank Him for His graces on each of us in this pilgrimage. We thank Our Blessed Mother for Her love and for bringing us closer to Her Son, Jesus.

Drop off pilgrims at beside Holy Name Church on West 33rd Avenue and Cambie Street.

NOTE: This itinerary is subject to change without notice, if necessary.