Your pilgrimage begins as you depart the USA on your international overnight flight.

You will arrive in Thessaloniki, Greece, where you will be met by our representative and transferred to your hotel for dinner and your overnight stay. (D)

Follow in the footsteps of St. Paul and St. Silas to Amphipolis and explore the ruins of the many Christian basilicas there. In Philippi is a baptismal site commemorating where God opened the heart of St. Lydia (a seller of purple from Thyatira) to hear the words of St. Paul (Acts 16:13 -15). Lydia and her household were the first Christian converts baptized on European soil. View the Roman-era crypt thought to have served as a prison for the apostle Paul, and explore Philippi’s Marketplace, the Basilica of St. Paul, and theater. Today’s last stop is Neapolis (Kavala), one of Greece’s most picturesque mainland ports, where St. Paul landed with his disciples, St. Timothy and St. Silas. See the Roman Aqueduct and view the Acropolis before returning to Thessaloniki for dinner and your overnight stay. (B, D)

Discover Thessaloniki, where St. Paul was accused of turning the world upside down with his preaching of Christ (Acts 17: 3 -6). As you explore St. George’s Basilica, believed to be built over the synagogue where St. Paul preached, reflect on the two epistles St. Paul wrote to the Thessalonian church here. Stroll through the archaeological museum and the beautiful basilicas of St. Sophia and St. Demetrios. St. Demetrios is dedicated to a distinguished Roman proconsul martyred for his Christian faith. Along the Via Egnatia stands the Galerius Arch, and you can look out over the second-largest city in Greece from the Old City Ramparts, some dating back to Roman times. Follow the path of St. Paul when he fled Thessaloniki for the safety of Veria (Berea), where Jews and some honorable Greeks accepted the new faith (Act 17: 10-12). Continue to Kalambaka for dinner and your overnight stay. (B, D)

As you visit the rock forest of Meteora (“in the heavens above”) in western Thessaly, imagine St. Paul walking that treacherous terrain on his missionary journey. Gaze up at the breathtaking Byzantine monasteries spectacularly perched on soaring, sheer-sided grey sandstone pillars. In the 13th century, monks sought refuge in cliffside caves before fleeing higher to build the original wooden shelters that later became these monasteries. After a monastery visit, travel to scenic Delphi, the religious center of the ancient Greek world and marked by the conical stone called the omphalos (“navel”). Walk the Sacra Via to the Athenian treasury, theatre, and the Temple of Apollo, where the oracle performed her prophetic rituals. As you consider the incredible amount of pagan influence just in Delphi alone, you will gain a new appreciation for the tremendous spiritual opposition St. Paul faced in preaching the Gospel of Christ here. In the museum are many ancient treasures, including the fifth-century, bronzed charioteer so detailed you can see his eyelashes. Continue to Athens for your overnight stay. (B, D)

Tour the city of Corinth, where St. Paul met fellow tentmakers St. Aquila and St. Priscilla and received a vision from the Lord saying, “I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have many people in this city” (Acts 18: 10). As Paul spoke, Crispus (chief ruler of the synagogue) and many others believed and were baptized (Acts 18:8), establishing the church at Corinth to whom St. Paul later wrote his two epistles. Discover the archaeological museum, marketplace, and temples. As you walk among the ruins, stand on the Bema, where St.Paul stood before Gallio to face charges brought against him by the Jews. Stop briefly at the port town of Cenchreae from which St. Paul later departed for Syria (Acts 18: 12 -18). Return to Athens for dinner and your overnight stay. (B, D)

Enjoy the rich architectural splendor of the ancient city of Athens as your guide introduces you to the world-renowned Acropolis, the Propylaea, the Parthenon, and the Erectheum. Stand on Mars Hill St. Paul did when he proclaimed, “I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, he declare I unto you” (Acts 17:23). As you look upon the agora (ancient marketplace and center of Athenian public life), recall that this was where St. Paul preached “Christ Jesus and the resurrection” (Acts 17:18) to the skeptical Athenians. Also, see the House of Parliament, the Presidential Palace, and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. This afternoon is free to explore Athens on your own or enjoy an optional visit to the New Acropolis Museum ($20) Dinner and your overnight stay are spent in Athens. (B, D)

Transfer to Athens airport to fly to Rome. Your guide in Rome will greet you at the airport and escort you into the city for a driving tour to help you acclimate to where things are. Check into your hotel for dinner and your overnight stay. (B, D)

Enjoy a guided tour of the Vatican’s museums and the Sistine Chapel. Built by connecting portions of the old papal residence with newer structures, the museum houses a world-renowned collection of art and antiquities. Michelangelo painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel between 1508 and 1512 and later painted The Last Judgment between 1535 and 1541 for Pope Clement VII and Paul III. The primary function of the chapel is the Papal Conclave, providing the place where the College of Cardinals of the church gathers to elect a new pope. Then, walk through St. Peter’s Basilica and celebrate Mass here. The present structure, completed in 1590, was built over the Byzantine and Middle Ages structures that marked the tomb of Saint Peter. There are more than 100 tombs within the basilica, including, most recently, Saint John Paul II. Finish the day at the Pantheon, built by Marcus Agrippa during the reign of Augustus (27 BC to 14 AD). Emperor Hadrian rebuilt it around 126 AD. The building was given to Pope Boniface IV who converted it into a church - Saint Mary and the Martyrs (Santa Maria Rotunda). Mass continues to be celebrated here. Dinner is on your own tonight. (B)

Visit the Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran. Six popes are entombed here. Next door is the Holy Staircase (Scala Santa), brought from Pilate’s Palace in Jerusalem by Saint Helena in the 4th century. Climbing the stairs on your knees is a devotion that many pilgrims perform, and a plenary indulgence is granted for completing this feat. Next is the Basilica of Saint Lawrence Outside the Walls (San Lorenzo). Saint Lawrence was one of the first seven deacons of Rome, martyred in 258. The church is built next to catacombs that lead down to his grave. The relics of Saints Justin Martyr and Stephen are also enshrined here. Continue your pilgrim journey to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major (Maria Maggiore). This is the largest Marian church in Rome. Its construction began after the Council of Ephesus in 431 proclaimed that Mary was the Mother of God. Saint Jerome, translator of the Bible into the Latin Vulgate, is buried here. Celebrate Mass in one of the churches here. Dinner is on your own tonight. (B)

Begin your day at the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls. The present structure stands over the place where Constantine built the first church over Saint Paul’s grave. The church features a portrait of every pope who has served the church, with the face of Pope Francis I illuminated as the present pontiff. Step beneath the surface into the Catacombs of Callixtus, built along the Appian Way. Here, sixteen popes from the 2nd through 4th centuries were interred, though they have been removed to various churches over the centuries. San Sebastian Outside the Walls is another of the seven Pilgrimage churches, built over the Catacombs of Saint Sebastian. The remains of Peter and Paul were temporarily protected here during the Valerian Persecution of 258. Our seventh and final pilgrimage stop is the Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem. Saint Helena brought Passion relics here, and the floor was covered with soil from Jerusalem. Relics here include Thomas’s index finger that touched the wounds of Christ after His resurrection and a piece of the Good Thief’s Cross. Those who want to complete the seven-church pilgrimage as declared by Saint John Paul II in 2000 can continue to one more stop at the Shrine of Our Lady of Divine Love. Here, a pilgrim pursued by dogs appealed to Our Lady, and she intervened for his safety. Pilgrims began to frequent the site, and a chapel was built here in 1745. Celebrate Mass in one of the churches. Dinner is on your own tonight. (B)

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