GLEN LYON – The third annual Holy Spirit Parish Walking Pilgrimage is scheduled for Saturday, July 26 – the Memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary – starting at St. Mary’s Church in Mocanaqua and ending at St. Adalbert’s Church in Glen Lyon.
The pilgrimage begins at 8:00 a.m. with Confessions and prayer at St. Mary’s Church, 130 Rectory Road, Mocanaqua.
Pilgrims will depart at 9:00 a.m. for the six mile journey through the Mocanaqua Tract of the Pinchot State Forest. Mass will be offered around 12:00 noon at St. Adalbert’s Church; those who cannot walk the pilgrimage route are welcome to attend the Mass.
Lunch will be served and bus transportation back to Mocanaqua will be available.
There is no cost to participate; the public is invited to walk or submit or prayer requests.
To register, text or call Raphael Micca at 570-301-9253, email rdmicca@aol.com, or register online by clicking here before July 21.
The pilgrimage will be held rain or shine: please dress accordingly and modestly.
A walking pilgrimage is an ancient Christian tradition with many continuing to this day, such as the Chartres pilgrimage in France, the Camino de Santiago in Spain, and the Pilgrimage for Restoration in upstate New York.
This local walk, now in its third year, is reminiscent of the treks made by the early coal mining families of Mocanaqua. During the 1890s and early 1900s, Mass was offered in an improvised chapel in town once a month by the pastor of St. Adalbert’s Church.
On other Sundays, the faithful walked from Mocanaqua to Glen Lyon for Mass on a route similar to the one planned for this year’s walking pilgrimage.