Pilgrimage to France opened teen eyes to faith

By Miriam Simpson
St. Scholastica Academy

Last August, St. Scholastica Academy (SSA) announced a summer pilgrimage to France. It was then I realized that I had always imagined a pilgrimage as being a walk in the middle of a desert while praying solemnly. But, the idea of walking the streets of France sounded appealing! We would be sightseeing in Paris and along the way to Lisieux, Angers, Nevers, and return to Paris for the flight home.

Not only would we see the famous France monuments, we would be centering ourselves in the faith, attend Mass and see many sites where great saints lived and died. I knew I would remember this trip for the rest of my life. With the help of my mom and grandparents, my name was soon on the student participant list.

We spent this year attending pilgrimage formation meetings and collecting community intentions to take to France.

On May 28, our farfetched dream became a reality as 19 fellow SSA students and I landed in Paris.  We toured the Louvre and attended Mass on the Solemnity of Pentecost. While not understanding the language, the Mass proved to me the universality of Catholicism. The priest who celebrated Mass was welcoming to us.

The following day, I was awestruck attending a Mass at the Miraculous Medal Shrine – a place close to my heart as a child knowing that it was an apparition site and where St. Catherine Labouré’s body lay incorrupt.

We also ventured to the Eiffel Tower, Sainte-Chappelle and the Basilica of Sacre-Coeur, but the  the Miraculous Medal Shrine was the most overwhelmingly beautiful and grace-filled of all.
On May 30, we traveled to Giverny, viewing Claude Monet’s house and gardens. We also visited the beautiful villages of Honfleur, Beuvron-en-Auge and Pays d’auge on the way to Lisieux to visit Saint-Pierre Cathedral where St. Therese and her family were parishioners.         


We brought many intentions that the student body, family, friends and community had written for us to carry and pray for on our journey. At Carmel, where St. Therese is buried and her museum is located, we had the opportunity to attend Mass with the sisters who live there. One of my favorite places in Lisieux was the Basilica of St. Therese. Its beauty and enormous size made me feel so small compared to God. If a place so vast and stunning like this was built by man, then how much more incredible heaven will be?


The next day, we visited Mont St. Michel and stopped at the charming seaside town of Saint-Malo enroute to Angers. Mont St. Michel’s enormous size and history fascinated me; I tried to imagine myself living there when the Benedictine monks did. We arrived in Angers that night and dined in the most memorable yellow restaurant with an adorable dog named Pistache. After dinner, we strolled around the town exploring its historic sites and watched the sunset on a ledge overlooking the city. We stopped inside a small church, and, to our surprise, eucharistic adoration was in progress, allowing us to  quiet our hearts before returning to our hotel for the night. Something so fun and joyful drew me back to the ultimate purpose of our pilgrimage: Christ.


In the Loire Valley on our way to Nevers, we toured the Chateau Villandry and Chenonceau Castle. On June 3, we spent our last full day at the Shrine of St. Bernadette, touring the convent and  attending Mass. It was especially beautiful. A  cellist accompanied us after being invited to sing the entrance hymn. Seeing St. Bernadette’s incorrupt body – so peaceful and beautiful – was another wonderful experience from the day.  On our way back to  Paris that last night, we took a Seine river cruise and shared a farewell dinner.

This pilgrimage was an indescribable experience that drew me so close to my classmates.  We say we are all sisters at SSA, but the trip gave me the opportunity to closely bond with my sisters daily. When traveling between cities, we would share testimonies and listen to chaperones talk  about the saints we would see that day or their own testimonies of faith. It opened my eyes to God’s goodness and deepened my understanding of his love. The beauty of France especially impacted me and broadened my appreciation for my senses. It taught me that, sometimes, I need to put down my phone, stop taking pictures and fully be present in the moment.

A reflection in my journal after a memorable day in Lisieux reads, “God gave me eyes to capture this heavenly beauty. No camera can come close to seeing the beauty or nature like our God given eyes can.”

The pilgrimage was a perfect balance between fun and sightseeing, and prayer and reflection. And, even in the fun, love surrounded us and brought us together. This pilgrimage was so memorable and impactful, and I cannot wait to see who is next to experience this incredible opportunity.

Miriam Simpson is a senior at St. Scholastica Academy.