A recent pilgrimage ‘In the Footsteps of Mary MacKillop’ was a profound experience for Fr Nick de Groot SVD, helping him to reflect not only on God’s constant presence throughout his missionary life, but also on the leap of faith taken by his migrant parents when they moved to Australia.

Fr Nick joined 20 other pilgrims from October 22 to November 2 on a journey that took them from Melbourne, where Mary, Australia’s first saint, was born, to Hamilton, Portland, Penola, Robe and Adelaide before flying on to Sydney for the final three days of visiting, reflection and prayer.

A group of 35 parishioners from St Mark’s Parish at Inala in Brisbane saw their faith come alive as they walked in the footsteps of Jesus during a pilgrimage to the Holy Land last month.

The group, led by Fr Stephen Pilly SVD, came from a range of different cultural backgrounds, including Vietnamese, Samoan, Filipino, African and Australian.

Life brings to all of us problems as well as success, despair and joy. In my recent pilgrimage to Greece and Turkey, in the footsteps of St Paul, I learnt many things about the Great Apostle to the Gentiles especially this - that St Paul had learnt to adapt himself to every kind of circumstances, even being in jail.

We all face the inevitability of loss, sickness, aging, and death in our human experience. We are, after all, humans, not gods.

An enthusiastic group of parishioners from St Mark’s Parish, Inala, celebrated the Jubilee Year of Mercy and the 60th anniversary of the Parish recently, with a pilgrimage to Marian Valley, at Canungra in the Gold Coast hinterland.

The Marian Shrine, a ministry of the Pauline Fathers, is one of the Brisbane Archdiocese’s designated pilgrimage destinations.