The Chartres Pilgrimage

Chartres Cathedral

A couple of years ago, several people from my Church went on the Chartres Pilgrimage in France. It is a Pilgrimage that includes a long three day walk from Paris to Chartres Cathedral. The total distance is about sixty miles.

I was in France in 2006. I remember going into any Church that had anything to do with St. Joan of Arc. We even stopped in Reims to see the Cathedral where the Kings of France were crowned. I didn’t know a lot about my faith back then but I knew that Saints were an important part of it. St. Joan of Arc was present in Reims for the crowning of a King.

France certainly has a great history of Saints as it was one of the greatest Christian nations. St. Joan of Arc, St. Francis de Sales, and St. John Vianney are some of my favorite Saints. The Greatest theologian of the Christian faith, St. Thomas Aquinas is buried in France. St. Thomas was on his way to an Ecumenical Council in Lyons when he died.

It is also the land of great Cathedrals and one of the greatest in all of Europe called Notre Dame to Chartres. Pilgrimages were once very common in the Catholic Church. They usually came accompanied with a plenary ingulgence.

A friend of mine a couple of years ago described this amazing journey to me. This friend was a convert to Catholicism. I couldn’t help admiring the faith of the believer, so young in the faith.

During the “reformation” pilgrimages were attacked. Martin Luther attacked them in his writings. He talked about all you needed was the local Church with the sacraments. While that is certainly enough for Salvation, visiting the shrines of great Catholics can be used to enhance belief in a positive way.

In 2014 I went to Hawaii and visited the Church where St. Damien the Leper preached and cared for the lepers. He eventually became a leper himself and died with the people he loved and cared for.

I don’t know when but I will do the Chartres Pilgrimage. A year ago, The Remnant did a promotional video for the Chartres Pilgrimage. It starts out with a quote from Michael Davies saying that it is the most important activity going on in the Church today. That is certainly true. It is doing for the Church more than World Youth Day will ever do.

At the end of the Pilgrimage, the pilgrims enter the Cathedral where a Traditional Priest celebrates the Tridentine Mass. Pilgrims come from all over. In The Remnant promotional video Michael Matt points out that after three days of trying to converse with fellow Catholics who speak different languages such as French, German, Spanish, Polish, Croatian, etc. all gather in the Church and during the Creed, all hear the words:

Et unam, sanctam, catholicam et apostolicam Ecclesiam.

One Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church

Suddenly the “dead” language of Latin shows how every Catholic is united in faith. As Michael Matt says in the video: “The Latin unites them all, suddenly they all speak the same language.”

If you’re not yet convinced how wonderful this is, watch the promotional video. You’ll see that along with the prayers of the faithful, the Chartres Pilgrimage plays a huge role in restoring Christianity to society.