SAN DIEGO — A Jubilee Year pilgrimage to Italy can be a life-changing experience.
“My wife and I decided to sign up and, boy, are we sure glad we did!” said William Engelbrecht, of St. Gabriel Parish in Poway. He was among the 93 people who took part in a pilgrimage to Rome, Assisi and Orvieto, which was sponsored by the Diocese of San Diego.
Led by Bishop Michael Pham and Auxiliary Bishops Ramón Bejarano and Felipe Pulido, the group departed from San Diego on Oct. 27 and returned home on Nov. 7.
The pilgrimage was tied to the Jubilee Year, a special period held every 25 years and dedicated to conversion and striving for greater holiness. This Holy Year began on Dec. 24, 2024, and will end on Jan. 6, 2026. The Jubilee Year theme was “Pilgrims of Hope.”
During the pilgrimage, the bishops celebrated Masses for the group at various historic churches, including the Basilica of St. Francis, which was built over his tomb in Assisi, and at St. Peter’s Basilica, where its namesake is buried.
The San Diego pilgrims walked through the “Holy Doors,” which are only open during Jubilee Years, at St. Peter’s Basilica, the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, the Basilica of St. Mary Major and the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls.
They also attended a general audience with Pope Leo XIV.
Carlos Fletes, who attends St. Mary’s Church in El Centro, described the pilgrimage as “a deeply spiritual and unforgettable journey, one that filled my heart with gratitude, faith and joy.”
He said that walking through the Holy Doors “reminded me of God’s endless mercy and the invitation to renewal that he extends to us all.”
Fletes shared that the “highlight of the pilgrimage” was “the incredible opportunity to meet and shake hands with Pope Leo and even take a group photo with him.”
“That moment,” he said, “will remain in my heart forever as a profound reminder of the unity and love that binds us as members of the Catholic Church.”
Fletes said, “The laughter, stories and prayers we (pilgrims) shared along the way created bonds of friendship that I will cherish forever. I also had the joy of meeting new friends who, like me, were seeking to grow closer to God through this wonderful experience.”
Of the bishops, he said, “Their spiritual leadership, warmth and dedication made this pilgrimage not just a journey across sacred places, but a true journey of the soul.”
“Who wouldn’t want to be part of a pilgrimage group that was led by three bishops?” asked KimOanh Nguyen-Lam, of St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Huntington Beach, who attended with her husband, Kim Nguyen-Viet.
Nguyen-Lam, who resides in Orange County, heard about the pilgrimage from cousins who live in the San Diego Diocese.
She said that she and her husband had learned about Bishop Pham’s ongoing advocacy for immigrants and how he has been accompanying them to their court hearings.
“We were so glad and proud to hear a Catholic faith leader taking concrete actions to support the oppressed and marginalized people of our country,” she said, “and, therefore, we wanted to get to know him more during the trip.”
Nguyen-Lam said the promise of a five-day stay in Assisi was also something that she and her husband found appealing. They had already been to Rome three times, but had yet to visit Assisi.
She shared an experience at St. Francis’ tomb.
“When we sang the St. Francis’ prayer at the end of Mass, I was moved to tears,” she said. “Each word that we sang came alive, and I vowed to live them more truly from now on.”
Nguyen-Lam said that she forged bonds with her fellow pilgrims.
“I had very memorable, meaningful and deep conversations with several people with whom we still maintain contact after the trip,” she said.
Having just been ordained to the permanent diaconate in May, Deacon Ron Aquino said that he and his wife, Christine, signed up for the pilgrimage as “a reward to ourselves for making it through five-plus years of formation.”
“As a brand-new deacon, I really could not believe some of the places that I got to serve at the altar for. But … my personal highlight was serving at the altar tomb of St. Francis,” said Deacon Aquino, who ministers at St. Rose of Lima Parish in Chula Vista and has a longstanding devotion to St. Francis of Assisi.
He touched his diaconal vestments to the tomb and prayed that the saint, who was also a deacon, would intercede for him in his new ministry.
A “bonus treat” was having his parents on the pilgrimage with him.
He said that, by the time he was ordained to the diaconate, his parents had undergone “a reversion” to their Catholic faith. During the pilgrimage, he said, it was a joy to see his parents “experience these holy places and … these holy moments” with other people of faith.
Engelbrecht said that he and his wife were “on the fence” at first about signing up for the pilgrimage, having gone on a pilgrimage to Italy a few years ago.
But, he said, “We came home just feeling so much deeper in our faith.”
He described walking through the Holy Doors as “an experience of a lifetime” and attending a Mass celebrated at the tomb of St. Peter as “an experience that’s almost indescribable.”
