The Seven Churches Pilgrimage is a beautiful Catholic tradition observed after sundown on Holy Thursday that invites participants to keep company with Christ in the Eucharist and reflect on seven key moments in the hours leading up to Christ’s crucifixion.
After the Holy Thursday liturgy concludes and the Blessed Sacrament is taken to the altar of repose, pilgrims will visit seven local churches to spiritually accompany the Lord and adore Him at each church’s altar of repose, according to an article published by the Diocese of Saint Petersburg, Florida. The Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana, also explains that at each church, the faithful meditate on one of the seven movements of Christ during His Passion: His journey to the Garden, His trials before Caiaphas, Annas, Pilate, and Herod, and His path carrying the cross.
The tradition traces back to a pilgrimage started by Saint Phillip Neri, who lived from 1515 to 1595 and is said to have begun the tradition by visiting Rome’s seven basilicas. According to the Museum of the Bible, the saint founded the Archconfraternity of the Most Holy Trinity of Pilgrims, which welcomed and guided pilgrims in Rome.
After processing with the Eucharist to an altar of repose, the saint and other pilgrims would travel “from church to church to ‘remain’ with Jesus commemorating the beginning of his passion,” the diocese states. Over time, the tradition spread, and Polish and Italian immigrants who came to the Americas brought the tradition with them, according to the diocese.
Pilgrims can make this journey on their own or in groups. Some dioceses offer a specific route or additional information to follow along. The Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, offers a guide for pilgrims to meditate with and notes that people who are unable to travel can still follow the meditations at home.
The guide encourages the faithful to follow this structure in prayer: Acknowledge the presence of God and invite Him to be present, relate one’s thoughts and emotions with God, be open to listen and receive from God what He desires to share, and respond in dialogue with Him and offer resolutions to Him.
Arlington Bishop Michael Burbidge wrote in the guide’s introduction letter commending those who keep the Lord company on Holy Thursday night, recalling Christ’s request to the apostles in the Garden of Gethsemane — and to the faithful today — to “remain here and keep watch with me.”
“In this, he invites us to be with him — in the midst of his burden, in the midst of his pain,” the bishop wrote. “But he also wants to walk alongside us in the tension in our lives — to accompany us, to make us whole. All we must do is remain with him. It is my prayer that for these few precious moments you will take him up on this offer. Turn away from the distractions, obligations, and activities of the past and what may come in the future. For now, simply remain with Jesus Christ.”