Pontifical Gregorian University · Biblical Institute
Pontifical Biblical InstituteJerusalem Campus · Gregorian University
Enquire

About

In the Footsteps of Jesus and Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini

A pilgrimage to Jerusalem and the Sea of Galilee in Easter week, from 28 March to 3 April 2027. In Jerusalem the pilgrims stay at the Pontifical Biblical Institute, the residence of Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini.

Jerusalem_from Dominus Flevit
Jerusalem_from Dominus FlevitPhoto: pdl

At a glance

  • Dates: from Easter Sunday, 28 March, to Saturday, 3 April 2027.
  • For: all who wish to reread the events of the Gospels in the places where they happened, and in particular priests who wish to renew their adherence of faith to Christ and to share an experience of priestly communion. Those who come without a particular motivation of faith, to contemplate the beauty of the biblical landscapes, are welcome too.
  • President: H.E. Mgr Carlo Villano, Bishop of Pozzuoli and of Ischia.
  • Biblical guides: Fr Pino Di Luccio, S.J., Director of the Pontifical Biblical Institute, Jerusalem; Mgr Lucio Sembrano, official of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, Rome.
  • Travel: ITA Airways flights from Rome Fiumicino to Tel Aviv and back.
  • Nights: 28–31 March in Jerusalem, at the Pontifical Biblical Institute (bathrooms on each floor, none in the rooms); 31 March – 3 April in Nazareth, at the Casa Nova opposite the Basilica of the Annunciation (rooms with bathroom).
  • Cost: €1,615, with flights, meals (drinks excluded), entrance fees, coach, medical insurance and the travel authorisation; single room €240 more; tips of €70 per person, collected on arrival.
  • Organiser and registration: Caring for Earth ODV, cfe.odv@gmail.com, which sends the full programme and the registration form. Payments: €515 on registration, by 9 October 2026; €600 by 9 January 2027; €500 by 28 February 2027.

Programme

  • Sunday 28 March: flight from Rome to Tel Aviv; Jerusalem seen from the Mount of Olives; arrival at the Institute.
  • Monday 29 March, Jerusalem: Ein Karem, the places of St John the Baptist; Gethsemane; the Convent of the Flagellation and the Via Dolorosa; the Basilica of the Resurrection (Holy Sepulchre).
  • Tuesday 30 March, Jerusalem and Bethlehem: the Temple Mount, with the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa; the Western Wall and Mount Zion (the Cenacle and the Dormition); in Bethlehem, the Shepherds’ Field and the Basilica of the Nativity.
  • Wednesday 31 March, the Judaean Desert: Wadi Qelt and the monastery of St George of Koziba; Jericho (Tell es-Sultan); Qumran; the Dead Sea; through the Jordan Valley to Nazareth.
  • Thursday 1 April, the Sea of Galilee: Capernaum; Tabgha, the church of the Multiplication of the Loaves; the church of the Primacy of Peter; the Mount of the Beatitudes; a crossing of the lake, or Mount Tabor, depending on the weather.
  • Friday 2 April, Nazareth and Mount Carmel: the Basilica of the Annunciation, the Franciscan museum, the Church of St Joseph, the Orthodox Church of St Gabriel and Mary’s Well; Haifa, Mount Carmel (Elijah’s Cave and the Stella Maris sanctuary); Acre.
  • Saturday 3 April: Mass at the Basilica of the Annunciation; flight from Tel Aviv to Rome.

The programme may change for reasons beyond the organisers’ control; the times and places of the Masses are not yet confirmed. A passport valid for at least six months after the date of departure is needed, and an electronic travel authorisation for Israel (ETA-IL), which the organiser obtains.