LEAD A PILGRIMAGE
You gather the people.
We build the journey.
Have a parish, ministry, school, family, Catholic organization, or group you want to bring on pilgrimage? Start here. You do not need a full group, a date, or a priest in place. Only the sense that you could bring people together for this.
Start the conversationIt often begins with one person
Most pilgrimages do not start with a committee. They start when someone says, out loud, that people ought to go: a parishioner after Mass, a youth minister, the woman who runs the rosary group, a father who wants his grown children together in Rome. If that is you, this page is for you.
Leading the group, and the priest’s part
A layperson can organize and lead a pilgrimage group. You carry the invitation, the relationships, and the reason for going. A priest, when one is part of the pilgrimage, does what only a priest can: he celebrates Mass, hears confessions, and shepherds the pilgrims spiritually. Neither replaces the other. Many good pilgrimages have both: a layperson whose initiative made it happen, and a priest who is free to be a priest.
If you do not have a priest yet
You do not need to have a priest in place to begin. We can talk through how a priest could be part of the pilgrimage. That might mean inviting your pastor or another priest you know, or planning around the Masses already celebrated at the shrines. It does not have to be settled before you write to us.
What you do
- Decide, with us, where and roughly when
- Invite the people you hope will come
- Stay the person your group knows and trusts
- Invite a priest, if you want one and have one in mind
What Bold Pilgrim carries
- The itinerary and its pace
- Flights, hotels, and ground transport
- Arrangements with shrines, churches, and guides
- Traveler questions and payments
Put in writing before anything is promoted
Before a pilgrimage is announced to your people, the arrangement is written down: who is responsible for what, clergy arrangements, the minimum number needed, how payments are handled, and the cancellation terms. Complimentary travel or compensation for an organizer is not assumed or promised.
Questions organizers ask
Can a layperson organize a Catholic pilgrimage?
Yes. Any Catholic may gather people for a pilgrimage: a parishioner, a parish staff member, a ministry leader, a teacher, the head of a Catholic organization, or simply someone who feels called to bring others along. The Church does not reserve organizing a pilgrimage to clergy. What a lay organizer does not do is provide the sacraments; Mass and Confession on the journey belong to a priest.
Do I need a priest before I contact Bold Pilgrim?
No. You do not need to have a priest in place to begin. We can talk through how a priest could be part of the pilgrimage. Many pilgrimages begin with a layperson and a priest joins the conversation later. A group can also travel without its own chaplain and attend the public Masses at the shrines it visits.
How many people do I need?
You do not need a committed group to begin. Tell us who you hope to bring, even if today that is a handful of names or only a sense that people would come. Group size shapes the price and the kind of journey, and we will talk through that honestly once we know more.
What does the group leader actually do?
You are the reason the group exists. You choose the place and season with us, invite people, answer their first questions, and remain the person they know before and during the journey. You do not book flights, collect payments, build rooming lists, or negotiate with hotels.
What does Bold Pilgrim handle?
The journey itself: the itinerary and its pace, flights and ground transport, hotels, local guides, arrangements with shrines and churches, traveler questions, and payments. When a priest travels with the group, we coordinate the practical side of Masses with him so that he is free to be a priest.
Can a parish, ministry, school, or Catholic organization lead a pilgrimage?
Yes. A pilgrimage can be gathered around a parish, a men’s or women’s group, a school or campus ministry, a lay association, a Catholic nonprofit, or a family. If the pilgrimage will carry the name of a parish or diocese, ask the pastor first; that is his to give.
Can people outside my parish or group join?
That is your choice. A pilgrimage can be kept to your own people, or opened so that individuals, couples, and families from elsewhere can join it. Opening a pilgrimage often helps a smaller group reach the number it needs.
How do I invite my priest?
Ask him plainly, early, and without a finished plan; most priests want to know the purpose and the dates before anything else. If you would like help, tell us his name on the form and we can talk through how to approach him. A priest who is considering it can also use our discernment page for priests.
Read further
Join a pilgrimage
For one person, a couple, a family, or friends who want a place on a journey.
Explore pilgrimagesLEADLead a pilgrimage
For a layperson, parish, ministry, school, or organization who wants to gather a group.
You are hereFOR PRIESTSDiscern leading as a priest
For a priest considering whether to shepherd a pilgrimage as its spiritual father.
Begin discernment