PILGRIMAGE TO ROME FOR THE YEAR OF FAITH BY THE ORDER OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE OF JERUSALEM

Vatican City,  (VIS) - Three thousand knights and ladies of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem (a tenth of the the total membership) will make a pilgrimage to Rome in 2013 for the Year of Faith. The event, which is due to take place from 13 to 15 September, will coincide with the general assembly of the Order and will conclude with a celebration of the Eucharist presided by the Holy Father in St. Peter's Basilica.

The Grand Magisterium of the Order held its autumnal session in Rome yesterday evening, under the presidency of Cardinal Edwin Frederick O'Brien, grand master of the Order. During the meeting attention turned, apart from to the pilgrimage, to the statutory commitments of the Order in the Holy Land, and in particular those concerning the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. His Beatitude Fouad Twal, patriarch of Jerusalem of the Latins and grand prior of the Order, illustrated a number of projects in the field of education, He recalled how more than 18,000 students (around 2,500 in Israel, 5,700 in Palestine and 10,000 in Jordan), of whom 61 per cent are Christian, frequent the forty-two primary and secondary schools funded by contributions from the Order of the Holy Sepulchre.

The patriarch also made reference to the religious and political situation, and to the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, expressing his concern at the growth in fundamentalism in the region. He also noted how the importance of the Holy Land had been confirmed in two important events which took place this year: The World Congress of Families in Milan, Italy, which had focused on the Holy Family of Nazareth, and the International Eucharistic Congress of Dublin, Ireland which had dedicated particular attention to the Cenacle in Jerusalem.