Bishop Dennis Walsh prays before the Blessed Sacrament last year at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Davenport. Seven parishes on the Iowa side of the Quad Cities are participating in the Seven Churches Visitation tradition.
By Anne Marie Amacher
The Catholic Messenger
DAVENPORT — The tradition of visiting seven churches on Holy Thursday, known as the Seven Churches Visitation, is deeply rooted in Catholic history and devotion, says Father Bruce DeRammelaere, pastor of St. Paul the Apostle Parish in Davenport.
“This practice is believed to have originated in Rome, where early pilgrims would visit the city’s seven major basilicas as a form of penance and spiritual reflection,” he added.
The Seven Churches Visitation (or pilgrimage) is credited as beginning in Rome with St. Philip Neri in the 1500s. Neri would lead groups of faithful to visit each of the seven basilicas of Rome on Holy Thursday night as a way of keeping watch with Christ as though at the Garden of Gethsemane before his passion.
“The number seven holds particular significance in this tradition,” Father DeRammelaere said. “It is thought to represent the seven final places Jesus visited from his arrest to his crucifixion, allowing the faithful to meditate on his passion.”
The seven passages as part of this pilgrimage are:
1) Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane (Lk 22:39-46)
2) Jesus before Annas (Jn 18:19-22)
3) Jesus before Caiaphas (Mt 26:63-65)
4) Jesus before Pilate (Jn 18:35-37)
5) Jesus before Herod (Lk 23:8-9; 11)
6) Jesus before Pilate again (Mt 27:22-26)
7) Jesus’s crucifixion and death (Mt 27:27-31)
“By visiting seven churches, devotees engage in a spiritual journey that mirrors Christ’s own path to Calvary, fostering a deeper connection to the events commemorated during Holy Week,” said the priest.
The churches participating on the Iowa side of the Quad Cities are St. John Vianney and Our Lady of Lourdes parishes in Bettendorf and Holy Family, Our Lady of Victory, Sacred Heart Cathedral, St. Paul the Apostle, St. Anthony and St. Alphonsus parishes in Davenport. Please wait outside the church if the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday is still underway.
A handout will be available at all churches for you to take along the pilgrimage so participants can meditate on scriptural excerpts, and offer prayers and adoration.
“This is a wonderful, traditional way to honor Holy Thursday. It’s a solemn occasion, but still enjoyable and it’s a night you’ll never forget,” Father DeRammelaere said.
