This photo is of the 44 people who took part in the Newman Catholic Student Center-Iowa City Pilgrimage March 13-23. It was taken at St. Patrick’s Purgatory, which is seen in the background on the lake. Father Jeff Belger, priest director at the Newman Center, served there as a seminarian in 2000. Pilgrim Mike Gannon is pictured in the back row, eighth from the right.
By Mike Gannon
Guest Column
My wife and I were blessed to go on a recent pilgrimage to Ireland with Father Jeff Belger, priest director of the Newman Catholic Student Center at the University of Iowa. If I could sum up my experience of the trip March 13-23 in one word, I would use the word “thankful.” I was thankful for the 44 beautiful people who shared in this pilgrimage. I was thankful for the daily Masses Father Jeff celebrated in beautiful cathedrals, simple country churches, and even a beer garden. I was thankful for the beautiful countryside and the rugged western coastline. I was thankful for the warm and hospitable people of Ireland.
What I was most thankful for is my Catholic faith, which has its roots in Galway and County Cork. As I stared out over the Atlantic Ocean and the rocky coastline of western Ireland, I thought of my great-grandfather Michael Joseph Gannon, who left Ireland at the age of 18 never to see his relatives or family again. I thought of the rich Catholic faith, which was brought to this green island in the fourth and fifth centuries by Egyptian Coptic Monks, and Ss. Patrick, Bridget, Columna, and countless others. I thought of the sacrifices the Irish Catholics have endured over the centuries, including Viking raids, English enslavement, and potato famines. Through it all, Jesus blessed the Irish people and the world with holy nuns, priests, bishops, and laity. My heart rejoiced in gratitude to our amazing God.
On the plane ride home, I read and reread St. Patrick’s confession. This short and spirit-filled document seemed to penetrate my heart, and left me in complete awe of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God’s all-consuming love seemed to burn within me. Like a moth drawn to the light, I drew closer and closer to the one true light. My heart echoed the words of St. Paul, “I’ve been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20).
Let us make our joy complete by sharing our Catholic faith with others. Through our actions, and if necessary, with our words, let us share the Gospel with everyone. Let us imitate those who came before us and left us with the treasured pearl of infinite value. Our families, neighbors, and world desperately need Jesus Christ. God desires everyone to be with him in paradise, and He is calling each of us to follow him in being fishers of men and women.
(Mike Gannon is a member of St. Joseph’s Church in Milford, Iowa.)
