Emotions evident as pilgrims reflect about walking in the footsteps of Christ

Rita Casey, 86, a member of St. Luke the Evangelist Parish in Indianapolis, waves as she floats with no effort in the salt-dense water of the Dead Sea on Feb. 9. Ron Greulich, a member of St. Simon the Apostle Parish in Indianapolis, looks on.

“It was such a beautiful day with a lovely breeze. I was very conscious we were celebrating Mass near where Jesus established the primacy of Peter. I took a good look at that beach, and thought of Peter jumping in the water because he couldn’t wait [to get to Jesus on the shore].”
—Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin
 

“To think we’re walking where the blood of Christians was spilled. It is sobering.”
—Katherine Krapf, a member of St. Mary Parish in Indianapolis
 

“The view [from Mt. Carmel] was unreal in every direction.”
—Mary Klusas, a member of SS. Francis and Clare of Assisi Parish in Greenwood
 

“I picture the Apostles moving from place to place. We’re on a bus—they were walking it.”
—Mary Dougherty, a member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Indianapolis
 

“What a great blessing it was to be able to renew my baptismal vows on my birthday.”
—Pat Maher, a member of SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral Parish in Indianapolis
 

“It’s something to travel and see things you only see on TV, but when you travel and see things like this and it’s in your spirit, too, there’s no comparison. It’s such a wonderful feeling.”
—Domoni Rouse, a member of St. Rita Parish in Indianapolis
 

“When you looked in [the Church of the Primacy of Peter], you saw that big rock. Someone asked me, ‘Could that be the rock where Jesus spread out the food and cooked it over a fire so they could eat it?’ I said, ‘Well, there probably aren’t too many rocks that size in this area.’ I mean, that was a huge rock. It probably was the rock he used, and they just preserved it.”
—Larry Dougherty, a member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Indianapolis
 

“Just to be here is a way of touching that magnificent love that God has for us, that he sent his Son to walk among us.”
—Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin
 

“Our predecessors of faith would certainly not have forgotten the home where Mary lived. We can be confident that that’s the same home, not just on faith but by the fact of the [early Christian-era] mosaics discovered by it.”
—James Dubach, a member of St. Mary Parish in Indianapolis
 

“It was so nice to renew our [wedding] vows, with so many others who were renewing their vows, with the archbishop [presiding].”
—Ron Greulich, a member of St. Simon the Apostle Parish in Indianapolis
 

“I think the visit to the synagogue at Capernaum was important for me because of Jesus’ famous sermon there in Luke [chapter] four, which is also what St. Alphonsus [Liguori] cited as the reason for starting the Redemptorists.”
—Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin
 

“I was just amazed at the bravery of my fellow pilgrims who went into the Dead Sea, especially Rita [Casey], who has had 86 springtimes!”
—Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin

 

Related story: A land of calm and chaos: ‘There’s a militarized wall around Bethlehem?’ and other Holy Land pilgrimage observations