Journeying beyond Le Mans

Today we ventured through the rolling hills of the French countryside where little farms with livestock dotted the landscape. We arrived in the little town of Ahuille, the hometown of Father Sorin, the founder of the University of Notre Dame.

We moved toward the church to learn more about Fr. Sorin's life--what compelled this young man to leave his country of birth in order to live out the mission that Father Moreau had set forth? While the church in town was not original to Fr. Sorin,  we celebrated Mass with some of the parishioners after viewing a picture celebrating Fr. Sorin's jubilee. Who knew that Main Building once had fountains next to the staircases? The homily was offered today by Father Bill who encouraged us to to be like Fathers Moreau and Sorin as well as the patron saint of today, Philip of  Neri--to have courage to give up our possessions, and to offer ourselves generously so that like Christ the love of God can be experienced by all.

While children raced around Ahuille on a scavenger hunt, we did a "hustle hike" to "Chateau de La Roche," viewing the home where Fr. Sorin lived out his childhood.  In comparison to the humble abode of Fr. Moreau, Fr. Sorin's home was on top of hill that overlooked French pastures that his family probably owned. There was a servant's house nearby and a large fenced in courtyard surrounding the majestic home. We were struck by the contrast between these men's early lives but also inspired by their vision for the Congregation of Holy Cross to flourish beyond the local communities.

Our last stop of the day was to the Benedictine monastery, Saint Peter's Abbey also known as Solesmes. We celebrated Vespers with glorious Gregorian chants filling the air. Father John told us about the ties of friendship between Solesmes and Holy Cross that have existed since the time of Father Moreau.

As I reflect upon the day, I realize that the spirit of friendship resonated throughout all we did-in the locations we visited, the men we talked about and also in the conversations we had as pilgrims traveling together. The topics varied but each revealed the importance of forming strong relationships with God and others throughout one's faith journey. We even had a lively discussion where we acknowledged that each vocation, even single life, requires sacrifices. So while our bus trip ended with us sharing ideas on student leadership, it became clear to me that like Father Sorin, we too are on a journey with the priests, brothers and sisters of Holy Cross to bring the vision of Moreau to fruition.