Fr. William Mills is an Orthodox priest and author of “A 30-Day Retreat: A Personal Guide to Spiritual Renewal.” During the month of June, he will be conducting an online retreat on his blog Walking with God. Today is Day 1 of the retreat, so be sure to take a few minutes from your day to visit his blog.

About a month ago, I wrote that our response to the abuse crisis within the Church is to become saints. As we all should know, we cannot make ourselves saints – it is a work of God. All we can do is ask for His grace and make our will conform to His Will.

With this in mind, I’m very excited by the initiative of some students in Rome, who have decided to have Eucharistic Adoration in reparation for abuse:

VATICAN CITY — The Vatican is hosting two hours of eucharistic adoration “in reparation for abuses committed by priests and for the healing of this wound within the church.”

The service in St. Peter’s Basilica this Saturday will feature an hour of silent adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, an hour of prayer and meditation, and a solemn blessing at the end.

The unusual initiative was organized by Catholic university students in Rome. Sources said the event was originally planned for the small Church of St. Anne inside Vatican City, but that it was moved to St. Peter’s at the suggestion of Cardinal Angelo Comastri, who is archpriest of the basilica.

So far, however, the Vatican has not publicized the event. Invitations have been forwarded by email and spread by word-of-mouth.

The hour of prayer and meditation will be led by Msgr. Charles Scicluna, an official of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith who deals directly with cases of priests accused of abuse of minors.

In several recent statements, Pope Benedict has said the response to the sex abuse crisis in the church will require openness, adoption of new measures to protect children and spiritual reparation.

In a letter to Irish Catholics earlier this year, he asked that eucharistic adoration be set up in every diocese, so that “through intense prayer before the real presence of the Lord, you can make reparation for the sins of abuse that have done so much harm.”

What a wonderful idea! If you have Eucharistic Adoration available to you, try to take some time soon to go and adore the Lord and beg him for his mercy on the whole Church.

Years ago I was helping an RCIA class and at the first session the leader made a few introductory comments. He spoke over and over about the “journey of faith” and how we are all on a “journey” and when we become Catholic that is not the end of the “journey” but just a step in that “journey.” Needless to say, he said “journey” a lot. I recognized that there was truth in what he was saying, but something about it rubbed me wrong. It seemed to me too nebulous and not very descriptive of the spiritual life.

Since then I have noticed that “journey of faith” is a very popular catch-phrase in Catholic circles, and everyone from catechists to priests to bishops use it frequently. Yet I’ve never gotten comfortable with the phrase. Then, I recently read Pope John Paul II’s apostolic exhortation Redemptoris Custos about St. Joseph. In it, JPII noted that St. Joseph – along with the Blessed Virgin Mary – was on a “pilgrimage of faith.” And it clicked: we are not simply on a “journey of faith,” but we are on a “pilgrimage of faith,” and there are important differences between the two.

A pilgrimage has a sacred destination.
I can take a journey to Disneyworld, to my uncle’s cabin in the woods, even to the bank. But a pilgrimage always has as its destination some sacred place, such as a shrine or the site of a martyrdom. This changes the whole complexion of the trip, for if one is going to a sacred place, how one gets there matters. And as the destination of our life is heaven, then our lives are surely pilgrimages, not just journeys.

A pilgrimage involves prayer.
When you go on a pilgrimage, you spend your trip in prayer. You are not playing with your gameboys on the way, or watching movies in your van. You recognize that you need to be spiritually prepared when you arrive at your destination, so you use the pilgrimage itself as an opportunity to draw deeper into God’s sacred mysteries.

A pilgrimage involves sacrifice.
Another way to spiritually prepare for your arrival at the end of a pilgrimage is through mortification. You specifically take on sacrifices along the way, such as walking instead of driving, and you accept any inconveniences with a resigned spirit. On a journey, you might get annoyed with the hotel worker, crank up the A/C in the van, and figure out the shortest way to get to where you are going. In a pilgrimage, you offer your sacrifices and inconveniences in union with Christ’s Passion, and put yourself on the Way of the Cross.

A pilgrimage eventually ends.
Sometimes it seems that the phrase “journey of faith” emphasizes the trip to the exclusion of the destination. Yes, we do journey through life, but there is an end-point to our travels that we must always keep in mind. Unlike just any journey, a pilgrimage revolves around the final destination, and so too should our lives revolve around our desired destination, heaven.

I know that many people who use the phrase “journey of faith” are good-natured and recognize that our lives are more than a mere journey. But for me, I’m going to follow Pope John Paul II’s lead and remember that my life is supposed to be a pilgrimage of faith, with all that entails.

Mary Kochan over at Catholic Exchange has a worthwhile article on “Fear, Grief, and the Imperative of Forgiveness“. I recommend it for your reading today.

I mentioned the other day that I have an article in the May 16th edition of OSV Newsweekly and that it was only available online to subscribers. I just found out that they have now made the article available online to all readers. You can access it here.

I have an article in the latest issue of Our Sunday Visitor Newsweekly (subscription required) on not letting anger overtake our spiritual peace during times of scandal and persecution.

Friday has always been a day of penance in the Church. Even during this glorious season of Easter, Friday is still a day we should reflect on our Lord’s passion and death and do some penance in reparation for our sins and the sins of the whole world. A traditional penance for Fridays is to abstain from meat, but, at least in the United States, we are free to choose our Friday penance. When we perform a penance, we should offer an intention with it so that we might follow Paul’s advice and offer up our sufferings “on behalf of his body, which is the church” (Col. 1:24).

Pope Benedict, in his letter to the Catholics of Ireland, asked that their Friday penances over the next year (from now until Easter 2011) be offered for healing and renewal for Ireland in the face of the scandals that have rocked the Irish church. And just this past week, Benedict stated that penance is necessary as a response to the attacks of the world.

Thus, I don’t think I am going out on a limb to suggest that the Pope would love it if every Catholic worldwide were to offer their Friday penances for the next year for healing and renewal in the universal Church. Today is the first Friday we can make this intention (last Friday was part of the Octave of Easter and therefore not a day of penance), so please consider offering your penance today – and every Friday in the coming year – for healing and renewal in the Church as she battles against great evil, from both inside and outside the Church.

Today is also Pope Benedict’s birthday, so consider this year-long Friday practice a perfect birthday gift for him!

Yesterday I wrote that the Catholic’s proper response to the scandals is to become a saint. Someone then emailed me and reasonably asked, “How do you become a saint?”

I have always taken a very practical view of this question. I don’t see sainthood as something mysterious or ethereal. I see it as something every person can obtain if they take concrete steps to do it. Here are five steps I would recommend:

1) Ask God to make you a saint. Frankly, without His help, it’s a losing battle, so you better begin with this. The good news is that He is more than willing to help you in your battle for sanctity.

2) Frequent the Sacraments. Frequently. Most spiritual directors advise attending Mass daily if possible, and confession at least monthly. I would recommend going to confession even more frequently, for it prevents our little sins from growing into big ones.

3) Pray. Try to spend at least 30 minutes a day in private prayer. You can’t know what God wants from you unless you talk to Him a lot.

4) Practice the virtues. This is the least flashy of all the recommendations, but it is vital in the battle for sanctity. One cannot be a saint without being patient with your spouse and kids, kind to your co-workers and loving to your parents. The first step to being a saint is being human.

5) Read the Bible and the lives of the saints. If you want to be a professional baseball player, you are going to read about those who have already achieved that level to see how it is done. Likewise with sainthood: reading the Bible and the lives of the saints gives great guidance for becoming a saint yourself.

Obviously, there are many other things you can do on the path to sanctity, but if you just follow the five steps above, you will be well on your way. And don’t be discouraged when you fall in your attempts to practice these steps. A distinguishing mark of the saints is that when they fall, they always get back up.

Hallelujah! He is Risen!

At daybreak on the first day of the week
the women who had come from Galilee with Jesus
took the spices they had prepared
and went to the tomb.
They found the stone rolled away from the tomb;
but when they entered,
they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
(Luke 24:1-3)

For Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous, that he might lead you to God. Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the spirit. In it he also went to preach to the spirits in prison…
(1 Peter 3:18-19)

See, my servant shall prosper,

he shall be raised high and greatly exalted.

Even as many were amazed at him

so marred was his look beyond human semblance

and his appearance beyond that of the sons of man

so shall he startle many nations,

because of him kings shall stand speechless;

for those who have not been told shall see,

those who have not heard shall ponder it.
(Isaiah 52:13-15)

So when he had washed their feet
and put his garments back on and reclined at table again,
he said to them, “Do you realize what I have done for you?
You call me ‘teacher’ and ‘master,’  and rightly so, for indeed I am.
If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet,
you ought to wash one another’s feet.
I have given you a model to follow,
so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”
(John 13:12-15)

Today is Spy Wednesday, which is considered the day on which Judas Iscariot betrayed the Lord to the chief priests.

One of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot,
went to the chief priests and said,
“What are you willing to give me
if I hand him over to you?”
They paid him thirty pieces of silver,
and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over.
(Matthew 26:14-16)

Today let us repent for all the times we have betrayed the Lord by our own sins and beg the Lord’s forgiveness.

Today is the Feast of the Annunciation and it seems a good time to promote the wonderful little devotion called the Angelus.

"The Angelus," by Jean-Francois Millet

The Angelus, for those who are unaware, is a short set of prayers and Scriptural reflections related to the Annunciation. It is traditionally said three times a day: at 6am, 12noon, and 6pm, but many people just choose one of those times to say it each day (my family says it at noon each day). It is a beautiful way to interrupt the hustle and bustle of the day to reflect on our Lady’s perfect submission to the will of the Lord, thus reminding us of our call to submit our own daily lives to His loving will.

Here is the whole prayer:

V: The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.

R: And she conceived of the Holy Spirit.

All: Hail Mary, full of Grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and in the hour of our death.

V: Behold the handmaid of the Lord.

R: Be it done unto me according to thy word.

All: Hail Mary, full of Grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and in the hour of our death.

V:  And the Word was made Flesh. (genuflect)

R:  And dwelt among us.

All: Hail Mary, full of Grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and in the hour of our death.

V: Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God.

R: That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

V: Let us pray. Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts; that, we to whom the Incarnation of Christ, Thy Son, was made known by the message of an Angel, may by His Passion and Cross, be brought to the glory of His Resurrection. Through the same Christ our Lord.

All: Amen.

(Note: During the Easter season, the Regina Coeli is said instead of the Angelus).

My friend Fr. Michael Najim, who blogs at Live Holiness, has added video-casting to his technological repertoire. Here is his first entry, which is about the theological virtue of hope: