Aglow at dusk, St. Peter’s Basilica, built over the tomb of St. Peter, draws millions of Catholics and others from around the world. (Photo by Pawel Pajor/Adobe Stock)

Story by Shelley Wolf

The New England Catholic Biblical School has announced its 2025 trip, the “Italy Jubilee Pilgrimage,” which will fly travelers from New York to Rome to walk in the footsteps of St. Peter and to pass through the Holy Doors of four basilicas.

“We’re going to pass through all of the Holy Doors because it happens to be a Jubilee Year,” says Judy Kostelni, director of the New England Catholic Biblical School, who has been planning a trip to Rome for several years to teach local Catholics about St. Peter.

As it happens, next year the Vatican is celebrating a Jubilee Year, an event that happens only once every 25 years. Kostelni is delighted that the Biblical School trip will coincide with the celebration.

“The 2025 Jubilee Year” will begin on Christmas Eve 2024 with the opening of the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica. The motto for the year will be “Pilgrims of Hope.” Pope Francis has designated it as a year of hope for a world suffering from the impacts of war, the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the climate crisis.

The Biblical School trip, which will run from April 22 to May 2, 2025, will transport pilgrims to the Holy Doors of the Basilica of St. Peter in Vatican City, where passage through the doors will symbolize conversion and union with the Lord, as well as to the Holy Doors at three other major papal basilicas: the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, the Basilica of St. Mary Major and the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls.

According to Pope Francis, pilgrims may also draw from the spiritual treasury of the Catholic Church, venerating the relics of Sts. Peter and Paul, which are preserved in the basilicas.

Another benefit: Traveling to Rome and visiting at least one of the four major papal basilicas may allow Catholics to obtain a plenary indulgence for the remission of sins for themselves or for their deceased relatives.

The 11-day pilgrimage will be led by Monsignor Frank Matera, a New Testament scholar and chaplain for the New England Catholic Biblical School.

The trip, which is being hosted by the New England Catholic Biblical School and St. Thomas Seminary, is open to Biblical School students, alumni and friends. This trip is the third trip hosted by the school.

Additionally, the itinerary will take travelers to the cities of Venice, Florence, Assisi and Rome and focus on the saints in each city, such as Sts. Peter and Paul in Rome, St. Mark in Florence, and Sts. Francis and Clare in Assisi.

“What we try to do is bring the Bible stories to life, the saints too,” says Kostelni. “We’ll see where they really lived, what they did to live out their lives as disciples and what it really means to be a follower of Christ.”

As director of the Biblical School, Kostelni is excited to shepherd local Catholics to Rome. When travelers make a pilgrimage to Rome, she says, it can “help them understand that Sts. Peter and Paul were real.” And Rome is a must-see destination, she adds, because “this is where the apostolic succession begins.”

Daily opportunities for Mass, prayer and reflection will also be available.

Nawas International Travel out of Darien, Conn., is the tour operator. The cost per person is $4,899, which includes airfare from New York, all international travel, accommodations and most meals (breakfast and dinner). To obtain more information, including a detailed itinerary and reservation form, visit catholicedaohct.org and select “Catholic Biblical School/CBS Events” from the drop-down menu, call (860) 242-5573 ext. 2651, or email judy.kostelni@aohct.org.