Pilgrimage from Slovakia to Rome for the Jubilee of Youth 2025
13/10/2025
Two Ursuline Sisters, Srs Ruth and Jana Pavla and seven young women from Slovakia embarked on a pilgrimage to Rome for the Jubilee of Youth, held from July 28 to August 3, 2025. Now, they share their reflections and experiences:
St. Angela was a great pilgrim, and we, a small group of women, followed her example by journeying to Rome for the Jubilee Year 2025. Exactly 500 years ago, in 1525, St. Angela Merici herself made a pilgrimage to Rome during a Jubilee Year.
Traveling in a nine-seater van, we drove not only along highways but also through narrow, winding roads that made us ponder whether all roads truly lead to Rome.
Our first meaningful stop was in the region of Brescia, the birthplace of St. Angela. We spent two days with the Ursuline Sisters in Capriolo, who inspired us with their devotion to prayer and their vocation.
With heartfelt gratitude, we bid farewell to the sisters in Capriolo, who welcomed us with the warmth and tenderness that only Italian sisters with the heart of a loving grandmother can offer.
During our stay, we visited St. Angela’s house in Desenzano and the beautiful Lake Garda.
On Monday, we continued our journey to Rome, where we were warmly received by the sisters. The welcome at the Ursuline Generalate was truly special, and we were grateful to spend several days in such a beautiful and spiritually rich place. Novices also became our companions and fellow pilgrims, helping us expand our vocabulary, deepen our faith, and build lasting friendships.
One of the highlights of our pilgrimage was visiting all four major Papal Basilicas and passing through the Holy Doors: St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, the Basilica of St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major, and St. Paul Outside the Walls.
We lived the Jubilee days like many other pilgrims – with joy, fatigue, moments of hunger and thirst, and certainly under the scorching Roman sun!
On Saturday morning, we set out on our final pilgrimage to Tor Vergata. Surrounded by a sea of pilgrims waving flags and beating drums, we felt the spirit of pilgrimage more intensely than ever. For a million young people, all the hardships of the journey were worth it to stay awake with the Holy Father and celebrate the Eucharist together. It remains a profound joy for us to have been part of that million – united for one evening before the face of the Lord.
Terezka
