“Everything went silent and God said, ‘You are loved.’”

Faithful across the Diocese venture out on pilgrimage during Jubilee of Hope

Pope Francis declared 2025 to be a Jubilee Year with the theme “Pilgrims of Hope.” A Jubilee Year in the Catholic Church is a special year of forgiveness of sins, reconciliation, the gift of the plenary indulgence and a call to go on pilgrimage. The Holy Father also declared that each diocese around the world can designate jubilee sites, starting and ending with the Feast of the Holy Family, Dec. 29, 2024 to Dec. 28, 2025.

As this Jubilee Year comes to an end, faithful of the Diocese of Fargo shared their experience making pilgrimages to the six designated sites within the diocese: Cathedral of St. Mary, Fargo; St. Michael’s, Grand Forks; Maryvale, Valley City; Basilica of St. James, Jamestown; Carmel of Mary, Wahpeton; and St. Therese the Little Flower, Rugby.
 
 
Mike & Jena Bjertness family
Parishioners of St. Maurice, Kindred
 
Our family really enjoyed and appreciated the peaceful nature of the facility at Maryvale. There was a retreat going on inside, so we did most of our exploring outdoors. We participated in the Prayer Walk through the trees, and observed various wildlife on the grounds. The kids enjoyed playing on the playground; overall it was a favorite stop!

Sharing this experience with our children when they are at ages and stages where this piques their interest was so fun. It was a great reminder to me as a parent of the importance of sharing the beauty of our faith with our children. Sometimes we get so caught up in training them in the principles of our faith that stopping to appreciate the beauty can get lost. 

This pilgrimage especially taught them to look for the beauty in every Church they enter.
At each stop we made a point to go to Mass when possible or at a minimum to walk around and appreciate the art and features. Children ask many questions, as we all know, so each stop prompted many questions and conversations about why that location does things a certain way or the symbolism of various features.
 
 
Caleb & Brianna Boehm family
Parishioners of Sts. Anne and Joachim, Fargo
 
My family toured all of the sites together. It was a fun and fulfilling experience to travel together and experience the joy and beauty that the Church has spread throughout the state. I had only been to two of the locations previously, so seeing some of these churches for the first time was an amazing experience. It was and is a great reminder that God’s beauty reaches every corner of the world and North Dakota is no exception.
 
 
Laura Mibeck
Parishioner of St. Agnes, Kenmare, ND (Bismarck diocese)
 
The Diocese of Fargo had a prairie pilgrimage so I decided to go on an adventure! While I maybe didn’t travel to an exotic destination, a pilgrimage is meant to be a journey of faith. Mine certainly was, and it was nice to be able to pray at some beautiful historic places for the intentions on my heart. I was able to reconnect with some very dear friends. The Carmel of Mary was particularly invigorating and I was able to see some of the older nuns who were not long for this earth. To sing and pray with them was so lovely! While hundreds of miles may separate us all from one another, someday we won’t be separated at all. That is the great hope of our life of faith.
 
 
Trisha Lynum
Parishioner of Holy Cross, West Fargo
 
We were very fortunate to visit the Carmel of Mary Monastery on the weekend in March when they were giving visitors a chance to go “behind the wall” for a tour of their new senior wing. Mother Madonna was a wonderful guide, and my husband and I greatly enjoyed our chat with her. Her presence radiated a peaceful joy. She treated us to watching a video about the monastery and praying the jubilee prayer together before the tour. We also spent some time in quiet prayer in the chapel after the tour.

I appreciated learning about the unique history of all of the locations we visited. They were all beautiful in their own way. All seven [pilgrimage] coins are now displayed on our bedroom dresser. While this year was about more than just collecting coins, they remain a beautiful reminder to continue this journey we have started towards changing our hearts, deepening our faith, and growing ever closer to Christ.
 
 
Heidi Salwei
Parishioner of Holy Cross, West Fargo
            
When I was six years old, I saw the movie Song of Bernadette. I was spiritually moved by the movie and developed a deep interest in everything Lourdes. Many events in my life have kept the wish of going there alive, including a sermon by a 90+ year old priest. He spoke about his experience in the Lourdes water, and how he asked for a long life to be able to serve the Lord for a long time. This summer I was thinking that I would probably never get to Lourdes, when I realized I could do the Pilgrims of Hope pilgrimage as a replacement.
One highlight was when I called Carmel of Mary and was told the nuns were renewing their vows in a public Mass on the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in a few days. It was a spiritually awakening experience. The quiet atmosphere on their grounds brought peaceful feelings as opposed to the hustle and bustle of city streets.

Another memorable trip occurred after I called Maryvale to ask when the Sisters attended daily Mass. A date was arranged, and the Sisters welcomed me to share in their morning prayers and Mass. After Mass, I walked the grounds to pray at the shrines, visit the cemetery, walk the outdoor Stations of the Cross, and the Prayer Tunnel. It was a beautiful morning, hearing the cattle lowing on the surrounding hillsides, and another place to find Christ.
Our diocese has beautiful churches and places where we can make our pilgrimages locally.
 
 
Tracee Kelsch
Parishioner of Sts. Anne and Joachim in Fargo
 
My most memorable experience was when I shared a road trip with my mom (Renee Griffith, parishioner of St. Anthony, Mooreton) to the three sites farthest away from us. We journeyed from Fargo to Jamestown to Rugby, and finally to Grand Forks.

We spent that early fall day with such anticipation, joy, and gratitude. At our first site, I found out that St. James Basilica was one of my mother’s childhood parishes and that her younger sister had been baptized there as an infant. The next stop was the church in Rugby, which neither one of us had been to before. One of my mother’s favorite saints is St. Therese, so we really felt blessed to be able to see that beautiful church. While attending Mass at St. Michael’s in Grand Forks, we were fortunate to hear a musician play the most beautiful violin music and felt that it was the perfect ending to our day-long pilgrimage.

We were grateful for the blessings that we received visiting each holy site that day, in addition to the three other places we visited this year. Taking time at each site to be with our Lord was truly a gift. This Jubilee year has renewed our love for the Eucharist, Adoration, and spending time in prayer.
 
 
Kimberly Souba
Parishioner of Sts. Anne and Joachim, Fargo
 
This Jubilee of Hope became a pilgrimage that taught me what it means to be God’s beloved, especially in this new season of my life after moving to Fargo from Illinois in April. My journey began at Carmel of Mary, where the quiet prayerfulness of the monastery softened something in me. In that stillness, I sensed God whispering that his love is not distant or conditional but steady and close.

At St. Mary’s Cathedral in Fargo, that message deepened. These were the first sacred spaces I visited in my new city, and in both I felt God reassuring me, “you belong here because you belong to me.” The homesickness and uncertainty I had been carrying began to loosen.

Maryvale Retreat Center in Valley City offered a grace of surrender. In its peaceful rhythms, I felt God inviting me to trust this new chapter, not as a mistake or interruption, but as part of his way of loving me into growth and healing.

My pilgrimage concluded at St. Michael’s Church in Grand Forks, where everything seemed to draw together. As I prayed, I realized how God had been speaking through each stop, through silence, beauty, tears, and small moments of peace. The grace I received was not dramatic but tender, a quiet assurance that I am His beloved daughter, guided and held.
Although I was unable to visit the churches in Rugby and Jamestown due to timing and heading home for the holidays, the journey I did make was enough to reveal what my heart needed most. This Jubilee year gave me hope rooted not in circumstance, but in identity. I am loved, I am seen, and I am never walking alone.
 
 
Connie Scholand
Parishioner of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Reynolds
 
When I first heard about this pilgrimage I pretty much put it out of my mind thinking other than St. Michael’s in Grand Forks, I probably wouldn’t get to any of the other sites. I’m amazed how the opportunities just kept presenting themselves! Each site had its own “wow factor” clearly displaying the absolute beauty of our faith. I’m proudly displaying my seven coins in my China hutch.
 
 
Written by Monica Houim
Parishioner of Little Flower, Rugby
 
Eight Pilgrims of Hope from Rugby set out on Nov. 10 for a one-day Jubilee Pilgrimage. Father Frank Miller, pastor at Little Flower said, “We left early in the morning for Jamestown and made our way to all the places of pilgrimage and returned home late in the evening. It was a great spiritual quest to be closer to God. Life is a journey with others towards heaven and the pilgrimage brought that to heart.”

Mass, prayer, adoration, and good conversation with friends along the journey deepened the experience. 

“This year was a once in a lifetime moment for me,” said Joyce Teigen, “to be able to go to the selected jubilee sites, to understand why each area was chosen. We are so blessed in Rugby to be one of those churches.”

Mary Schmaltz added, “It was a joy to travel with our group to these pilgrimage sites. As we traveled to each location, we read the history of each site. The history took us back to how some of the churches were started and showed the faith of the people who built them. The beautiful coins we received are a wonderful reminder of each place.” 

The youngest pilgrim in the group, nine-year-old Beric Brossart, commented on how much he enjoyed the pilgrimage and seeing all the awesome statues and learning more about the different parishes. “I enjoyed collecting the coins and am excited to have them as a keepsake for the rest of my life,” he said.
 
 
Compiled by Lisa Volk
Parishioner of Little Flower, Rugby
 
The Little Flower, Rugby Catholic Youth Organization took a pilgrimage to all six jubilee sites in a single day. Alongside prayer, worship, and Mass in Fargo on the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, July 16, we were blessed with sunshine, good roads, and no breakdowns.

The group also carved out time for fun at Thunder Road in Fargo and Pizza Ranch in Valley City. Chaperoning teens on the journey brought laughter on the road, reverence in adoration, and the challenges of fatigue, but by nightfall our hearts were full. It was truly a celebration of youthful enthusiasm for our wonderful Catholic faith. The following are reactions from some of our youth.

“I loved getting to stop at all the Churches and collect the Jubilee coins. It made each place feel special. The monastery with the nuns was super peaceful, and then mini golfing and playing laser tag at the end was just a fun way to wrap everything up.” -Maddex

 “One of my favorite stops was in Wahpeton where we got to talk to the sisters who lived there and hear about their way of life.” -Lyric
 
 “Traveling the diocese and visiting several beautiful churches, the Adoration Chapel and Carmelite Monastery really showed me the beauty of the diverse ways that our people live their faith.” -Carter
 
 “When I was in one of the churches during Adoration it’s like everything went silent and God said, ‘You are loved.’” -Oakley
 
 “I was able to open my heart to the Lord and take time to reflect on the year. I grew closer to the Lord through prayer and had the opportunity to explore different traditions in the Catholic faith.” -Tucker
 
 “God spoke to me by showing the beauty of his creation when we traveled all over the state.” -Titus
 
 “One of my highlights was meeting and visiting with Mother Madonna at the Carmelite Monastery. Her joyfulness was contagious!” -Grant
 
 “The Jubilee sites helped me remember God works in small, quiet moments. It was a peaceful reset I didn’t expect.” -Paisley
 
 “Each stop felt peaceful and special, and I loved seeing how every church had its own history, atmosphere, and beauty. Spending that time reflecting, praying, and learning more about our faith made the whole experience feel really personal and memorable. The experience brought me closer to God and also helped me appreciate the community that comes with visiting these sacred places.” -Pius
 
 “It was a seemingly small way to take a day of travel and prayer to new places while experiencing the same God at each of them.” -Caleb