We ended our eight-day pilgrimage to the Holy Land with an extraordinary experience. Fr. Paul Fitzpatrick had arranged for nine of us -- with about 40 others from different groups -- to spend three hours alone in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher on Saturday evening, the vigil of Pentecost.  

We had free roam of the entire place, including the Rock of Calvary and the Tomb of Jesus. What a wonderfully prayerful and touching experience to end our time in Jerusalem. I prayed for all of the members of the Province, both at the Rock of Calvary and in the Tomb of Jesus.

A humorous moment: At about 11:30 p.m., an Orthodox priest came into the Tomb of Jesus and shouted at the top of his voice, "OK, everyone out!"  It brought a whole new meaning to the saying: "I've been kicked out of better places."

Our tour company, Grace Tours, was superb in every way. I highly recommend this company, run by Palestinian Orthodox Christians in the West Bank, to anyone contemplating a visit to the Holy Land. The website is grace-tours.com.

Very special thanks to Paul for an outstanding pilgrimage for the six Marianists in the group.

Bro. Dennis Schmitz and I arrived in Bangalore on Tuesday morning. The District Chapter will meet on Thursday and the District Assembly will run through Sunday. Please pray for this important event and for the new leaders who will be installed.

Temporary professed Indian Marianists in Bangalore; they renewed their vows at the end of this retreat. They were joined by Bro. Ed Brink and Fr. George Cerniglia.

Over the past year, Mike and Brandon have been busy completing studies in philosophy for entrance to one of the Roman theological schools. We thank the Lalanne Community for its support of our confreres during this time of intense study.

Members of the Lalanne Community at Brandon and Mike's perpetural vow ceremony last fall. From left, Frs. Jim Heft and Ken Templin, and Bros. Brandon, Mike and Dave Murphy.

Let us keep Brandon and Mike in our prayers as they begin this new period of formation in preparation for ministry in the Society of Mary and the Church.

SLIconnect announces a June 22 webinar called "Healthy Anger: Skills for Communication & Confrontation." Learn more at sliconnect.org.

Annual retreat season has begun. Let us keep one another in prayer at this important time.