Parishioners of St. Joseph Church in Athens visited churches and basilicas during their 2016 pilgrimage, including the Sanctuary of Mary in the Basilica of Swieta Lipka, Poland. The group of 19 parishioners and pastor Father David McGuinness traveled May 27-June 12.

ATHENS—Nineteen parishioners of St. Joseph Church in Athens, along with pastor Father David McGuinness, journeyed on a 17-day pilgrimage to Poland, Lithuania, Austria, the Czech Republic and Hungary from May 27-June 12.

The group visited Gdansk, Vilnius, Prague, Vienna and Budapest and attended Mass in some of the region’s cathedrals and basilicas. They visited the Swieta Lipka Basilica in Poland, the Gate of Dawn in Lithuania, toured a Cistercian abbey in Poland and St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna, and took an evening cruise on the Danube River in Budapest.

Pilgrim Lynn Renna said they were all enriched by the kind and prayerful people they met, the many cultures observed, and the deep faith of the people of these countries. Renna called it “a wonderful trip, filled with lasting memories.”