Reflections on Pilgrimage by Bicycle

by Fr. John Li, priest from a northern diocese in China

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Pilgrimage is not just about going somewhere, but about meeting God and oneself again.

Pilgrimage is familiar to Catholics, and its origin can even be traced back to the earliest centuries of the Catholic Church. The etymology of the word "pilgrimage" is profound, and its meaning has hardly changed. The word comes from the Latin per ager, which means "through the field," and another meaning is "across the border." In the Bible, Abraham was a pilgrim because he "left his country, his family and his father's house" (Gen. 12:1). Jacob was a pilgrim; he knew with faith that "this is the dwelling place of God, the gate of heaven" (Gen. 28:17). Moses was a pilgrim; he saw with wonder the flames of fire on a bush that did not burn, and heard God's call to him in the wilderness (cf. Ex. 3:2-4). Former Pope Francis encouraged people to be "pilgrims of hope" during the Jubilee Year of 2025; he said, "In this year, we must rediscover the priceless treasure of heart-to-heart dialogue with God, and thus become pilgrims of hope." The Pope also emphasized that pilgrims are "people on the journey" and always have the desire to move forward. Here, I would also like to share my two pilgrimage experiences, because the pilgrimage journey has changed my existence and led me to discover God on the road.

The first pilgrimage was in 2009 - that year was the Year of Priests, promulgated by the universal Church. In response to the Pope's call to pray for priests, our pilgrimage group, after several days of material and spiritual preparation, embarked on the pilgrimage journey on July 19, 2009, for the sanctification of priests. We set out on bicycles from Hebei Province, passing through 18 Catholic churches in southern Hebei, Henan, Anhui and Jiangsu provinces, and 22 counties and cities in the heat, wind and rain, resulting in exhaustion and hunger. We arrived at our destination, Sheshan Holy Land in Shanghai, at 6 pm on August 1. The entire journey lasted 25 days, a total of 2,250 kilometers, and 122 hours of cycling. During the journey, Father Liu, the leader of the team, said that he saw that many local churches were developing slowly, and some were declining. The current situation was not optimistic. There was a serious shortage of priests and nuns, and the faithful were like sheep without a shepherd, scattered everywhere, lacking the proper pastoral care. Our group said that through this pilgrimage, we benefited a lot. Not only did we increase our understanding of the church and know the urgent needs of the faithful, but we also increased our enthusiasm for God and the church, and we became more determined to follow God on the path of our priestly vocation.

The second pilgrimage was in 2012, which was the Year of Faith promulgated by the Church. In order to deeply experience the true faith, my friend and I set out from the Bishop's Palace of Liaoning Diocese on July 8, with the blessings and expectations of priests and brothers and sisters, and embarked on a pilgrimage journey - the destination was Taiyuan, Shanxi. It took us 14 days, visiting 12 churches in southern Liaoning and Hebei provinces. In the wind and rain, we passed through 14 counties and cities and arrived at our destination on the morning of July 21. The entire journey included a total of about 1,162 kilometers, with the cycling time being about 120 hours. Along the way, we felt faith because we touched her - we searched for her in the bitter sweat, lived her with boiling blood, and witnessed her in young lives. Faith is not used to explain life, but to carry life, so that we can go further and go deeper - this is the courage that faith gives to life.

On the pilgrimage, I thought we would have a lot of topics to talk about along the way. But there were few opportunities in the fast cycling, and the invasion of fatigue made us unable to speak. Only when we slowed down could we chat for a few words about each other's views and understanding of various things. We were silent most of the time on the road, and we have slowly learned silence, learned to experience and enjoy it. In silence, we pray sincerely. When tired, every time we pedaled the bikes, pedaling with all our strength, we dedicated the effort to a specific intention. Repeat again and again... Facing the hilly areas of Anhui, every time we saw a big slope, we were happy and worried. The joy was that we didn’t have to pedal going down, and the worry was the great difficulty placed before us going up. In silence, we reflected on ourselves and came to know ourselves. In silence, we tasted the real ups and downs in life, the true love and warmth of the world, and more importantly, we experienced the loving companionship of God. God is always by our side and always watching over us.

On the pilgrimage, God encouraged us with different images, different ways, and different words. The most common phrase we heard was: "Have a good trip." The most common action we saw was people giving us a thumbs-up. The most honest faces we saw were full of smiles. Many times, people's eyes expressed their wishes for us. Many people were witnesses of God's love, the elderly, children, women...Their actions gave us great comfort.

On the pilgrimage, we learned to put down our maps. We brought atlases on the road, and we also had maps copied from the computer. The purpose was to point out the approximate direction so that we could find a way and plan the route and itinerary before setting off. It can be said that most of the roads were within our understanding, but there were always more unknowns than knowns. Sometimes, God arranges to let us walk out of our own "map" and onto the road he has arranged for us.

Pilgrimage is not just a long road with one step and one kneeling, but also the direction for the soul to go home. Offering is not just a gift in your hand, but also the most sincere love in your heart.

Pilgrimage is every approach; it is every giving; it is every offering.

Chinese with English Translation of the Sacred Song of Our Pilgrimage

献上（Title） Dedication （Title）

（Verse1）

我献上，我的满目疮痍---- I offer, my wounded body

我献上，我的痛哭流涕---- I offer, my tears

我献上，我的支离破碎---- I offer, my broken pieces

我献上，我的奄奄一息---- I offer, my dying breath

（Verse2）

我主啊，请圣化我的五内---- My Lord, please sanctify my heart

我主啊，请治愈我的伤悲---- My Lord, please heal my sorrow

我主啊，请垂顾我的疲惫---- My Lord, please look upon my fatigue

我主啊，请收纳我的颓废---- My Lord, please accept my decadence

（Chorus）

献上，我献上，我的是是非非---- I offer, I offer, my right and wrong

献上，我献上，我受伤的花蕊---- I offer, I offer, my wounded stamen

献上，我献上，我生命的卑微---- I offer, I offer, the humbleness of my life

献上，我献上，我干涸的爵杯---- I offer, I offer, my dry cup

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Fr. John Li is a priest from a northern diocese in China. To respect confidentiality, names have been changed in this blog.

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