At the Magdala Center and on the occasion of the Fourth Virtual Pilgrimage of Magdala: “Pilgrimage of Grace. Walking through the Holy Land hand in hand with the Church,” two special moments were held for the closing of the Pilgrimage. At 10:00 a.m., local time in Mexico City on April 17, the Resurrection Eucharistic Celebration took place, presided over by Fr. Juan María Solana, LC, who led the entire virtual pilgrimage along with the Magdala Team. Subsequently, at 11:00 a.m., CDMX, the concluding event of the Pilgrimage of Grace was held, also led by Father Juan Solana, LC.

During the homily, Fr. Juan Solana, LC, focused on the scene of the encounter between the risen Jesus and Mary Magdalene. He expressed that Mary Magdalene was “a woman observed by God’s eternal gaze” and was given the office of apostleship. Just as Jesus met Mary Magdalene, “He encounters us and extends a hand to lift us out of the turbulences of existential shipwreck, because He is the Savior, and He invites us to His Church, invites us to be members of His body, because He wants to give us His life, He wants to infuse His Spirit into our hearts so that we recognize ourselves as beloved, cherished, and privileged children of God, so that each of us recognizes ourselves as brothers.”. Father Juan Solana, LC, highlighted Mary Magdalene’s perseverance after being rescued by Jesus, becoming a disciple, accompanying Him to the cross, and caring for Him in His burial. For all this, Jesus entrusts her with the apostleship with these two phrases: “Go to my brothers,” “and tell them: ‘I am ascending to my Father who is your Father, to my God who is your God’.”. The father emphasized that the words: “Woman,” “brothers,” “My Father,” “My God,” lived in the sacraments should invade our souls. Finally, he mentioned that “the second reading invites us to seek the things above, that is, to set our hearts on heaven, that is, to have our hearts in God; to believe, to love, to hope, to rise from the dust of this world, to the beauty of heaven, to the brightness of the sun, to the clarity of the moon, where our Lord God awaits us on the day of our departure from this world.”

On the other hand, during the Closing Event, the Magdala Team that carried out the Pilgrimage of Grace was introduced; in addition, testimonies and thanks from the pilgrims were shared in the live virtual chat, and a raffle was held. The raffle activity involved presenting each of the Church’s sacraments, explaining a brief summary of each, and mentioning the raffle prizes among the explanations. Therefore, the prizes were organized as follows:

Baptism: 

1. An artisanal baptismal jewelry set, with vase decorations.
2. First trip to the Holy Land.
3. Technological map. 

Confirmation: 

1. An artisanal confirmation jewelry set, with Holy Spirit decorations. 
2. Technological map. 

Holy Orders: 

1. An artisanal priesthood jewelry set, with cross decorations.
2. Canvas: “Come and follow me,” of Jesus on the Sea of Galilee.

Eucharist: 

1. An artisanal Eucharistic jewelry set, with an image of the Magdala tabernacle. 
2. Second trip to the Holy Land. 
3. Stone of the Cenacle in Jerusalem. 

Penance: 

1. An artisanal reconciliation jewelry set, with decorations of the penitent’s hands and the priest’s hands giving absolution. 
2. Canvas: “Come and follow me,” of Jesus on the Sea of Galilee.
3. Stone of the Cenacle in Jerusalem. 

Marriage: 

1. Official Magdala kit
2. An artisanal marriage jewelry set, with figures of the alliance and two rosaries with details of the alliance between each mystery. 
3. Canvas: “Come and follow me,” of Jesus on the Sea of Galilee.

Anointing of the Sick: 

1. An artisanal anointing jewelry set, with a vessel of olive oil. 
2. Official Magdala kit.
3. Technological map. 
4. Reproduction of the Magdala stone. 
5. Third trip to the Holy Land.

For the presentation of the sacrament of Orders, Fr. Donald Corry, LC, was present. He is one of the first Irish Legionaries of Christ priests, belonging to the first group in Ireland, celebrating 50 years of priesthood this year. He was ordained in Rome, at Our Lady of Guadalupe, on December 24, 1972. Fr. Donald briefly shared his vocational and priestly experience, expressing that the meaning of his vocation “is to respond to God’s will.” It is worth mentioning that he worked many years at the Vatican, being very close to Saint John Paul II and Benedict XVI, and he commented that it was a great learning experience and beneficial for his priestly development.

At the end of the event, Fr. Juan Solana, LC, announced the upcoming Magdala Virtual Pilgrimage, which will focus on the theme of prayer, corresponding to the fourth part of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.