SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral - Indianapolis, Indiana

(Photo provided)

Destination: This year’s Super Bowl and any year’s Indy 500 aren’t the only reasons to visit Indianapolis. Regardless of your reason for going, plan a stop at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral.
Masses are 5 p.m. Saturday, 10:30 a.m. Sunday, 8 a.m. Monday-Friday and 5:15 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday.
Why to go:  The parish was established in 1892, two years before Rome authorized the move of the diocesan see from Vincennes, Ind.,  to Indianapolis. The new parish was on its way to becoming a cathedral. Originally served by its 1890s chapel, the cornerstone to today’s church was laid in 1905.
Three of the cathedral’s pastors eventually became bishops — two for Indianapolis and one for Evansville, Ind.
The church was renovated in the 1980s, a process that was completed in 1986, followed by chapel renovations in 1992.
If you visit, consider leaving a donation for the The Cathedral Soup Kitchen. It has been feeding the hungry of Indianapolis since the Great Depression of the late 1920s through the 1930s, when parishioners handed out peanut butter sandwiches to the needy. Today, there is a seven-days-a week meal program that feeds 3,200 meals a month, and a food pantry that helps 1,080 households a month. 
Access: There are steps leading to the golden front doors of the this urban church.
(Grand) Kid friendly: As usual, inside a church, children will want to be on their best behavior.
Info: Address: SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral, 1347 North Meridian St. Indianapolis, IN 46202-2302. Phone: 317/634-4519. Web: www.ssppc.org

- Compiled by Sharon Boehlefeld
Send your Catholic destinations ideas to seasonedobserver@rockforddiocese.org

Our Lady of the New Millennium - St. John, Indiana

(CNS photo/Michael McArdle, Northwest Indiana Catholic)

Destination: A 33-foot-tall, 8,000-pound stainless steel statue of Mary has found a permanent home in St. John, Ind.,  after being carted from parish to parish around the Chicago area for more than a decade. It made at least one stop in the Rockford Diocese, at St. Patrick Church in Rockford. The statue of Our Lady of the New Millennium is yet another reason to visit St. John, Ind., which is also the home of the Shrine of Christ’s Passion. (See December 2009 Seasoned Observer.)
Masses are at 5 p.m., Saturday; 7:30, 9:30 and 11:30 a.m., Sunday in the church; 6:30 p.m., Tuesday.
Why to go:  The statue, Our Lady of the New Millennium, was commissioned by Chicago resident Carl Demma in 1995 and has visited nearly 300 parishes, mostly in the Chicago Archdiocese. It was blessed by Pope John Paul II in 1999 during his visit to St. Louis.
Father Sammie Maletta, pastor of St. John the Evangelist, told the crowd at a May 22 dedication — held inside as heavy storm clouds surrounded the statue — that Carl Demma said when he was 9 years old, he wanted to build a statue of Mary so big “that all of Chicago can see her.”
Demma died in 2000. His wife, Francine, who attended the ceremony, is pleased that the statue has a permanent home. She said the parish location for the statue was ideal for “visibility and evangelizing.”
“I knew it would inspire many people. I knew in my heart this was the appropriate place. They’ll take care of it for the next generation,” she told the Northwest Indiana Catholic, newspaper of the Gary Diocese.
Access: Parking is available near the statue, so most people will find it relatively easy to see it.
(Grand) Kid friendly: The parish is home to a school, although it is at another location, so children are welcome to visit the statue.
Info: Address: St. John the Evangelist Church, 10701 Olcott Ave., St. John, IN 46373. Phone: 219/365-5678. Web: www.stjohnparish.org
Editor's note: Before you head to St. John, Indiana, check the Dec. 5, 2009, Destination for other places to visit in the area.

- Compiled by Sharon Boehlefeld; CNS contributed to this story
Send your Catholic destinations ideas to seasonedobserver@rockforddiocese.org

Monte Cassino Shrine - St. Meinrad, Indiana

(Photo from Saint Meinrad Archabbey)

Destination: A day’s drive from nearly anywhere in the Rockford Diocese, the Monte Cassino Shrine at St. Meinrad, Ind., is a great stop on a fall colors drive. The shrine is one mile east of Saint Meinrad Archabbey along Indiana 62.
During May and October, Mass is held at 7 a.m. on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
Why to go:  “Surrounded by trees and panoramic views of the Anderson Valley,” the Web site reads, “the shrine, dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, is a testament to the age-old tradition of seeking God.”
The shrine is also a testament to how a novena to Our Lady of Monte Cassino saved the people of St. Meinrad from an 1871 smallpox epidemic. To this day, seminarians hold an annual pilgrimage of thanksgiving at the shrine around Jan. 13.
The shrine, which began as a simple wayside niche that housed a lithographic print of Mary, is now built on native sandstone. Inside, above the altar, is a wooden statue of Mary and Jesus that was hand carved in Switzerland.
Special events: Each May and October, there are Marian pilgrimages at the Shrine.  Speakers and topics this month are: Oct. 3 — Father Sean Hoppe, OSB, “Mary, Queen of Peace”; Oct. 10 — Brother Maurus Zoeller, OSB, “Marian Shrines and Pilgrimages”; Oct. 17 — Father Prior Kurt Stasiak, OSB, “Mary, One Who Trusted the Lord”; Oct. 24 — Father Joseph Cox, OSB, “Mary, the Good Soil”; Oct. 31 — Father Pius Klein, OSB, “Mary, Mother of Faith.” The hour-long pilgrimages start at 2 p.m.
Ammenities: The Archabbey Guest House has rooms for visitors.
Access: The shrine chapel has a short step at the door and the abbey campus is on a picturesque, but hilly, 2,500 acres.
(Grand) Kid friendly: The Abbey is also home to a college and would be a great place for a “visit day” for high school students, especially young men considering the priesthood. Younger children, of course, are always welcome.
Info: Address — Monte Cassino Shrine, St. Meinrad Archabbey, 200 Hill Dr., St. Meinrad, IN 47577. Phone —800/581-6905. Web — www.saintmeinrad.edu

- Compiled by Sharon Boehlefeld
Send your Catholic destinations ideas to seasonedobserver@rockforddiocese.org

Shrine of Christ’s Passion - St. John, Indiana

(Photo provided)

Destination: The Shrine of Christ’s Passion near St. John, Ind., is actually home to three shrines: the namesake shrine, the Marian Wayside Shrine and Sanctity of Life Shrine. It is south of U.S. Rt. 30 and not too far east of the Illinois-Indiana stateline.
Mass is not offered at the site, but St. John the Evangelist Church (11301 West 93rd Ave.) in nearby St. John offers  Masses at 6 p.m., Saturday; 7:30, 9:30 and 11:30 a.m., Sunday; 6:30 p.m., Tuesday; 8:30 a.m., Wednesday-Friday.
Why to go: The main shrine features 40 life-size bronze statues along a half-mile winding path. In addition to the traditional stations, the route has recently added stops for the Last Supper and Jesus’ night in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Visitors who watch Chicago television or A&E on cable will recognize the voice of Chicago broadcaster Bill Kurtis, who narrates a recorded story of Christ’s passion at each station.
The lighted path is open year-round, weather permitting. More than 1,000 trees and shrubs, as well as boulders  from Wisconsin, are artfully arranged on the site.
The Marian Wayside Shrine features a larger-than-life statue of Mary.
The  Sanctity of Life Shrine is dedicated to the lives lost through abortion.  A bronze statue of a kneeling Jesus holds the remains of a tiny, aborted baby in his hands.
Amenities: A visitor’s center and religious store are open the same hours as the shrine: Friday through Wednesday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and Thursday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.
Access: The shrine is handicap-accessible and there is a shelter about halfway into the path. The first 2/3 is on level ground, then, after crossing a bridge, there is an uphill grade with a downhill grade on the return. There are carts available by appointment; check with the visitor’s center.
(Grand) Kid friendly: Because the shrine’s sites are outdoors, it’s a great place to walk through with kids.
Info: Address: Shrine of Christ’s Passion: 10630 Wicker Ave., St. John, IN 46373 Phone: 219/365-6010. Web: www.shrineofchristspassion.org

- Compiled by Sharon Boehlefeld
Send your Catholic destinations ideas to seasonedobserver@rockforddiocese.org

Saint Mary- of-the-Woods, Indiana

(Photos: Sisters of Providence of
Saint Mary-of-the-Woods)

Destination: The Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Ind., were founded in 1840 by St. Mother Theodore Guerin. Their home today is the site of a college, and several shrines, including one for their founder. It is five miles northwest of downtown Terre Haute, Ind., off Indiana Rt. 150.
Masses are held at 11 a.m. on Sunday and at 11:30 a.m., Monday-Saturday at Church of the Immaculate Conception, where the shrine of St. Mother Theodore Guerin is housed (above). Call ahead for holiday Mass times.
Why to go: St. Mother Guerin and five other Sisters of Providence came to the United States from France to be educators, so it’s no surprise that there is a college, a high school and a pre-school where they began their work. But at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, you’ll also find an outdoor Way of the Cross, Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto, the National Shrine of Our Lady of Providence (right), Blessed Sacrament Chapel, the 125-year-old St. Anne Shell Chapel, and a labyrinth for quiet contemplation. Whatever your reason for visiting, start at the Providence Center, where information is available and tours begin.
Special events: A workshop about saving heirloom vegetable seeds is scheduled March 21. Cost is $20 per person or $35 per family. Info: Candace Hack at 812/535-2935 or chack@spsmw.org.
Ammenities: O’Shaughnessy Dining Room serves Sunday brunch 10:45 a.m. until 1:15 p.m. Cost: $12.50 for adults; $11.50 for seniors age 55 and older; $6.75 for children 6-11; free for children younger than 6. There are also lunch and dinner buffets on other days of the week.
Access: While there is plenty of room to walk, most sites on the grounds are also accessible to the handicapped.
(Grand) Kid friendly: Saint Mary-of-the-Woods welcomes visitors of all ages. 
Info: Address: 1 Sisters of Providence Road; Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, IN 47876. Phone: 812/535-3131. Web: www.spsmw.org

 - Compiled by Sharon Boehlefeld
Send your Catholic destinations ideas to seasonedobserver@rockforddiocese.org.