Among the churches the seminarians will visit is Mary Major, the largest Marian Basilica in the world

Rome, Italy -- It is not uncommon in this day in age to see religious men traveling hurriedly from church to church.  But imagine visiting 30 churches in 8 hours!

This is the goal set by 12 Legionary brothers in Rome.  On Saturday, March 24, 2012, they plan to visit 30 Catholic churches throughout the ancient city.

Why are they doing this?  The reason is two-fold, according to one of the participating brothers, Andrew Gronotte.  “The event is a pilgrimage in which we will offer the prayer intentions of our families, friends, and benefactors,” he said.  “The event is also a fundraiser to help support the seminarians in their studies in Rome.”

The Church-a-thon, as the brothers have dubbed it, was first organized by Brother Peter Huynh in December of last year. 

“Living in Rome, it is a grace to have so many beautiful Churches with so much history and tradition, and this is a way we have to share it,” said Brother Andrew.  

The brothers will be stopping for at least 5 min to pray at each church. The route, which stops at all the major churches in Rome,

	Among the 30 churches is Saint Agnese, containing the relics of St. Agnes, Virgin Martyr from the 3rd Century

works out to about 19 miles.

“It is much like a marathon, in which runners accept donations for each mile run,” said Brother Andrew. “But we are looking for sponsors, not for each mile run, but for each church visited. A donation is usually anywhere between 1 - 6 dollars per ‘mile.’ Thanks in advance for any help you can give!”

The brothers say they are greatly looking forward to the event.

“I am looking forward to this event because as a future priest one of my missions will be to pray for the souls of all those who I come into contact with and hopefully bring those souls closer to God,” said Brother Andrew. 

“Praying for others is the greatest act of charity anyone can do,” said Brother Jerek Scherber. “It forms a priestly heart.”

Brother John Bender said, “I am really excited about this because so many people and friends have shown their support for me in my formation to the priesthood, and I am very grateful. I hope to correspond to their generosity with my fidelity and preparing myself well to be a good and holy priest. I will carry all of their intentions with me on this pilgrimage and will intercede for them before our Lord in the churches that we will visit, asking Him to hear our prayers and to grant us the graces that we need to fulfill His will with love.”

Brothers still in need of sponsors include Patrick Giguere, Jerek Scherber, Timothy Heslip, Samuel Chow and Benoît Terrenoir.  Click here to make a donation.  Prayer intentions should be sent via email to sdg7@legionaries.org.  Click here to see a brochure of the churches the brothers plan to visit.