Benedictine College
Holy Land Pilgrimage
December 28, 2023 - January 7, 2024
Our 9-day Holy Land Tour of Israel will transform the Bible into vivid reality as you are immersed in the land where the Incarnation took place. You will visit Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Galilee, and many other places so familiar from scripture. You will develop a more intimate understanding of the life and teachings of Jesus Christ as you smell the air, feel the sun on your skin, and touch the very rocks that He and the Disciples may have touched.
Participants will have a first-hand experience of the Holy Land's wonders and complexities. The Holy Land is an incredible mosaic where history, religion, art, archaeology, spirituality, geopolitics, natural wonders and multi-ethnic coexistence, meet and sometimes are at odds with each other.
Program Cost:
Benedictine College Students: $2,690
Other participants: $2,890
Deposit due at registration: $750 deposit
Single room option available for an additional $630.
A United Airlines group flight leaving from Newark Liberty International Airport has been arranged for the cost of $1,287. Participants can choose to take advantage of the group flight or buy their own plane ticket and reach the hotel in Jerusalem on their own.
The group flight will leave from Newark on December 28 at 3:55 PM and return to Newark on January 7 at 4:45 PM. Flights from and to your final destination must be purchased separately.
Benedictine College students can choose to take the trip for credit.
The optional academic portion would fall under the course THEO 3910: The Holy Land (2 credits). This course entails a study of the Gospels in the context of a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Places visited mark the traditional sites of key events in the life of Christ (e.g., His birth, death, resurrection, ascension), as well as places of significance for His earthly ministry (e.g., Nazareth, Cana, and Capernaum). This course will also allow the student to witness firsthand the state of current relations in the Holy Land among Christians, Jews, and Muslims.
Upon return to campus, a 1 credit special topics course would be offered in the Spring, entitled “Theology of Geography.” The two courses combined would amount to 3 credits in theology for the Spring semester.
Last day to register: September 25, 2023
Group Leaders
Abbot James R. Albers, O.S.B., is the ninth abbot of St. Benedict’s Abbey, serving in this role since December 2012. He hails originally from St. Joe (Ost), Kansas, west of Wichita, and grew up in Bendena, Kansas, attending St. Benedict’s Parish, which was founded by the monks of St. Benedict’s Abbey.
Abbot James attended Benedictine College as a fourth-generation legacy student, graduating in the spring of 1994 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism and theology. Following graduation he worked for PSI, Inc., as a communications editor in the company’s marketing office at its Lawrence, Kansas, corporate headquarters.
He professed vows at St. Benedict’s Abbey in December 1996 and began theology studies in the fall of 1997 at the Pontifical University of Sant’Anselmo, Rome, Italy. He earned his Bachelor of Sacred Theology degree from Sant’Anselmo and was ordained to the sacred priesthood in July 2000.
Upon completing his studies, Abbot James served at Benedictine College in the role of Director of Alumni Relations, and in 2002 was appointed as Prior of the Abbey. He served in that role until his election as abbot, serving also as Vocations Director from 2005-2012. Abbot James regularly serves in parishes throughout the Archdiocese on weekends, and shares in the responsibilities of ministering to the students at Benedictine College by helping with chaplain duties.
Dr. Mark J. Zia is a Professor of Sacred Theology at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, where he has taught for nearly 15 years. He earned his Doctorate in Sacred Theology (S.T.D.) from the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome, dissertating on the doctrine of biblical inspiration. Dr. Zia regularly teaches classes in biblical theology, including courses on the Pentateuch, Synoptic Gospels, Gospel of John, and Biblical Hermeneutics. He is also actively involved in the academic formation of candidates for the permanent diaconate for the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, and beyond.
Before coming to Benedictine, he taught theology at Franciscan University of Steubenville’s Austrian campus and then at Ave Maria College in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Dr. Zia is a Senior Fellow of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology and a perpetual member of the Fellowship of Catholic Scholars. He has published several articles and three books, and is currently working on a fourth. Of particular interest is his book on Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, The Enduring Faith and Timeless Truths of Fulton Sheen, given the current preparations in the USA for Sheen’s Beatification.
Costs and Itinerary
Program Fee: $2,890 per participant ($750 deposit + $2,140 balance)
Benedictine College Student Discount: $200 (Program Fee: $2,690, deposit: $750, balance $1,940)
Single Room Supplement: $630
Group Flight (optional): $1,287
Payment Information: When you register, you will be required to pay a $750 deposit toward the total cost of the program. At registration, you may also opt to pay either the remainder of the full cost of the program or half of the remainder of the full cost of the program.
- The trip must be paid in full by October 31, 2023.
The price includes:
- Travel Medical Insurance
- Assistance at the airport upon arrival and departure (if you take the group flight)
- Air-conditioned coach transportation
- Accommodation in hotels
- Breakfast, lunch, and dinner from the dinner of Dec. 29 to breakfast on January 7
- Gratuities
- Local guide
- Whisper Audio guide system
The price does not include:
- Airfare from/to the US
- Drinks with included meals
- Personal extras, and anything not specifically mentioned under “the price includes”
