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Pilgrimage gives us an opportunity to seek what our spirit longs for.
It’s not just travel; it’s travel with purpose and faith that bears lasting fruit.

The Unheard Story of the Sistine Chapel

The Sistine Chapel is one of the most iconic buildings on earth — but there's a lot you probably don't know about it. In this tour-de-force talk, art historian Elizabeth Lev guides us across the famous building's ceiling and Michelangelo's vital depiction of traditional stories, showing how the painter reached beyond the religious iconography of the time to chart new artistic waters. Five hundred years after the artist painted it,...

Blog, Italy, Vatican City

Philip on the Jesus Trail, Mt Arbel, Israel

Back where it all began

A heartfelt conversation with Harvest's founder Philip Ryall: "I had a powerful encounter of God as a young teenager where the scriptures were opened up to me in a fresh way at a Christian horse-riding camp."

Israel

Jesus in His Homeland

You’re pinching yourself that you’re in the Holy Land. There’s a sense of peace and tranquillity. You’re moved by an overwhelming need to say ‘thank you'.

Israel

Full of Grace

“We could feel our hearts pounding like we could feel the closeness of Heaven,” says Eugene. Hours later, he wakes at dawn to capture an early-morning photo of the day’s first rays bouncing off the stone and steeples. “The location of our accommodation in so many of the cities we visited was literally at the doorstep of the churches or shrines,” he explains. “Everything was walking distance away. So to...

France, Portugal, Spain

Sojourn for the Soul

Inside a small, unassuming chapel on Rue de la Visitation in Paray-le-Monial about 20 wooden pews face a simple stone altar and a colourfully painted mural depicting the Apparition of Christ to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque. Sitting on one of these pews, Irma De Guzman discovers a profound connection between this French town and her home in Melbourne, Australia.

France

When History meets the Holy

For Maria Shantharam, experiencing the site of Vatican City - The Eternal City - with its sea of travertine paving, towering colonnades and angelic sculptures, was like taking a trip in a time machine. “It was like stepping into an early civilisation. All of our histories came rushing to my mind,” she says. “I immediately felt peace within me.”

Italy

Finding Renewal in the Ruins

Even those who aren’t familiar with St Paul’s mission establishing the early Church will know at least some of his writings. Whether it’s the passages about uncompromising love in his letter to the Corinthians, or his encouragement to pray without ceasing in his letter to the Thessalonians, St Paul’s epistles are often quoted and shared – thousands of years after they were first written and read.

Greece

Journeying with Jesus

The road ascending Mount Tabor, is characterised by the hairpin turns that make for a thrilling taxi ride. But as you catch your breath at the summit, you’re struck with spectacular views of the Holy Land. Just as the disciples did when they witnessed the Transfiguration of Jesus, you feel the desire to stay and soak in all that your senses will allow, as you stand in yet another place...

Israel

Secrets of the Eternal City

Outside the doors of the Vatican Museum Geoff Nilon follows his Harvest tour guide, Vincenzo, past the queue of people that snakes 200 metres down the Via Vaticano. At the entrance, they sidestep the crowd and the heat to begin their afternoon tour through a historical and spiritual labyrinth of jaw-dropping art.

Italy

Living the Letters

Surrounded by greenery and generous shade, Helen Dingle closed her eyes to listen to the sound of water from the Zygaktis river cascading under her feet, the sound of the narrow stream magnified around the rocks where Fr Peter was setting up Mass on a simple stone table. Here in Philippi, Helen sat with her journal, putting into words the overwhelming feeling in her heart: “I’m at peace at last.”

Greece

Food for the Soul

The grand, spacious Upper walls of the Basilica of St Francis, Assisi, contain intricate frescoes that narrate the entire history of Christianity. In the Lower Basilica, a large rose window illuminates the interior’s numerous side chapels and vestibules. But it’s the third level — simple, dark and underdone — that holds the most valuable treasure.

Assisi, Italy

Behold your Mother

Outside the towering colonnades that line the Basilica of Our Lady of Fatima, the square is awash in the light of thousands of flickering candles and the sound of pilgrims singing Ave Maria. For Jenny Chitti, the experience is profound. Here she finds herself in Portugal. Home is on the other side of the globe and she’s standing in one of the world’s grandest and most renowned landmarks of Marian...

France, Portugal, Spain

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