St. Thérèse of Lisieux
Dear Sisters,
All Things Women invites you to France for a twelve-day pilgrimage centered especially in Lisieux and Lourdes, where we will explore St. Thérèse’s Little Way, our identity as beloved daughters of God, and Christ’s invitation to greater healing and interior freedom. Along the way, we will also encounter the sacred beauty of Rouen, Mont-Saint-Michel, Chartres, Paris, the Chapel of the Miraculous Medal, La Madeleine, and so much more. Above all, it is an invitation to step away together, as sisters, and to let the Lord meet you in the very places where He has met so many women before you.
All Things Women is excited to partner with Tekton Ministries to plan and guide this beautiful pilgrimage. With over 30 years of experience, Tekton guides Catholic pilgrims not as tourists collecting photographs, but as seekers drawing ever closer to Christ through the intercession of His Blessed Mother. Every dimension of this journey — from daily Mass at the great shrines to the prayerful reflections prepared for each day — is designed to deepen your relationship with Christ and create space for prayer, encounter, and authentic sisterhood.
At the Visitation, Mary hurried to Elizabeth, and two women recognized God at work in each other’s lives. That same grace of accompaniment inspired All Things Women, and it runs through every day of this pilgrimage. Come with open hands and an open heart, and return home changed, carrying seeds of grace to share with the women in your life.
We create opportunities for women to reconnect with their authentic selves, deepen their relationship with God, and grow into confident, mature women who recognize their unique gifts and offer them freely to others.
At the heart of All Things Women is a movement toward greater interior security and freedom: becoming rooted in His love, formed in sisterhood, and increasingly free to follow the movement of the Holy Spirit.
Our approach recognizes that meaningful growth involves the whole woman: mind, body, and soul. Spiritual growth, psychological well-being, relationships, personal history, and our embodied experience are deeply interconnected. Rather than treating these dimensions as competing approaches, we believe each can contribute, within its proper scope, to greater integration, maturity, and freedom.
This pilgrimage will explore that journey particularly through St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus and her Little Way. Drawing upon Thérèse’s spirituality of childhood, Fr. Brian Shininger, L.C., Eileen Wieck, and Brya Hanan, LMFT, will invite women to rediscover what it means to live as beloved daughters of God: receptive, trusting, honest about their needs, and confident in the Father’s love.
We will gently explore the younger places within us that may have learned to protect, strive, hide, please, control, or prove themselves, allowing those places to encounter the security of being deeply loved by God. Spiritual childhood is not about becoming childish. It is about recovering the simplicity, trust, receptivity, and freedom that allow a mature woman to give herself more completely to God.
That journey naturally opens into the healing grace of Lourdes. After exploring belovedness and spiritual childhood in Lisieux, Lourdes gives us space to bring our wounds, longings, relationships, and stories before Christ in the presence of His Mother. Through prayer, the sacraments, thoughtful reflection, and the healing tradition of Lourdes, we will invite God into the places within us that still need His tenderness and freedom, so that we might become freer to receive God’s love, remain in relationship with Him, and give ourselves more freely to others.
The pilgrimage leadership itself reflects this integrated approach. Fr. Brian brings priesthood, the sacraments, spiritual direction, and extensive experience in Catholic inner-healing ministry; Eileen brings decades of spiritual direction, formation, and inner-healing ministry; and Brya brings the perspective of a Catholic therapist specializing in inner-child work, trauma, and integration. Together, while respecting the proper boundaries of each discipline, they will accompany women toward greater integration of mind, body, and soul.
Throughout the pilgrimage, sacred places, beauty, prayer, meaningful formation, shared meals, laughter, conversation, and authentic sisterhood will all become part of the experience. Our hope is that women return home having encountered more than the saints and shrines of France. We hope they encounter Christ, themselves, and one another more deeply, returning home more secure in their belovedness and more interiorly free to become the women God created them to be.
Priestly accompaniment, spiritual direction, and Catholic therapy — three complementary gifts walking with you from Lisieux to Lourdes.
Fr. Brian Shininger, L.C., is a Legionary of Christ priest and the founding chaplain of All Things Women. He currently serves as superior of his Legionary community and chaplain to Regnum Christi members in Raleigh, North Carolina. Ordained in 2005, Fr. Brian is an experienced spiritual director with extensive experience using the materials and approach of the John Paul II Healing Center. Previously, he served for twelve years as Retreat Director at Our Lady of Santa Clara Retreat Center in California, where he co-founded the Divine Mercy Healing Team. As pilgrimage chaplain, he will bring together priestly accompaniment, inner-healing ministry, prayer, and the sacramental life of the Church.
Eileen Wieck is the founder and visionary behind All Things Women and the founder of Direction for Your Soul, LLC. With more than 32 years of experience in spiritual direction and ministry, she is a sought-after retreat director, preacher, and speaker, with particular experience preaching and directing the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises. Her formation includes Divine Mercy University and Encounter Ministries, with additional training and experience in Catholic inner healing, deliverance ministry, and integrative approaches to understanding the interior life. Eileen is particularly gifted in helping people uncover what is happening beneath the surface of their interior lives and encounter Christ there, integrating healing, discernment, beloved identity, and greater freedom in the Holy Spirit.
Brya Hanan is a Catholic licensed marriage and family therapist, a certified family trauma specialist, and the director of Catholic Inner Child Work. She is the creator of the Spirit-Led Inner Child Work model, an integrative approach that blends trauma-informed care, nervous system awareness, parts work, and Catholic spirituality to support deep healing and restoration.
She is licensed to practice in California and Arizona and leads a growing team of coaches and practitioners who extend this work through education, accompaniment, and formation. Her work focuses on helping individuals encounter God in wounded places, restore embodied safety, and rediscover their God-given wholeness.
Brya is also the author of the award-winning book Befriending Your Inner Child: A Catholic Approach to Healing, and God Whispered Gently, a children’s book she wrote about her own inner child. Her latest book, Restoring Your Wounded Heart: A Catholic Approach to Healing Trauma, just launched in September 2026.
A pilgrimage is not a tour of beautiful churches. It is a response to an invitation: to come as a beloved daughter, just as you are, and to let the Father meet you in the places where His saints discovered how deeply they were loved. The difference between a tourist and a pilgrim is not the itinerary; it is the posture of the heart.
At each place on this pilgrimage, the same quiet lesson returns: trust, surrender, and openness to being loved. Thérèse discovered that holiness is not achieved by striving but received, like a child who lets herself be carried. Our Lady asked Bernadette, a poor and overlooked girl, to dig in the mud and find a spring. She entrusted the Miraculous Medal to a young novice, St. Catherine Labouré. Again and again, God chose the little and the hidden. These were not destinations for sightseeing; they were encounters with a Father who delights in His children and a Mother who never stops interceding for them. Come prepared to be changed.
Before you depart, write down 3 to 5 specific intentions — a loved one in need of healing, a relationship broken by sin, a grace urgently needed — and the places within your own heart that still long for healing. Do not be vague. “Pray for my family” is a start; “Pray for my son’s return to the sacraments” is a pilgrimage intention. Carry these with you to each shrine and entrust them to Christ, through Our Lady and St. Thérèse, at every grotto, altar, and chapel.
The great shrines of France are places where heaven has touched earth. Lisieux, Paris, and Lourdes draw millions of pilgrims annually — they are not always quiet. Learn to find interior stillness in the midst of the crowds. The Grotto of Massabielle is not just a geological feature; it is a threshold between the seen and the unseen. Arrive, kneel, and give the silence within you more than you give to your phone.
At Lourdes, pilgrims are invited to wash their face and hands from the miraculous spring — a gesture that echoes Our Lady’s own words to Bernadette: “Go drink at the spring and wash yourself there.” This simple act of humility and trust is precisely the kind of childlike obedience Our Lady asked of Bernadette — and the very heart of the Little Way that Thérèse would later teach. Come to the spring with open hands and a surrendered heart. The grace is in the going.
Read about each shrine — its apparitions, its history, and the saints associated with it — and consider reading St. Thérèse’s Story of a Soul before we arrive in Lisieux. Spiritual preparation transforms a visit into an encounter.
Consider availing yourself of the Sacrament of Reconciliation before departure to receive all the graces and blessings you need on your journey.
We invite you to consider beginning to pray the Rosary now, as Our Lady has encouraged us to do, particularly as we prepare for our time in Lourdes. Every Marian shrine is a school of the Rosary — Our Lady has specifically requested it at Lourdes, Fatima, and countless apparitions.
Pilgrim Heart — A Pre-Pilgrimage Retreat (7 Sessions). Seven short sessions to prepare your heart before you ever pack a suitcase.
“By A Different Way: A Catholic Guide to Pilgrim Spirituality”As an Amazon Associate, Tekton Ministries earns from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you.
The Eucharist celebrated at the great shrines of France is the summit of this pilgrimage. Come with hungry hearts.
Lourdes’ nightly Marian procession, begun in 1863, is one of the most moving experiences in all of Catholic pilgrimage. Embrace it fully.
Keep a small notebook. Write what surprised you, what moved you, what the Lord seemed to be saying to your heart at each shrine.
Throughout this journey, we will pray for:
This pilgrimage involves extensive walking in historic city centers and at the great shrines. Expect cobblestone streets in Rouen and Paris, the ramparts of Saint-Malo, the steep climb up the Grande Rue and the many steps to the abbey at Mont-Saint-Michel, and long periods of standing at the Sanctuary of Lourdes, including evening processions. Days may begin early and include full schedules. Up to 5–6 miles (15,000 steps) per day. Please bring comfortable, well broken-in walking shoes and dress in modest attire for all shrines and churches. See Tekton’s full Pilgrimage Activity Levels.
Our pilgrimage begins today as we lift off for France. Meals and refreshments will be served aloft. Use these hours of transition to set your heart toward what lies ahead — pray the intentions you carry from home, review your preparation materials, and ask Our Lady to open your heart to the graces waiting for you at each shrine.
The Gothic façade of Rouen Cathedral in Normandy
Upon arrival in Paris this morning, we will be met at the airport by our Pilgrimage Manager, who will be with us throughout our journey. We then drive through the Normandy countryside to Rouen, where our walking tour explores its magnificent Gothic cathedral, depicting scenes from the life of St. Joan of Arc, and the Church of St. Joan of Arc, built near the place where she was burned at the stake. We proceed to Lisieux, where we check into our hotel for dinner and overnight.
The great domed basilica rising above Lisieux
Today we spend time in the home of St. Thérèse, the “Little Flower of Jesus.” We visit Les Buissonnets, the home where she lived as a child, followed by the Carmel Convent where she lived as a nun. We visit the Basilica of St. Thérèse, its Crypt, and the 13th-century Gothic Cathedral of St. Peter. We venerate Saints Louis and Zélie Martin, the Little Flower’s parents, while praying at their burial site. The balance of the afternoon will be spent in a retreat-like atmosphere — unhurried time to rest in the “Little Way” Thérèse taught, where holiness is found in small things done with great love. We return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
The island abbey of Mont-Saint-Michel rising above the bay at sunset
After breakfast we depart Lisieux and journey to Mont-Saint-Michel, the principal shrine of the Archangel Michael and one of the medieval wonders of Europe. Our visit here includes the Grande Rue, St. Aubert’s Chapel, and the Benedictine Abbey perched atop the rock island. Afterwards, we check into our hotel for dinner and overnight.
The walled port city of Saint-Malo on the Brittany coast
This morning we begin at the walled city of Saint-Malo. Famous for its role in Atlantic piracy, it is now the most visited city in the region. Marvel at the reconstruction of the Cathedral of St. Vincent — destroyed during World War II but rebuilt according to its original design. Afterwards, we journey to Le Mans, home of the Congregation of Holy Cross and the Sisters of Providence, and home to St. Théodore Guérin before she was sent to Indiana. We pray at the Cathedral of St. Julien and at the Motherhouse of the Sisters of Providence beneath a beautiful stained-glass window display. We proceed to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
The Gothic Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Chartres
After breakfast we proceed to Chartres, home to what most believe to be the greatest Gothic cathedral in Europe. The stained-glass windows of this Cathedral are world-renowned; over 150 windows illustrate biblical stories and daily life in the 13th century. After plenty of prayerful time exploring the cathedral, we continue to Paris, our home for the next three nights. We enjoy a brief overview of the city before checking into our hotel for dinner and overnight.
The Basilica of Sacré-Cœur crowning the heights of Montmartre
We begin our morning at the Shrine of St. Vincent de Paul, where the saint’s body is on display in a reliquary. From there we go to the Chapel of the Miraculous Medal at the Rue du Bac, where Our Lady appeared to St. Catherine Labouré in 1830 and where the saint is buried; the imposing Church of Saint-Sulpice; and Montmartre, with its magnificent Basilica of Sacré-Cœur, where we will attend a Holy Hour. The remainder of the day is free for exploration, and dinner is on your own this evening.
Notre-Dame de Paris — restored and reopened in 2024
Today we begin at Notre-Dame Cathedral, reopened in 2024 after extensive restoration, in the spiritual heart of Paris. Just a few blocks away on the same little island in the Seine is Sainte-Chapelle, built in 1248 to house the Crown of Thorns and home to one of the world’s most captivating arrays of stained-glass windows. We then journey across the river to La Madeleine, a neoclassical church built in honor of St. Mary Magdalene — the “Apostle to the Apostles” and patroness of All Things Women. We return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
The candlelight procession at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes
After breakfast, we board the high-speed train to Lourdes, one of the great pilgrimage shrines of the world. On the train there will be time for group discussion and processing, for enjoying the passing countryside, or for catching up on sleep. In Lourdes, Our Lady appeared to St. Bernadette in 1858, proclaiming herself the “Immaculate Conception.” Upon arrival we settle into our hotel before dinner. In the evening, we participate in the candlelight procession, joining pilgrims from around the world.
The Grotto of Massabielle — the threshold between heaven and earth
Today we have all day to experience Lourdes, exploring the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, the Church of St. Bernadette, the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary, and the healing waters of the spring. We will celebrate Mass at the Grotto of Massabielle, the site where the Virgin appeared. We also visit the Basilica of St. Pius X, the world’s largest underground church. Dinner tonight is your own to arrange, followed by the candlelight procession.
Lourdes — the peaceful village that welcomes millions of pilgrims each year
Enjoy a full day on your own in the peaceful setting of Lourdes. Return to a place we saw yesterday, explore somewhere new, or simply sit in awe and wonder and contemplate the events that happened here — and the miracles that still occur. Many pilgrims find that this day of quiet is where the most lasting graces of the journey settle into the heart. This evening, we enjoy a farewell dinner together before we participate one last time in the evening pilgrim activities.
Today marks the end of a marvelous experience as we transfer to the airport for the return trip home, filled with memories and graces of this pilgrimage that will last a lifetime. Like the Magi, who “returned to their country by a different way” (Matthew 2:12), we go home not simply having traveled, but changed — carrying the graces of Lisieux, Paris, and Lourdes into our families, our friendships, and our sisterhood in Christ.
This pilgrimage involves extensive walking in historic city centers and at the great shrines. Expect cobblestone streets in Rouen and Paris, the ramparts of Saint-Malo, the steep climb up the Grande Rue and the many steps to the abbey at Mont-Saint-Michel, and long periods of standing at the Sanctuary of Lourdes, including evening processions. Days may begin early and include full schedules. Up to 5–6 miles (15,000 steps) per day. Please bring comfortable, well broken-in walking shoes and dress in modest attire for all shrines and churches. See Tekton’s full Pilgrimage Activity Levels.
“To go on pilgrimage really means to step out of ourselves in order to encounter God where he has revealed himself, where his grace has shone with particular splendor and produced rich fruits of conversion and holiness among those who believe.”— Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI
| Base price per person | $4,750.00 |
| Air taxes / fuel surcharges | $761.23 |
| Total Per Person | $5,511.23 |
We strongly recommend comprehensive travel protection for every pilgrim. Tekton Ministries offers plans through Generali Global Assistance, and you may enroll at any time after you register.
The most complete level of coverage, including the option for pre-existing medical condition coverage.
A middle tier balancing trip cancellation, interruption, and medical benefits.
Essential protection for trip cancellation, interruption, and baggage.
Pre-existing medical condition coverage on the Premium plan requires that the plan be purchased within 24 hours of your final trip payment. Please review plan details and current pricing before enrolling.
Review Travel Protection OptionsAverage conditions for late April in France
Modest attire is required at all shrines and churches (shoulders and knees covered). Bring comfortable, broken-in walking shoes for cobblestone streets and uneven terrain.
“A pilgrimage is not a vacation. It is a transformative journey that begins with a single act of surrender: the willingness to leave behind what is familiar and step into what God has prepared.”— By A Different Way: A Catholic Guide to Pilgrim Spirituality
A plain summary of what we will see and do each day. Mass locations are subject to availability and may be adjusted by our Pilgrimage Manager. For the full reflections and photographs, return to the main itinerary.