I will never forget

By Peg Tichacek

April 7th, 2025 - Notre Dame of Jerusalem Center

I will never forget you, my people. I hold you in the palm of my hand. Isaiah, 49:15.

How can I forget the Holy Land during Holy Week? As an ambassador, I was there in 2022, 2023, and virtually in 2024. I hold cherished moments I had with Jesus in the Holy Land—moments I will never forget. I often revisit them when I scroll through the hundreds of photos on my phone.

I don't forget stepping out of my room at Notre Dame and entering the Old City through the New Gate into the Christian Quarter. It’s before dawn as I walk to the Holy Sepulcher and up the steps to the Calvary Chapel. Masses begin, one after another, sometimes in English and sometimes in languages I don't know. Mass starts at 5:00 a.m., with religious sisters who arrive even earlier to begin their day with Mass and prayer. Those who walk the Via Dolorosa arrive. Later, the chapel fills with one group after another—standing room only.

I also remember walking into the Old City through the Damascus Gate. I’m on my way to the Via Dolorosa in the Muslim Quarter. On Fridays, I go to be with the Missionary Sisters of Charity, who welcome helping hands to make sandwiches for the hungry. I finish by 4:00 p.m., in time to walk the Via Dolorosa, led by the Franciscans. They pray each station in a different language as we make our way to the Calvary Chapel in the Holy Sepulcher.

And sometimes, on a Friday, I go to the Western Wall in the Jewish Quarter through Jaffa Gate. At the Wall, I see students streaming out of schools and merchants closing up shop to rush home for Shabbat.

No, I will never forget the sounds, smells, chatter, pilgrims, and everyday residents in the Old City. Nor can I forget walking where Jesus entered on Palm Sunday, or the scouts who gather outside Notre Dame to lead the procession each Easter. I will not forget the Triduum liturgies or Easter celebrations, which happen not just once but twice, as the Greek Orthodox celebrate one week later.

Christian Holy Week and Jewish Passover are this month. It is a time not to forget, but to remember our loving God—and to receive cherished moments—for He holds us in the palm of His hand, no matter where we remember and receive. Even though this year the situation does not allow us to celebrate every moment as we did in previous years, our hearts remain united in prayer. We hold onto hope and look forward to the time when many pilgrims will once again walk these sacred streets, bringing with them songs of praise, prayers of gratitude, and the joy of encountering the Lord in the land He made holy.

I know I will be back—because I do not forget. And because I will always come back to the land of grace, to the Holy Land.

Peg Tichacek

Regnum Christi US Territory, Notre Dame Ambassador

Mistress of Pilgrimage in the Northern Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher, USA