Studying history can be daunting. Teaching history so it makes sense to students in the present day, can be just as challenging. Most of the time, a history teacher can only rely on a textbook or technology to help convey what really happened. And, depending on how long ago a significant event in time took place, a resource with colorful words or photos may not exist or be enough to help tell the true story. Bismarck resident Jerome Richter realized this firsthand back in 1995 as a senior at St. Mary’s Central High School when he first went to Italy to visit his brother Tom Richter in Rome, who was studying to be a priest.
Once Richter became a history teacher at his alma mater in 2000, he had an epiphany of sorts. Instead of just trying to bring the history of the Catholic Church to the students the traditional way, why not do what he did, and bring the students to Rome so they could experience the Eternal City with their own eyes and hearts. So, in 2001, the first, and to this day the only, annual North Dakota high school Rome pilgrimage began by Richter leading 30 students from St. Mary’s.
“I wanted them to see that we all play a very significant role in history, but most importantly to see the Church in its fullness: to see the universality of our faith and to be able to touch and defend the very tangible historical markers of Saint Peter and Paul and to be able to be in the presence of the Holy Father himself,” stated Richter, who has continued to lead this pilgrimage even in his current role as executive vice president and chief of staff at the University of Mary. “That they're part of something much bigger than Bismarck, N.D. or the state of North Dakota, or even the United States. So, it was to give them that experience of the blessings of their faith, the gift of their faith and grow in confidence of who they are and what they're called to be.”
Since then, the annual pilgrimage’s popularity has grown significantly to now include a maximum of about 150 students from St. Mary’s Central High School, Bishop Ryan High School in Minot, Dickinson Trinity, Fargo Shanley and Sacred Heart of East Grand Forks, Minn.
No technology allowed
While the number of students has changed since its inception, there’s one policy that will never change: students are not allowed to bring along cell phones or any technology. That’s a significant rule in this day and age, but especially during this year’s pilgrimage of 2024. Just days before they were to leave for Rome, Castletown Media asked Richter if they could have their cinematographer accompany the pilgrims for their documentary “Roadmap to Reality: Carlo Acutis and Our Digital Age.” Blessed Acutis is the young boy from Assisi, Italy, who will be canonized in 2025 after passing away in 2006. He used technology, albeit measuredly, to bring others closer to Christ.
“The reason that Castletown Media wanted our pilgrimage to be ‘the story within the story’ is because we’re not taking technology with, because Blessed Carlo Acutis knew that technology can be a distraction, and most people think of him as a computer geek and he's not,” reminded Richter. “He would limit himself to one hour a week on any type of video games or computer games—10 minutes a day. And then he only used the website to promote what is good and true which was the Eucharistic miracles and bringing people together. So, this pilgrimage helps to write the storyline on Blessed Carlo Acutis that technology is great when it's used for good things and when you need to come to know God you need to disconnect from it and be able to be in silence and listen.”
And listen they did as they visited holy site after holy site in Rome and other parts of Italy, including the historic town of Assisi, where Acutis’ tomb lies, all without their phones in hand, definitely something they weren’t used to. The high school students admitted it was difficult at first for them to get used to life without their phones, but it didn’t take as long as they thought to adjust.
Dickinson Trinity student, Camden Kubas, said, “It was definitely hard the first couple of days, but over the course of the pilgrimage, I got used to not having my phone. At first, it felt like I was missing out on things. After a while, I realized what was happening on my phone wasn’t important. The important thing was being present on the moment I was living in.”
Fellow pilgrim and St. Mary’s High School senior, Katrice Kern, ended up not missing her phone as much as she thought she would. “It was different not having technology because I had never been without my phone or smart watch for that long of a period. But at the same time, I realized that I didn’t miss having it as much as I thought I would. Because of this my friends and I were better able to have conversations with each other and in free time we would play many different card games which were a lot of fun. It also was just another thing that you didn’t have to worry about and constantly check all the time.
For some, not having the constant connection to technology was what enhanced the trip.
“Having no phones in Rome was what made the trip,” Bishop Ryan student, Drew Zwak said. “Looking ahead of this trip, when I was a freshman in high school, I was always given that impression that sure you are in Rome, but we had no phones so how is it going to be fun? What I learned from being there is that you take in so much more when you aren’t distracted by your phone. I got to know people from other schools well and I even got to deepen my relationships with my classmates which was really special. Being free of all the distraction of our phones allowed me to grow more in my faith. It was so much easier to be open to God and your mind on Him and His word when we aren’t thinking about what’s new on Snapchat or Instagram.”
Inspirational saint
Having a film crew along was not a distraction either, but a unique opportunity to be part of history.
“It seemed very providential but at the same time I wanted to make sure that the pilgrims were comfortable with it,” Richter recalled. “The students were fabulous and so having a professional cinematographer with us the whole time actually heightened the experience for the students, for myself, through the whole experience. It is amazing that we are going to be in a movie about a saint and being kind of an integral part of telling his story. We are mimicking what he desired young people to do having no technology with, listening to the voice of God, and being together talking and viewing Eucharistic miracles. My main take away is God was very gracious to us this summer showering us with all kinds of graces and in that I realized that this group of young people and this generation of young people truly desires to be good and to be great and they simply need to be challenged to do it.”
The students can identify closely with the soon-to-be-canonized St. Carlo Acutis. Many of the pilgrims are able to see sainthood in a much different light since this modern-day saint was a teenager when he passed away in 2006. They realized he used modern technology for good and to bring others closer to God.
“Carlo Acutis’ story is really inspiring,” Kubas said. “He lived a deeply holy life in a way that is relatable for many kids in my generation. He was a teenager that wore jeans and a sweatshirt and loved technology and gaming. Carlo understood the good that technology could do in our lives and was able to lead others toward Jesus through it. He knew how to use his gifts for the good of others and calls us to do the same.”
Kern also was inspired by the teen’s sainthood. “I like Carlo Acutis’ story and how he was able to use the thing of his time to grow others closer to Jesus and eventually become a saint. Carlo Acutis will be the first saint to have grown up with most of the same things of today’s age like technology. It makes him feel even closer to me because he was a teenager who grew up with having the internet or even the fact that he wore jeans and Nike shoes makes him more relatable to us today. He is a great example that even in today’s world, no matter what age, you can make a difference, change the lives of others, and become a saint.”
A combination of soaking in the sights of Rome and learning about all the saints, add to what these students are taught in our Catholic schools.
“Personally, I think that it should be easier now to grow in your faith,” Zwak said. “We have so much more sources that we can turn to other than just the priests in our school. Now, priests and other religious leaders are teaching and telling their stories online which makes it so much easier to reach. This gift of technology has its downside because as much as it can be used for the good, I believe it has been used so much more for the bad. Diverting the good (that being God) from the bad in technology is what gets you to sainthood. That is why a story like Carlo Acutis’ should be looked up to and talked about to this generation.”
Generational connections
Just when this “story within the story” couldn’t get any more providential, the annual high school Rome pilgrimage has truly come full circle.
“This is now becoming something that is generational. The policies that stay the same with no technology—it was easy back in 2001 through 2006 because we didn't have cell phones,” Richter said with a laugh. “But the other thing is this: two of the priests that were chaplains on this pilgrimage were roommates from two separate schools on the pilgrimage back during their senior year in 2013. Father Grant Dvorak and Fr. Jacob Magnusson—one from St Mary’s, one from Bishop Ryan, respectively, I made them room together. Both were well-respected young men, and I thought if they could get along, life will be good. And now they are both priests as chaplains at our high schools and now leading other students to Rome, and I believe both would say: ‘without Rome and the pilgrimage, I wouldn’t have discerned the calling to the priesthood as clearly.’”
This North Dakota pilgrimage led by Richter just completed its 23rd year—minus the COVID year. The journey has inspired other Catholic high schools across the region to begin their own pilgrimage. Catholic schools in Minnesota and South Dakota have reached out to Richter for guidance and support in hopes that they too can create a long-lasting annual tradition that allows high school pilgrims to travel to their classroom in Rome to search for truth, perhaps hear God’s calling, and better understand the history of their Catholic faith. This article was co-authored by Tom Ackerman, University of Mary Media Relations Specialist and Sonia Mullally, DCA Editor.