Mission and Identity Launches The Pilgrim’s Path, a Mission-Centered Walking Tour of Saint Louis University’s North Campus
Maggie Rotermund
Senior Media Relations Specialist
maggie.rotermund@slu.edu
314-977-8018
Reserved for members of the media.
ST. LOUIS – The mission of Saint Louis University is always present on campus and visible in the people and places that make up the University community. Now, the public can walk the Pilgrim’s Path, a mission-centered tour of SLU’s north campus.
Garden of Mary, the Immaculate Conception. Photo by Sarah Conroy.
The Pilgrim’s Path is narrated by SLU’s Vice President for Mission and Identity David Suwalsky, S.J., Ph.D. The 1.6-mile self-guided tour through campus begins in the center of SLU’s quad with St. Ignatius the Pilgrim. From there the tour continues to Cardinal Ritter Hall, St. Francis Xavier College Church, and the Jesuit Center before ending at the Vatican Film Library.
The tour includes 19 locations on SLU's campus that depict the University’s Jesuit history and Catholic identity.
The guided tour is available through the free PocketSights app in the App Store and Google Play. For those unable to walk the tour physically, the PocketSights app also allows a virtual walking tour that is accessible anywhere.
“We hope this tour provides an opportunity for everyone – our SLU family as well as the larger St. Louis community – to join us in walking “a pilgrim’s path,” following in the footsteps of St. Ignatius,” said Virginia Herbers, director of spiritual formation in Mission and Identity.
The tour also includes:
- Cardinal Ritter Hall – named for the archbishop who desegregated St. Louis churches, schools and hospitals in 1947
- Garden of Mary, the Immaculate Conception – The statue of Mary has been on campus for more than 40 years and was moved to its current location in 2022
- St. Louis the King – The statue depicts the famed namesake of the city as well as the University, Louis IX, King of France from 1226-1270
- Xavier Hall – An image of the Blessed Virgin Mary can bee seen over the entry way.
Throughout the tour, listeners will hear about each location’s historical and religious significance.
Saint Louis University’s Office of Mission and Identity ensures that the principles and traditions of Catholic, Jesuit higher education, and the mission and core values of SLU are integrated into operations, structures, programs and practices, and the formation of its students, faculty, staff, administration and board members.