Pilgrimage Postings
An Occasional Newsletter for Pilgrims ~ Number 1. August 2003.
Edited by the Rev. Canon Stephen N. Brannon & James J. Rawls
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We’re happy to report that plans are moving forward right on schedule for the great adventure that lies ahead. If you’re like us, you’re already anticipating the wonderful journey that we’ll be sharing next spring, May 20 - 31. The number of pilgrims who have registered has now passed the twenty mark. We’re expecting several more folks, but we’re also mindful of the advantages of keeping this a “small-group tour.”
Our friends at the American Council for International Studies (ACIS) have already booked our flights. Details are not yet available, but we can say that we’ll be traveling on regularly scheduled flights aboard United Airlines.
The Prayerful Pilgrim
Preparing for our journey includes lots of practical matters, but it also should include some spiritual “homework.” What better way to prepare our hearts than to pray?
We recommend using this ancient “Pilgrimage Prayer” as part of our spiritual preparation:
Lord, you have called us to a pilgrimage of faith.
The light of your truth summons us,
and the call of faith is a constant challenge on our journey.
We give thanks for the desire to seek you:
we give thanks
for voices from the past that offer guidance,
for signposts pointing to the next stage,
for companions who share the journey,
for footsteps in the sand of pilgrims before us,
for the conviction that, unseen but not unknown, you are with us.
Lord, keep us faithful to the vision,
and steadfast on our pilgrimage
so that the distant goal may become a reality,
and faith at last lead to sight.
Amen.
Pilgrims Before Us
Along the Pilgrim’s Way we’ll be encountering the stories of six key figures from the history of our faith: Thomas á Becket, John Donne, George Herbert, John Wesley, John Newton, and C.S. Lewis
In a very real sense, they will be our spiritual companions. Each of the six, as it turns out, experienced what William James’ Varieties of Religious Experience defines as a conversion: “To be converted is a process, gradual or sudden, by which a self, hitherto divided and consciously wrong …becomes unified and consciously right…in consequence of its firmer hold upon religious realities.”
Going on a pilgrimage may be, for some of us, an important step in this life-long process. Theology professor Doris Donnelly, in an article called “Pilgrims and Tourists,” puts it this way: “Pilgrims who undertake physical pilgrimages understand that it is their own interior incompleteness that leads them to seek contact with holy places and persons to do for them what they cannot do by themselves: to deliver them from fragmentation and effect a glimmer of wholeness which invariably opens unto God.”
As you prepare for our pilgrimage, you might want to check out the biographies of some of our six spiritual companions.
Suggested Readings
More recommended “homework!” As with any experience, the more you put in, the more you’ll receive. Here are a couple of books to read at home that surely will enrich your experience in England. Both titles, by the way, are available through Readers’ Books in Sonoma; call (707) 939-1779 or contact www.readersbook.com.
Jerry Ellis, Walking to Canterbury: A Modern Journey through Chaucer’s Medieval England (Ballantine Books), follows the author’s peregrination to the shrine of Thomas á Becket, the sacred site visited by countless pilgrims through the ages. As the blurb on the cover says: “Ellis reveals the wonders of an ancient trek through modern England toward that ultimate goal: enlightenment.”
Phil Cousineau, The Art of Pilgrimage: The Seeker’s Guide to Making Travel Sacred (Conari Press), is a reflection on the discipline of pilgrimage in a variety of faith traditions. “What matters most on your journey,” writes Cousineau, “is how deeply you see, how attentively you hear, how richly the encounters are felt in your heart and soul.”
About Birds and Trains
Here’s fair warning: Your two leaders have avocations that might find expression along the Pilgrim’s Way! Jim is a birder and Stephen is a railroad buff.
Birdwatching, of course, may be considered something of a spiritual discipline…as well as lots of fun. We’ll be seeing many lovely birds in England that simply don’t live here in the USA. We’ll also be on the lookout for birds that appear in the art and architecture of the places we visit. Here’s a challenge for you from Jim: Why does Winchester Cathedral have so many carvings of pelicans?
Trains, like birds, can also be "outward and visible signs" of the "inward and spiritual grace" of the pilgrim quest. In that spirit, on our free Sunday afternoon in London following morning worship at Westminster Abbey, Stephen will offer an optional railway sojourn to Windsor Castle and the Chapel Royal of St. George, home of the Order of the Garter. King's Cross Station, Harry Potter's venue for boarding the "Hogwart's Express" from platform 9 3/4, is also an enticing possibility!
Practical Pilgrims
A few reminders of a practical nature: You’ll need, of course, a valid passport for the trip. The necessary forms are available at any US Post Office. Also, keep in mind that the weather in England often is a bit “bouncy,” a lovely English idiom meaning sunshine followed by showers followed by sunshine. So be sure and pack some proper raingear that you can easily slip on and off. You’ll also want to pack some comfortable walking shoes. Speaking of packing, pilgrims are famous for “packing light.” Keep this in mind because you’ll need to tote your own luggage from time to time.
On The Radio
You might want to tune to KABL radio, 960 on your AM dial, on Sunday August 24 between 6 and 7 pm, to hear host Mike Cleary interview Jim about our upcoming adventure.
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