Psalm 119:105 – Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.
On Sunday we looked at a topic that isn’t mentioned in the Bible at all… Pilgrimage.
Going on a pilgrimage can mean many different things; but it always involves a journey and a significant destination. It is not only understood in a religious context. For example, Beatles fans might regard a visit to Abbey Road as a pilgrimage.
In some Christian traditions, particularly the Catholic church, pilgrimage plays a significant role. For example, the ‘Camino de Santiago Compostela’ is a network of paths across Europe leading to the burial place of the disciple James in Spain. It is travelled by around 350 thousand people every year. We once stayed in one of the towns on the route of this pilgrimage – every time a pilgrim, or group of pilgrims, walked towards the church, a worship team walked out to greet them, serenading them as they reached the end of their days travels.
This last week, pilgrimage has been in the news as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Mullally, chose to walk the ancient pilgrims path to Canterbury Cathedral before her inauguration. The Archbishop was quoted as saying that “Pilgrimage reminds us that faith is not only something we believe but something we walk – step by step together.” And it is this statement that reminds us that pilgrimage doesn’t have to involve any physical travel at all. It can be an inner journey too, a journey of the heart and mind. And while there is no biblical instruction to go on a pilgrimage; at times the Bible talks about aspects of life in terms of a journey.
I think this idea of travel through life can be helpful. We are not there yet but we have a God who travels with us, sustains us, and guides us in the way we should go when we wander off on a wrong turning. And as we approach Easter Sunday, we think and reflect upon the journey that Jesus made to the cross outside Jerusalem.
While we were sharing beverages and biscuits after we’d worshipped, we had several people tell us that they had been thinking about pilgrimages, proper traditional pilgrimages, recently. Statistically, this means that for every person who told us this, at least one other person was thinking it! We hope, as always, that you were blessed by Sanctuary, but we were surprised (in a positive way!) by some of these responses, and I’d love to hear some more of what you think on this. Please tell us more, either on this page, or get in touch.
John 14:4-6 – You know the way to the place where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Go Deeper
If you can, find a space where you can be, and play this song and reflect on this journey, this pilgrimage, that we call life…
