destination

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The process of pilgrimage – 4 ARRIVING

Posted by David Ward on 26/09/2010
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Sometimes, this can be the hardest part of the journey. It has been said that what really matters is the journey, and travelling well, not arrival at your destination. I think that however true this may be with respect to the journey, arriving at our destination is an important event.

Often the destination influenced our choice of this particular pilgrimage. It has been our goal, the thing that spurred us on through the events of each day. It may represent some long-held ambition or some deeply treasured memory.

However, the place we remember may have changed beyond all recognition; our ambition may have proved to be sentimentalised and idealised beyond all reality. It short, our arrival may be as much an anti-climax as much as the climax of the pilgrimage. For one thing, arrival signifies that, without a doubt, this particular pilgrimage is over and the return to ‘normality’ looms large. We may already harbour fears about the speed with which we will lose the lessons learned, forget the surprises and experiences that have been so vital, and slip back into our old ways as if the miles had never been travelled.

All this may be true, but for now we have to work at arriving with the same determination that we have put one foot in front of the other each day, every day of our journey, regardless of our circumstances and how we feel.

We need to spend time absorbing the place. It is not, if possible, to be hurried. Perhaps we could arrange to stay for a day or two, rather than hurrying on to leave and return home.

Spending time allows us to tune in to the place, to discover it afresh, to find the secret and hidden places that make this place important too. It may help us to find a special place where we can focus on our journey, giving thanks for new friends, new experiences and lessons learned…God may still have things to say. An appropriate ritual may be useful as we engage in a time of stillness at journey’s end. We may have collected objects as ‘memory stones’ along the way; here is an opportunity to complete the collection with something from our destination.

“It is important to take the place for what it is. The practice of taking things as they are, which the pilgrim might have developed on the journey, needs to be extended into arriving. God who was on the journey is also in the destination.”

“Pilgrimage” by David Osborne

The process of pilgrimage–3 TRAVELLING

Posted by David Ward on 21/09/2010
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It almost seems too obvious to say, but we do not travel alone. If we are solitary pilgrims, we have a companion; if we travel as part of a group an extra traveller joins us on the way. Part of the reason we take so much care over our preparation, and are careful to leave ‘well’ is because we need to become increasingly aware that God travels with us. We are not travelling to find God, God is our constant companion. And yet, like the disciples on the road to Emmaus, we may at times be totally unaware of the One who travels with us, until, in our travelling and talking and thinking, our spiritual eyes are suddenly opened and we see.

More than that, we often encounter God afresh as we move along the path:

“I saw a stranger yester e’en;
I put food in the eating place,
Drink in the drinking place,
Music in the listening place;
And in the blessed name of the Triune
He blessed myself and my house,
My cattle and my dear ones.
And the lark said in her song
Often, often, often,
Goes the Christ in the stranger’s guise,
Often, often, often,
Goes the Christ in the stranger’s guise”

Old Celtic rune of hospitality

The places we visit along the way, the people we encounter, the surprises and disappointments we feel, the joy and the pain, times of speaking and times of silence, times to look and times to learn are all meant to focus us on our task of finding God at work in all things, to remind us that God may be found in unusual and unexpected places and people. Our everyday lives have often become so cluttered with myriad urgent and important things that we are truly unaccustomed to recognising the presence of God. one of the special gifts of a slow, unhurried walking pilgrimage is that it gives us time and space to shed the load and to make space for the really important things. After a while, we may even find that we are shedding the many masks we wear and becoming truly present ourselves both to God and those we meet.

Many pilgrims embrace a rhythm of prayer for each day, punctuating the day with times of concentrated prayer, perhaps using a Daily Office. This rhythm helps to sharpen our spiritual senses to appreciate God’s presence and to make sense of the experiences he guides us through. Photographs may be taken, objects picked up and entries made in a journal, to remind us of significant happenings along the way and to give us seed for contemplation both along the way and at journeys end and beyond.

Above all, it is vital that our thoughts are not totally fixed on our destination and our ultimate arrival. To do this would certainly lead to our missing out on the possibility of many rich experiences along the way; of finding God in the present moment.

The Process of a Pilgrimage – 1 PREPARING

Posted by David Ward on 13/09/2010
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The process of pilgrimage begins internally long before the bags are packed, door is closed and the first steps are taken. There are many things to think about.

A. There is what I would call personal preparation to be done; a whole list of questions need to be answered:

What is my destination? Where do I intend to go? How important is the actual destination…is it potentially more important than the process of getting there? Will I, like the Celtic Christians of old, simply set aside a time and set out to travel wherever the love of Christ takes me…a risky and exciting endeavour?

What has drawn me to this place? Is it a place associated with my personal past, with family and friends. Has a significant event occurred there or is it associated with a person I admire? Is it a pilgrimage to a traditional, spiritual site, maybe along a well-walked pilgrim route? Does the desire to journey have to do with a rite of passage, a stage of life or some other personal event?

When will I go? What time of year would be best for travelling (Particularly if it’s a pilgrimage on foot)? When can I set aside sufficient time from my diary to make the event unrushed and purposeful?

How will I travel? If the destination is of great importance using train, boat or plane all the way to the destination may be legitimate? Even if I could drive, would it be better to take public transport so that I can be more attentive to the journey? Will I use a mix of modes of transport? Is the transport only taking me to, or close to, the starting point; from there on, the journey will be completed on foot.

Shall I travel alone or as part of a group? Security, friendship and personal choice may influence this decision.
   
B. Then there is the logistical preparation that has to be done. There are maps and guidebooks to consult, packing lists to be made and itineraries to be planned.

Tickets for public transport need to be booked, parking for vehicles needs to be investigated and accommodation needs to be reserved, provision for eating needs to be thought through.

C. The process of preparing spiritually needs to underpin the whole of this period of the process. This may be a good time to begin a special journal, to be kept right through the pilgrimage. Thoughts about how to develop and maintain a sense of God’s presence during the pilgrimage need to be thought through…will you have regular times for prayer Edward during the day, perhaps using a Daily Office (which one?)? Will there be times during the day when you deliberately walk in silence (particularly if you are part of a group)? What are your spiritual aspirations for the pilgrimage…what are you looking for/hoping to find or become?

Finally, as the date of departure approaches, there is a time for dreaming, for anticipation and for excitement.  

The following books have good chapters on the process of pilgrimage:

“Pilgrimage” by David Osborne, chapter 6

“Making a Pilgrimage” by Sally Welch, the whole book!

“Pilgrimage” by Edward Sellner, chapter 4 and several appendices

“On Pilgrimage” by Douglas Vest, chapter 7 and the appendix “Checklists for planning your pilgrimage”