Ship of Fools: What makes for a good pilgrimage?

Thread: What makes for a good pilgrimage? Board: Oblivion / Ship of Fools.

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Posted by Truman White (# 17290) on :

In the thread on the fun and games in Cwmbran, the sagacious Rev Black noted the following:

'Ah, yes, the post-Reformation need for charismatics to have a place of pilgrimage.'

Nice point Rev.

I'm helping some mates with a church plant and they see a lot of value in using trips to ancient Christian sites, or the haunts of famous preachers of yore to remind themselves of our common heritage in the Gospel. It's good fun, good fellowship, could be good for outreach, and reminds us that despite being good card carrying charismatics the church didn't start in Asuza Street.

So what makes for a good pilgrimage? Use the term as loose as you like - I'm looking for tips and inspiration from whatever tradition you're from (and whilst I'd personally fancy a trip to Mount Othos, the mission budget won't stretch that far).

Posted by hanginginthere (# 17541) on :

There are two essentials to a successful pilgrimage in my experience. Bearing in mind that a pilgrimage is a two-fold journey, both inner and outer, you need skillful guides to both. Someone to guide the pilgrim to and through the destination and someone to help the pilgrim to interpret and integrate the spiritual experience. It wouldn't necessarily be two people, but in my experience usually is, as the gifts required are quite different.

Posted by Jengie Jon (# 273) on :

I am Reformed, that makes a difference. We tend not to look at the destination but the journey. In the sense the Reformed tradition makes the whole of the Christian life a pilgrimage to the Heavenly Jerusalem. We are a restless people and I can add more evidence including Bunyan or the two key hymns of the tradition: from the Metrical Psalm 24 Ye Gates, Lift Your heads on High (from the Presbyterians) and Isaac Watts' How please and blest was I (Congregational).

Preparation, Pace and Prayer.

Preparation
There is more to going on pilgrimage than setting out, you need time, time to prepare, to explore but also time to let go, part of the process is stepping out of the familiar and moving to somewhere else.

Pace
With Pilgrimage the journey is important. It is not about getting there, wherever there is, as quick as possible. There needs to be time while journeying to be concious of the process, the travelling, the movement and the transition.

Prayer
The practice of bringing the day, the uncertainty faced through approach to God, the willingness to walk with the divine. All these bring a context to pilgrimage.

Jengie

Posted by Enoch (# 14322) on :

I agree with everything everyone has said - it's the journey that's the thing. However, I would say, it's a good idea to have a destination that's worth getting to. You don't want to arrive and have everyone just feel, 'well that's that then'.

You don't mention where you live or in what country. If you are in the British Isles, there are quite a number of fairly numinous places to go to, often associated with the saints of old, and many of them in striking places.

Posted by Alogon (# 5513) on :

Nancy Mead is an expert. She does it the old-fashioned way: days on foot, along a path well-trodden by generations of pilgrims-- perhaps reaching at last the tomb of an apostle, where the sweat of the arriving crowds is salved by swings from one end of the transept to the other of the world's largest thurible.

Anymore, I could only dream of such physical fitness and stamina. Walking just twenty miles over a few days would be challenge enough. Of course, good company helps a lot. The longest hike I ever took was with favorite people, and that made all the difference.

Posted by Truman White (# 17290) on :

Thanks for the tips. Might have been better off running this one in heaven. Any mods fancy transporting the thread?

Posted by Augustine the Aleut (# 1472) on :

Thurible fans will enjoy this.

Having trekked to Santiago several times, and having spoken to participants in the Student Cross to Santiago, my suggestion is to walk it--- extricating yourself from the daily rhythym is key to a good pilgrimage, and the physical effort is formative and gives you time not to think--; to travel as light as possible, to the point of causing comment among one's friends; to care for your feet; and to enjoy the other pilgrims. The journey is also the destination.

Posted by Augustine the Aleut (# 1472) on :

Preview post is our friend. I meant Student Cross to Walsingham.

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