26 April – 4 May 2018
Following in the footsteps of Jesus
Several years ago I went to a seminar at Lambeth Palace held to encourage pilgrimages to the Holy Land. The then Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, was asked ‘what is a pilgrimage to the Holy Land?’
His answer has stayed with me and I have not come across a better description – ‘a pilgrimage to the Holy Land is an opportunity to see first hand where Jesus was, to walk in his steps and yet it is also so much more than that. You cannot visit without encountering the current political situation. If you go just to see the sites it becomes little more than a trip to a religious theme park. If you go solely to focus on the politics it becomes a political field trip. An authentic pilgrimage is, has to be, a combination of the two.’
As you may be aware, Bishop Donald is leading his second Peterborough Diocesan Pilgrimage next year, offering another chance to walk together in the footsteps of Jesus, to meet, listen and support the Christians living there and to observe the effects of the difficult political situation there today.
The pilgrimage is offered through Lightline Pilgrimages, a company who work hard to support Christian businesses in the area.
Along with visiting sites such as the Sea of Galilee and Nazareth, we will be travelling through the West Bank to Bethlehem to stay within the walls of the blockade on Manger Square.
Finally, we will arrive at the ancient city of Jerusalem, spiritual home for the three Abrahamic faiths.
Along the way we will meet those who live and work here, hearing their story as well as engaging afresh with those familiar gospel passages as we encounter the various sites.
Each day there will be an opportunity to immerse ourselves in Jesus’ story in the place where he lived and ministered, to pray and worship together, as well as observe how the daily lives of the ‘living stones’ of this land are affected by the politics of this age.
If you would like more information please do contact me (details below) or see the Diocesan website, http://www.peterborough-diocese.org.uk. For more details of the itinerary and booking forms.
Revd Paula York
revpaulayork@gmail.com