Pilgrimages to holy shrines are a regular feature of Catholic life. At various points in the year, groups of parishioners travel together on pilgrimage, whether it is with their parish or as part of a diocesan pilgrimage, whether near or far. These are opportunities to pray, worship and accompany each other as they grow in faith together. In most years, there is a week-long pilgrimage to Lourdes in July, a one day pilgrimage to Walsingham in September, and another week journeying in the footsteps of Jesus in the Holy Land in November. Every three years, young adults also have the opportunity to join other young Catholics from all parts of
the world at World Youth Day, which in 2023 took place in Portugal (see p16). Each of these pilgrimages has its special characteristics, bringing people together from parishes and communities across the diocese.
In some respects, the pilgrimage to Lourdes is a perfect microcosm of the diocese. Responding to Our Lady’s call to come in procession, over 700 pilgrims from parishes, chaplaincies and schools from every part of the diocese journeyed together to the Shrine of Lourdes in the Pyrenees for a week of prayer, devotion, rest and the chance to connect with fellow Catholics. Clergy, religious brothers and sisters, and the lay faithful of all ages journey together, where pilgrims who are ill, disabled or requiring a little more assistance are regarded the VIPs of the group. Medics and students are among those who volunteer their time to accompany assisted pilgrims in some way, whether through medical care, organising excursions, planning daily services, or providing for the basic needs of assisted pilgrims. All derive great benefit from the shared journey, the camaraderie, the shared sense of service and joy at offering praise and worship together. For some, time in Lourdes leads to a deepening of their faith and a discovery of their life’s calling. Some have met their lifelong partner and went on to marry and raise a family; some have discovered their vocation to priesthood or the religious life; and others have discovered their professional calling to serve others through their work in charitable or religious organisations.
ONE PILGRIM, who first went to Lourdes as a Red Cap, a student helper to assisted pilgrims, found that her experience and her witness of acts of service by others led her to explore faith-based volunteering opportunities. Eventually, it also led to her career working for Caritas Westminster. She shares her story and the impact the pilgrimage has had on her faith.
In September, over 1,000 pilgrims from 30 parishes across the diocese set off very early to journey to the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in Norfolk. Although only a one day sojourn, it is nonetheless an occasion for collective worship, prayer and celebration, where people from many parishes and communities can come together to be one church. The communal atmosphere, the celebration of Mass, eating together, followed by the Rosary procession along the Holy Mile, and Adoration in the grounds of the Abbey ruins together create a sense of one people being nourished in their faith, as they are in turn sent out on their mission of serving others, both spiritually and practically, back home in their parish communities.
The pilgrimage to the Holy Land is considered by many who attend a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to visit the holy places associated with the life and ministry of Jesus. It was therefore with great sadness that it was postponed indefinitely in 2023, as a result of the outbreak of hostilities in Israel and Gaza. Instead, Catholics in the diocese and, indeed throughout England and Wales, were called upon to pray for all who are affected by the war, to offer whatever practical help they could through various charities that work in the region to alleviate suffering, and to stand together in solidarity with Jewish and Muslim neighbours against local aggression engendered by the situation in the Holy Land.
