Pilgrim Street – Contemporary Pilgrimage

Anne Hayward

Going on a journey to a significant place is important in many religions and cultures. Pilgrim Street seeks to explore pilgrimage in a contemporary setting in the British Isles, valuing the many ancient Christian sites in Britain and further afield and the traditions and rhythms of prayer that are fundamental to these very special places. However Pilgrim Street also seeks to re-interpret pilgrimage in the context of contemporary church life and Christian experience in an increasingly urbanised society.

What is distinctive about Pilgrim Street is that each year I walk on a pilgrimage which begins and ends at my home on the border of Wales and England in the Brecon Beacons National Park. From there, I have walked thousands of miles to ancient Christian sites not only in Wales and England but also further afield to Brittany, Ireland and the Isle of Man.

However, I also undertake what I call peregrinatio ( the old word for pilgrimage) in areas of the British Isles that are more distant from my home. So many wonderful places to visit! These walks have taken me to the Cumbria area of northern England and also across the south-west of Scotland to the very early place of pilgrimage at Whithorn and then on to Glasgow. These peregrinatio routes are always contiguous with previous pilgrimages, allowing me to extend what I have already done.

Above all, my pilgrimages are contemporary prayer walks, seeking to combine greater understanding of the history of Christianity with the experience of living as a person of faith in modern-day Britain.

Autumn 2020 update:

As the ‘lockdown’ restrictions in Wales and England began to ease, I was pleased to be able to set out on my 2020 pilgrimage in early July , walking from home in south Wales to Winchester and the Isle of Wight and returning via Salisbury and Gloucester. I have also been able to walk peregrinatio in Scotland as planned .

Also very pleased to be interviewed on BBC Radio Cornwall in August.

Books by Anne Hayward

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