Celtic Pilgrimage: Walking the Path of the Ancestors
Pilgrimage is a growing trend, especially in Scotland, Wales, Ireland and England. Every year thousands of people, from the totally sceptical to people with a strong faith chose to travel for a spiritual purpose.
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ON THE WEEKLY WALK around Iona, pilgrims stop for lunch and to “throw all our cares away” at Columba Bay, where legend says the saint landed in 597.
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These travellers are not looking for luxury. What they seek is a journey with a meaning, something more that just the home routine in a different setting. The meaning or purpose is different for every person.
For many the motivation is to get a feel for the way of life, the mind-set, and the landscape of their ancestors. Others are fascinated by the stories of the early Celtic people who lived in the British Isles, Ireland and the north-west of France, the area still called Brittany.
The stories that pull people to explore the past range from the tales of giants such as Fionn Mac Cumhaill to semi-historical kings, queens and warriors including “Old King Coel,” Arthur, Grannia and Maeve. At the start of the Christian era are the stories of Patrick (the most famous non-Irishman), Brigit, Columba, Ninian, Melangell and a host of others who can still, 1,500 years later, arouse our curiosity and challenge our way of thinking.
The fascination of pilgrimage is being able to walk in the steps of our ancestors, to feel the earth, see the landscape and hear the sounds of sea, wind and birds that were the background to these stories. Equally rich is the "communitas" that develops in a group of pilgrims, even those who would come together in no other circumstances.
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ONE of the famous Celtic crosses encountered on the pilgrimage.
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Keeping the size of the group to a maximum of 12, and spending several nights in each location are priorities for Vanessa Hammond of Island Pilgrims as she plans each pilgrimage.
Vanessa says that staying two to five nights in each retreat house, B&B or small hotel lets people become at home in the landscape. It also lets people chose to participate in every possible activity, or spend quiet days, just walking or relaxing.
Chris and Vanessa will lead an Island Pilgrims group in September. Three other members of the group will be returning pilgrims. Others are first-timers. The seven already confirmed come from Victoria, Vancouver, Montana and Ottawa.
ANOTHER LIVELY and delicious dinner after a day exploring St. Columba’s valley in County Donegal, NW Ireland, his departure point for Iona.The group will meet in Glasgow and spend three nights on the little island of Cumbrae, gaining some background understanding of the pre-historic and early Christian life of these lands.
Then they go by road and ferry for four nights on the famous and wonderful island of Iona, where Columba founded his monastery in 597, staying in the comfortable St. Columba Hotel, taking part in the island ceilidh (party), the weekly round-the-island pilgrim walk, and the life of the island and its Abbey. Some may chose to make a side-trip to “Fingal's Cave” which in 1829 inspired Felix Mendelssohn to compose the Hebrides Overture.
Next stop is the pre-Celtic, early Celtic and early Christian sacred valley of Kilmartin and royal stronghold of Dunadd, and the hospitality of the family-run Kilmartin Hotel for two nights, and the fascinating Kilmartin museum.
Further south at Whithorn, Dr Janet Butterworth, will describe Ninian’s monastery, his life, and his impact as one of the first Christians in this region.
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ANOTHER LIVELY and delicious dinner after a day exploring St. Columba’s valley in County Donegal, NW Ireland, his departure point for Iona.
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In Carlisle Reverend David Jenkins will use the beautiful stained glass windows of Carlisle Cathedral to introduce the group to St. Cuthbert and his many adventures. Going further south, the Reghed visitor centre, tells the story of early Celtic Christians in the kingdom of Cumbria and gives a wider view of early Celtic and Christian life in these islands.
A high spot will be time at the “hidden” Pennant Melangell healing retreat where hosts Reverend Linda-Mary Edwards and Warden Judith Prust will lead the group in a day of worship, discussion and companionship, centred on the story and wisdom of Melangell. Although her story is little known outside Wales, this young woman gives us a wonderful example of quiet strength of character exerting influence on a whole region.
Crugeran, is a self-catering converted farmhouse on the Lleyn Peninsula with its wonderful scenery and people, Stone Age monuments, early Celtic hill forts, ancient pilgrimage wells and churches, and glorious sandy beaches.
Here the group will be able to create feasts from the local farm produce. Appetites will be good, after cliff-tops walks along the early pilgrim paths towards Bardsey, “Island of 20,000 saints.” If the weather is kind, host Reverend Evelyn Davis, will lead the group to the ruined Abbey on Bardsey for communion.
With the drive east and crossing the causeway to Holy Island – Lindisfarne, where St. Aidan from Iona brought Christianity to Northumbria, the pilgrims will learn another chapter in the story of Cuthbert which started in Carlisle.
Finally, having experienced the wonderful landscapes, centuries-old stories, and daily hospitality, the group will return to Cumbrae. Some will continue to the post-graduate short course in Celtic Christianity at the University of Wales at Lampeter.
But, according to Vanessa, the real pilgrimage starts when the memories, the friendships, and the new ways of seeing and thinking, affect so much of what we do back at home.
Many organizations offer travel in the Celtic lands. For information about Island Pilgrims, contact Chris or Vanessa at (250) 414-0308, islandpilgrim@canadac.com or check the website www.canadac.com/celtic/celticv.html which is a visual feast with Chris' wonderful photographs.
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