Walks matter. I am not just thinking of those we take for our physical health but those that have a sacred significance. As a child, my first exposure to a pilgrimage was in reading The Canterbury Tales, when Chaucer describes a group of pilgrims making their way to the shrine of St Thomas Becket at Canterbury. In his narrative, Chaucer wrote about the religious, comical, and social complexities of participants, but at the heart of the narrative, he recognised the spiritual importance of the journey as they went to “the holy blessed martyr there to seek”.

But of course, sacred walks can be used for social & political change too. Gandhi famous salt walk in 1930 from Ahmedabad to the Arabian Sea was an act of non-violent civil disobedience to protest about British rule in India. It focused on salt tax, which hurt the poorest. As Gandhi said, "Next to air and water, salt is perhaps the greatest necessity of life." Please come and hear more about Mahatma Gandhi life & influence from his grandson Professor Gandhi at St Mary's Wednesday 26th at 6.00pm and then join the annual inter-faith walk on Thursday evening too. As Prof Gandhi says “though we might feel helpless at times we should never feel hopeless” and by faiths walking in unison, our actions will have a powerful effect in the current hostile religious and political landscape. By taking a pilgrimage from a synagogue, church to a mosque, faiths are stronger and will create a powerful voice in the hearts of so many and footprint through the streets of Oxford for unity, respect and friendship.

Pilgrim God,
You are our origin and our destination.
Travel with us, we pray, in every pilgrimage of faith, and every journey of the heart.
Give us the courage to set off,
the nourishment we need to travel well,
and the welcome we long for at our journey’s end. So may we grow in grace and love of you
and in the service of others.
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
Amen 

(John Pritchard, former Bishop of Oxford)

The Revd Charlotte Bannister - Parker

Associate Priest