Parishioners Take to Three Wheels for Ride and Stride
September 12, 2025
Unity Corner is a regular feature on Christian unity by Dr Ian Watson, County Ecumenical Officer for Norfolk and Waveney. This month he reports on the Catholic Parish of Walsingham’s ‘Pilgrimage of Hope’, which was a joyful ecumenical journey through the Gospel of John on Saturday 30 August 2025.
On a bright and beautiful day, I had the great joy and privilege of joining a truly special pilgrimage by the Catholic Parish of Walsingham. It was organised by the Parish Priest, Fr Keith Tulloch SM, and inspired by the 2025 Jubilee Year themed ‘Pilgrims of Hope’. The pilgrimage was much more than just a walk from Wells to Walsingham; it was a living and breathing symbol of Christian unity and shared hope, built around the enduring words of the Gospel of John.
We gathered at Wells Methodist Church at 10:00 am, which was our starting point for what turned out to be both a physical and spiritual journey across the beautiful North Norfolk countryside. Although the majority of pilgrims were Catholic from the parish, we were delighted to be joined by a Methodist lay preacher and an Anglican brother. In the gentle coastal town of Wells-next-the-Sea, united by a shared love of Christ and his Word, we began our sacred journey.
What made the pilgrimage so profoundly moving was its foundation in Scripture. Over the course of our walk, we read aloud the entire Gospel of St John. The first chapter was proclaimed before we set off, and the final chapter was saved for our arrival at the Church of the Annunciation in Walsingham. In between, we paused nineteen times at carefully chosen locations to read each chapter in turn. The joy of the pilgrimage was a deep engagement with the Gospel as a whole, something few of us experience in one sitting. It reminded us that the Word of God, when read whole and in depth, offers a powerful lens to encounter Jesus anew.
With the many twists and turns involved in visiting the multiple stopping points, and according to our official pacemaker Maria and her dog, the walk itself was 11 miles in total. As with most pilgrimages, as each day passes the distance (apparently) becomes somewhat longer and more heroic! Whatever the case, it never felt that long, no doubt due to the good company and relaxed pace as the route took us to several different denominational churches, a meeting house, two cemeteries and a village green. At each location we read aloud a chapter of the Gospel.
Stops in Wells included the Congregational Church, Our Lady Star of the Sea, the Quaker Meeting House, St Nicholas’s Church, and Wells Cemetery. Next on our journey, we visited Wighton Cemetery followed by the village church. One of the most delightful moments came at Wighton, where we stopped for lunch and (for some) a refreshing brew at the Carpenters Arms. In the simple joy of shared food and conversation, we embodied the very essence of Christian fellowship, which was one of the most wonderful aspects of the day.
Some who were unable to make the full journey joined us at Wighton, proving that even partial participation in pilgrimage is spiritually enriching. I have to give a special shout-out to those pilgrims who were in their eighties and nineties, and those less mobile using walkers and sticks, who were determined to join us on the way to share in the spirit of unity. I was very impressed (especially since, as I write this, nursing my own aches and pains). Their presence, effort and contribution on the day were very much appreciated by all. At one time we had just under 30 pilgrims, which was a superb turnout from across the parish.
Lunch was followed by more readings and the continued journey towards Walsingham through countryside roads, and under a sky that seemed to bless our steps. The weather was great all day. Rain, however, did arrive but only after the final chapter was read at the end of the pilgrimage – we all thought that a blessing and wonder; our prayers were truly answered! At Great Walsingham we visited the Church of the Holy Transfiguration, where we were greeted by the Orthodox priest, Fr Christopher. He gave us a blessing, emphasised the importance of Christian unity, and talked about his own love of St John’s Gospel – the most theological of all the Gospels. At every stop, a different voice proclaimed the Gospel, symbolising the beautiful diversity within the body of Christ. It was a pilgrimage in which we were unified in the love of Christ and bound by the words: “In the beginning was the Word… and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
The final stretch into Little Walsingham brought us to St Peter’s, the House of the Little Sisters, the Anglican Shrine, St Mary’s, the most amazing Methodist Chapel, and then (finally) to the Church of the Annunciation in Walsingham. At each of these holy places, the Gospel continued to resonate, reaching its climax in chapter 21, where the risen Christ appears to his disciples by the Sea of Galilee. The theme of hope, renewal, and divine love echoed powerfully through those final verses, reminding us why we had come.
To conclude this extraordinary day, and for those able to, we returned by transport to Wells where we celebrated the Sunday Vigil Mass. It was a fitting end to a pilgrimage of hope and unity that had drawn people together across denominational lines and spiritual backgrounds. The pilgrimage reminded us that the Gospel of St John is not just a book to be studied, but a journey to be lived. And on that Saturday, under bright skies, and in the fields and footpaths between Wells and Walsingham, we truly lived it together.
Photograph by Dr Ian Watson, County Ecumenical Officer for Norfolk and Waveney and member of the Catholic Parish of Walsingham.
