Bishop Anne Dyer’s pilgrimage in Orkney comes to an end today, with a visit to St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall.
The Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney has walked the St Magnus Way over the past week, as part of the ‘Season of Pilgrimage’ in the Scottish Episcopal Church.
The 58-mile route is a long distance pilgrimage route through mainland Orkney, established in 2017 to mark the 900th anniversary of the death of St Magnus, Orkney’s patron saint. The journey is intended to give time and space for reflection.
Bishop Anne was joined by fellow pilgrims, pictured above, who walked the route alongside her, and a series of themes were considered, discussed and contemplated each day: peace, loss, growth, change, forgiveness and hospitality.
The pilgrims arrived at their final destination in Kirkwall on Saturday, a little weary and with a few aches and pains, but with their spirits lifted.
In her daily blog, Bishop Anne wrote: “After six days together, our pilgrim band was very relaxed with each other. Some of us had begun on Monday as strangers, but it is not possible to pray together so often, to share stories and food, and not become close. Today we laughed often and very deeply – what a healing experience this was.
“In my mind I thought of all those who I have carried in prayer through the week – the sick, the bereaved, the confused and anxious. I thought of the churches in the diocese and their priests, and those churches without one. I thought of my family at home, so generous in encouraging me to do this, and friends who have prayed (and some walked) with me where they are. My desire was that everyone was caught into the pilgrim’s blessing that was mine today.
“In Kirkwall I swapped my back-pack for a crozier, and we gathered as six by the door to St Olav’s church – the place where Magnus’ bones rested waiting for the cathedral to be completed. Then, to my very great surprise, from around the corner appeared a very good number of the congregation of our St Olav’s church in Kirkwall. They had come to walk with us the final 400 yds to the cathedral – to accompany us on our spiritual homecoming. My heart was full.”
The next day, Bishop Anne led worship and preached at St Olav’s in Kirkwall for Pentecost, and on Monday made a visit to St Magnus Cathedral, which was closed to the pilgrims on Saturday because of coronavirus restrictions.
All of the Bishop’s blog posts are available to be read on the Diocesan website here https://aoepiscopal.scot/tag/other/?fbclid=IwAR2bkMxmrb0yyX6RwZJGeI9LPuelgg_gI3On2lYvcsazQdAu89mYwafqXP0
The Bishop was also interviewed by Radio Orkney (at the 12min 30sec mark) and her pilgrimage was the subject of her most recent column in the Press & Journal newspaper (subscription required).
