Student pilgimage

28 March 2007

IF asked how they will be spending Easter weekend, most people will talk about eating chocolate or going on egg hunts.

But for those involved in this year's Student Cross Pilgrimage Easter will have an entirely different focus.

More than 250 pilgrims will be taking part walking up to 120 miles each, starting from various points in the country but all finishing in Little Walsingham, to celebrate Easter together.

The pilgrimage begins tomorrow and will finish next weekend on Easter Sunday.

The Student Cross Pilgrimage is made up of 10 groups each carrying a large wooden cross. Six of the groups will walk about 120 miles during the Holy Week.

This year Easter Leg, the group which is mainly for older people or those who cannot manage the full stretch, will be celebrating its 50th anniversary by walking from North Elmham to Walsingham on Good Friday.

People young and old from all walks of life take part in the whole pilgrimage which attracts Christians of all denominations as well as other people who are searching for some kind of spiritual meaning in their life.

Laura Bradley, national organiser of the Student Cross 2007, said: “Being on pilgrimage together has a knack of helping us grow and pray in all sorts of unexpected ways during Holy Week.

“We lead each other out of our comfort zones - physical, social and spiritual - through some tough walking, refreshing liturgy and close friendship.

“By the time we arrive in Walsingham we are all the more ready to leave our fears behind and live our lives to the full, in the joy of Easter.”

The pilgrimage is well supported by local villages and parishes that the walkers pass through. They receive a great welcome when they reach their final destination on Easter weekend.

Next year it is the Student Cross Pilgrimage's 60th anniversary, and plans are being made already to ensure the event is celebrated even more memorably than usual.