Hundreds join East Anglia children’s pilgrimage to Walsingham

More than 400 children and adults joined in a Children’s Pilgrimage and mass at Walsingham.

The annual event, which was led by Bishop Alan Hopes, drew young pilgrims from across East Anglia to the village which is famous for its shrines in honour of the Virgin Mary.

Everyone gathered in the Friday Market Place outside the Church of the Annunciation and then processed along the railway track path to the Catholic National Shrine, stopping for prayers, said by young people. Young pilgrims at the May 29 event also received prayer cards, scripture verses and a rosary while on the way.

Fr Luke Goymour, Ignite Youth Team chaplain, gave a homily, saying: “We are on a journey of life, which has lots of twists and turns. It starts when we are born and finishes when we die and we meet God face to face.

“God gives us special food for this journey – the best food we could possibly imagine – the Eucharist. Every time you come to Mass you witness a miracle. The priest takes bread and wine and something wonderful happens – it becomes Jesus for us. The God who loves you comes to you in the form of bread and wine.”

Loaves of bread, baked overnight by Jo Graham from St John’s Cathedral in Norwich, were arranged to spell out the phrase ‘Bread Of Life’, were part of the mass and later shared out.

Chris Storman, who has helped to organise the annual pilgrimage since it began 33 years ago, said: “It has been quite wonderful.

“The pilgrimage began when small groups from Thetford and Yarmouth met up at Walsingham and then other parishes said they would like to join in and it has grown from there. The numbers this year are one of the biggest I can remember.”