To be a pilgrim
Our local group in Sheffield held their annual Pilgrimage event on 21 October 2017. Nick Waterfield, chair of the group, shares his reflections.
Saturday 21 October 2017 witnessed the annual Sheffield Church Action on Poverty Pilgrimage. Every year we use this occasion to visit faith-based social action projects, in order to listen to their stories and the issues facing some of this city’s most vulnerable and in-need citizens.
As I walked from my new home close to the city centre to begin the Pilgrimage (and to lead prayers and reflections) , I myself reflected upon exactly what makes this annual event a ‘pilgrimage’. In the end, I think, it’s something about an intentional searching for the sacred amongst the day-to-day life of our city – of witnessing to, and listening for, God in the city. The act of pilgrimage focuses our hearts and minds so that we can do what we should be doing every day, to see God in the people we meet, to hear God in the stories we listen to.
On my short 10-minute walk into town it felt like my pilgrimage had already begun, as I began to observe the lives around me that are each and every day lived out in our city. On Devonshire Green I saw a man (who I later saw entering the Archer Project at the Cathedral) wrapped in his sleeping bag and holding a coffee after what had been a cold autumnal night. He was watching as the sun rose up over the buildings around, welcoming, dreading or merely witnessing the the arrival of another new day. As I turned the corner, a man on his mobile phone passed me in tears, deep in conversation with someone on the other end of the call about some obvious hurt with a real impact on his and possibly other lives, but that will forever remain unknown to me. People were already busily rushing from bus and tram stops to their places of work, and meanwhile signs of the previous night’s activities lay discarded on the pavement, empty cans and polythene packets with pictures that suggested they had contained some or other “recreational” drug. Finally as I waited for the other ‘pilgrims’ to arrive I spent some time talking to the Big Issue seller at the end of Chapel Walk. Our conversation was nothing particular of note, we spoke of the weather and Storm Brian, about the inherent unfairness of food banks, and about video games, big business, consumerism and why we are too often moved to buy things we don’t really need.
It is important to remind ourselves that cities are not just buildings and roads, they are not simply economic centres; the city is home to a myriad of lives, all intertwined and somehow interdependent for their wellbeing. The places and projects we visit each year are witness to just that; this year we visited (and revisited):
As I walked from my new home close to the city centre to begin the Pilgrimage (and to lead prayers and reflections) , I myself reflected upon exactly what makes this annual event a ‘pilgrimage’. In the end, I think, it’s something about an intentional searching for the sacred amongst the day-to-day life of our city – of witnessing to, and listening for, God in the city. The act of pilgrimage focuses our hearts and minds so that we can do what we should be doing every day, to see God in the people we meet, to hear God in the stories we listen to.
On my short 10-minute walk into town it felt like my pilgrimage had already begun, as I began to observe the lives around me that are each and every day lived out in our city. On Devonshire Green I saw a man (who I later saw entering the Archer Project at the Cathedral) wrapped in his sleeping bag and holding a coffee after what had been a cold autumnal night. He was watching as the sun rose up over the buildings around, welcoming, dreading or merely witnessing the the arrival of another new day. As I turned the corner, a man on his mobile phone passed me in tears, deep in conversation with someone on the other end of the call about some obvious hurt with a real impact on his and possibly other lives, but that will forever remain unknown to me. People were already busily rushing from bus and tram stops to their places of work, and meanwhile signs of the previous night’s activities lay discarded on the pavement, empty cans and polythene packets with pictures that suggested they had contained some or other “recreational” drug. Finally as I waited for the other ‘pilgrims’ to arrive I spent some time talking to the Big Issue seller at the end of Chapel Walk. Our conversation was nothing particular of note, we spoke of the weather and Storm Brian, about the inherent unfairness of food banks, and about video games, big business, consumerism and why we are too often moved to buy things we don’t really need.
It is important to remind ourselves that cities are not just buildings and roads, they are not simply economic centres; the city is home to a myriad of lives, all intertwined and somehow interdependent for their wellbeing. The places and projects we visit each year are witness to just that; this year we visited (and revisited):
- Victoria Hall Methodist Church, where we heard about the work amongst refugees and people seeking asylum, as well as other visitors from overseas. We we also introduced to the idea of the ‘Sheffield Box’ which the church is looking to roll out as a way of welcoming new families to our city.
- At the Salvation Army on Duke Street, we heard about their efforts to make real on a day-to-day basis the outworking of the love of Jesus in people’s lives. We were told of the food bank and emergency support, as well as numerous other local initiatives.
- The Emmaus Project in Sheffield offers both accommodation and employment to vulnerable people who would otherwise be homeless. We heard how ‘companions’ live and work alongside each other in a community of mutual support.
- Finally, at the Cathedral Archer Project (amidst a busy lunchtime session) we heard of the work done there to support homeless people, from subsidised meals and advice with benefits and the like, through to visiting dentistry and chiropody services.
Every year we hear about inspiring and challenging work amongst the city’s vulnerable and economically poorest and this year, once again, we were inspired and challenged in equal measure. Inspired by the hard work of staff and volunteers, inspired also by people who are finding ways through the complexities of the hardship they themselves face. But also challenged; challenged to further highlight the way policy and economic structures have worsened the lives and prospects of many of the most vulnerable in our society, challenged to listen more, to do more, to say more when required.
This post first appeared on Nick’s Pioneer Thoughts blog.
Read more about Sheffield’s Pilgrimages here.