CAPTION: The Image of Our Lady of Walsingham was carried through Exeter to the Cathedral for a special centenary celebration.
Our Lady of Walsingham Visits Devon For Pilgrimage Site Centenary
A festival to commemorate the one-hundredth anniversary of the restoration of the ancient Anglican shrine of Walsingham has been held in Devon.
It included a procession and service at Exeter Cathedral and an evening prayer service at St Peter’s Church, Plymouth.
Walsingham in Norfolk has been a place of pilgrimage for hundreds of years after Saxon Noblewoman Richeldis de Faverches had a vision of the Virgin Mary in which she was told to recreate Jesus’ childhood home in Nazareth.
The image of Our Lady of Walsingham depicts Mary holding her Son Jesus
The shrine she constructed was destroyed in the Protestant Reformation and restored in 1922 by Fr Hope Pattern, vicar of Walsingham, who was born in Devon.
A new statue of Mary holding her son Jesus was placed there, based on the image depicted on the seal of the medieval Priory. It is known as the image of Our Lady of Walsingham.
The statue was brought to Exeter for the festival and was carried in procession from the medieval Guildhall in Exeter High Street to the Cathedral for a special Pilgrimage Mass.
The service was led by the Right Reverend Will Hazlewood, the Bishop of Lewes and former vicar of Dartmouth, and a member of the College of Guardians of The Shrine of Walsingham.
The service was followed by a time of Ministry for Healing and Reconciliation in the Cathedral.
Lydia Guy, from St Luke’s church in Milber, Newton Abbot, took part in the procession and said afterwards: “It was an honour to carry one of Our Lady’s lamps and to serve at Mass and a joy to be worshipping with so many people.
Fr. David Way SSC, Parish Priest in Plymouth and member of The Order of Our Lady of Walsingham
“The healing ministries really touched people – I saw many find a quiet corner to sit and reflect. I went home tired, well, shattered really, but with heart overflowing.”
Fr David Way, from Plymouth, said “The Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham is a place of great encounter and has been through the ages… it is a place which people travel to from all over the world.”
The Right Reverend Philip North, the Bishop of Burnley and a member of the College of Guardians was present at the festival in Exeter. He said:
The Rt. Rev’d Philip North, the Bishop of Burnley
“It’s a great celebration, the image of Mary has come to Exeter Cathedral, we celebrated a beautiful Eucharist and many of the things that happen in Walsingham are happening here so people can come and experience some of the beauty of that place.”
“At the heart of Walsingham is Mary’s child Jesus, who touches our lives and heals us. We remember Mary’s ‘yes’ to God and Walsingham challenges us to do the same, to say ‘yes’ to God and live His way.”
The Mass was led by the Rt. Rev’d Will Hazlewood, the Bishop of Lewes
You can view a photo gallery from the day on our Facebook Page.
This year, the South West Pilgrimage to Walsingham is taking place from 12th – 16th of September, please email Fr. David Way for more information.
