Orthodox Ireland Pilgrimages
In the centuries before the tragic schism that separated the Eastern Church from the Western Church, Ireland was an Island teeming with monasteries and churches. It became the home of thousands of saints, ascetics, and miracle workers of all types, and was the place from which the rest of Europe was evangelized and civilized. Scholars tell us that monks traveled from as far away as Egypt and Syria to join in the spiritual phenomena taking place on that remarkable island.
Now the island is filled with the physical remnants of that era in the form of ruins and sacred sites. It is as though the spirituality of that ancient, almost unremembered time came under some sort of enchantment and was turned to stone, waiting in silence over the centuries for a time of reawakening, when the life is renewed and the ancient places are restored, and the island is known once more as, Holy Ireland, the home of saints and scholars.
On these pilgrimages we walk in the footsteps of the many and varied, wonder-working Irish Saints, and as we do so we find that the centuries have slipped away, and that we are tangibly close to our ancient brothers and sisters, with whom we are one, in spirit, in faith, in creed, and in baptism.
Our pilgrimage of May 2010 was completed with great success, so now we are turning our thoughts toward what to do next. Each pilgrimage is unique as we visit different sites and explore different approaches. The 2010 pilgrimage was a combination of pilgrimage and spiritual retreat. Instead of going to as many sites as we could in the allotted days we spent longer periods of time in the places we knew to be the most applicable to a retreat setting. Specifically this meant two nights in beautiful Glendalough and four nights on the quiet island of Inishmore (Irish spelling: Inis Mor), a place rich in spiritual heritage, with many ancient shrines dotting its ruggedly beautiful landscape.
As we look ahead to the coming year we want to encourage people who have contacted us in the past, but were unable to participate in the 2010 pilgrimage because of various scheduling problems, to please jump in now and start helping us plan a pilgrimage that fits your schedule.
The Orthodox Pilgrimages to Ireland are sponsored by the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church of Belfast, Northern Ireland. Each year the cost and itinerary will vary somewhat depending on the best available travel and hotel rates at the time. It is the intention of the organizers that these pilgrimages be as affordable and as enjoyable as is possible.
In 2010 we have had one pilgrimage of adults from the United States. In 2008 we had one pilgrimage of adults from the United States, and two pilgrimages of young people from Europe. There is a pilgrimage in the planning stages for 2011. If you are interested in joining a pilgrimage or designing your own please contact: Athanasius and Nektaria Blalock. nektaria.blalock@gmail.com
Orthodox Ireland Pilgrimages
c/o Fr Irenaeus
8 Wheatfield Gardens
BELFAST
BT14 7HU
Northern Ireland
UK
Tel: +44 (0) 28 90 712 523
Fax: +44 (0) 28 90 392 092
irenaeus@btopenworld.com
We are looking forward to joining with you in an upcoming Pilgrimage to Ireland.
