(Above: Map showing route to the Shrine of Julian of Norwich. Total Route = 176 miles The figure in re represents the current distance travelled)

Distance travelled so far = 176.5 miles 

This year's Virtual Sponsored Pilgrimage is to the Shrine of Julian of Norwich. 

Members of St Clement's church are walking to raise money for Christian Aid Week. The Pilgrimage is a virtual one, people walk on their own or in groups around Manchester. We then add up the total to calculate how far along the route we have come to Norwich. 

If you would like to support out fundraising you can log your miles in the form opposite.You can also donate to our fundraiser via Just Giving or contact Revd Laurie Windle for offline payments. 

Journey Log:

24/05/2023: WE HAVE ARRIVED! A long stretch from this day meant that our pilgrims have arrived at the Shrine in Norwich. Julian (or Juliana) of Norwich was a English Anchoress in the Middle Ages. Anchoress were woman (Anchorites if men) who lived their life in a cell attached to a town church in order to dedicate themselves to prayer and meditation. They were usually walled in. Nothing is known of her earlier life (were not even sure if her name was Julian). Her writings, now know as the Revelation of Divine Love, are the earliest survigin English language works by a woman. The church itself was damage during WWII and during its restoration the foundations of Julian's cell were discovered and have been restored. Many saying from her writings have become popular, probably most famous amongst them: "All shall be well, and all shall be well and all manner of thing shall be well." 

23/05/2023: Another 20 miles achieved this day. The pilgrims are firmly inthe Norfolk countryside a few miles away from Dereham. According to local tradition, Saint Wihtburh (aka Withburga), the youngest daughter of Anna, King of the East Angles, founded a monastery and a convent there in the seventh century after seeing a vision of the Virgin Mary. There some evidence that the settlement, possible from the Neolithic period. 

22/05/2023: Our pilgrims have really moved swiftly through Lincolnshire and have just entered Norfolk, gaining a further 44 miles towards our goal. They are currently just past King's Lynn. 

21/05/2023: We are over half way there! Our determined pilgrims are now walking past Sleaford. Sleaford contains another ancient church. The first Anglo-Saxon Church was existence by 1072 when it was given as part of the manor of Sleaford to the 1st Bishop of Lincoln. It is also mentioned in the Domesday Book: "There is a priest and a church."

20/05/2023: After leaving Chesterfield, the pilgrims passed through Mansfield. They then crossed across the River Trent on the Great North Road, passing alongside the remaining walls of Newark Castle and are now just beyond Newark on Trent. The Church of St Mary Magdalene in Newark has been in existence for over 800 years. The earliest parts of the  building date from the 11th century.

17/05/2023: After resting for a day the further 22.5 miles were added to the jounery. The pilgrims have now past through the Peak District and are walking alongside the River Hipper in Chesterfield. They can only catch a glimpse of the famous crooked spire at the 13th century Church of St Mary and All Saints in Chesterfield. There are a number of legends about why the spire is so twisted. Here is one: The devil was flying from Nottingham to Sheffield and stopped for a moment to rest on top of the Parish Church spire. The smell of incense drifted up from the church below and so irritated the Devil that he gave a violent sneeze and flew from the tower. In doing so, his tail caught the top of the spire and twisted the entire structure into its now famous shape.

16/05/2023: A Day of rest

15/05/2023: Our intrepid pilgrimages walked a further 13.5 miles on this day. They have passed through Stockport, Hazel Grove, High Lane and are now firmly in the Peak District.  Walking along the side of the A6 they are just past the roundabout to Whaley Bridge.

14/05/2023: Having set out from Chorlton, we have walked through through Didsbury, along the river Mersey, and are now in Stockport (near the back entrance to the train station).