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SMALL PILGRIM PLACES
Objects and Characteristics of Small Pilgrim Places
Provisional Objects
1. To establish, support, and promote a
network of small pilgrim places, in the United Kingdom and beyond which:
a. draw people as pilgrims, across the boundaries of faiths, denominations,
and spiritual paths;
b. welcome all people of goodwill as they pause on their journey through
life;
c. offer simple hospitality, thoughtful conversation, and a quiet atmosphere
for prayer or reflection;
d. are typically, but not necessarily, churches or other formal places of
worship.
2. To develop and encourage good practice amongst those who are entrusted with
the care of these small pilgrim places.
Provisional Characteristics
1. Small places, not those that are already 'on the map' and draw crowds.
2. Small enough for one or two people to feel at ease and not overwhelmed.
3. Places that are not so popular that silence, simplicity, and solitude are
impossible.
4. An atmosphere that encourages silence, prayer, and reflection, and which
makes use of symbols as well as words.
5. A silence that is profound enough for the visitor to become aware of a
presence that draws us together.
6. A sense of place, each with an identity of its own, unique and singular, with
its own history and character to be respected.
7. A place that communicates something of the 'eternal now' while also bringing
the past into the present day and pointing towards the future.
8. A welcome to all people of goodwill, particularly the seekers and searchers,
from all faiths and none, the bruised, the puzzled, the vulnerable, those
lacking in self-esteem, those who feel in exile from their
spiritual communities, thus providing an oasis for those in the wilderness.
9. Conversation that is thoughtful, non-judgemental, exploratory, and expectant, and not at all
abrasive or competitive.
10. Dialogue in which each respects the other and is opened to be changed by
the encounter.
11. Places that seek to nudge tourists with glazed looks into becoming pilgrims
with gently focused eyes.
12. Places that provide breathing space on the pilgrim journey, both inner and
outer.
13. Places that refresh, like oases in the desert.
14. Places which provide shelter and a space in which to ponder and wonder.
15. Places could be small entities within a larger one: e.g. a small garden within a
larger one open to the public, a chapel or crypt within a church.This
leads to our Good Practice for Small Pilgrim
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