Walking in Celebration of a Boy King
17 July 2009
Walkers from churches in the Winchcombe area are have set off on a 60 mile pilgrimage over five days to celebrate their most famous local saint, St Kenelm. The event culminates in a service tonight (17 July) in Winchcombe’s St Peter’s.
Nine members of the local Catholic, Methodist and Church of England churches have been retracing an ancient route. They began on Monday (13 July) from St Kenelm’s Church, Romsley (in the Clent Hills south of Birmingham). The pilgrimage finishes at St Peter’s Church in Winchcombe on the day St Kenelm is celebrated, today (17 July).
“In Winchcombe we're very conscious that we benefit from a heritage of Christian faith stretching back into the Dark Ages,” says Team Rector for the Church of England, Reverend John Partington. “One of the most famous examples of this is St Kenelm. His stone coffin (or so it is claimed to be) is still on display in St Peter's Church. More than a thousand years later, as we retrace the route along which his body was carried, we'll be reflecting on our own Christian discipleship”.
Mentioned in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, St Kenelm was a boy king of Mercia around the turn of the ninth century. Legend has it that after being murdered by an ambitious relative, a well sprung up at his first burial place, now the site of St Kenelm’s Church, Romsley and one of the sources of the River Stour. His body was later carried to Winchcombe by local monks, and as they rested at Sudeley within sight of their Abbey, another well sprang up.
Methodist Minister Revd Steve Ward says: “This walk is a wonderful chance for all Christians in Winchcombe to come together, recognising our shared heritage.”
Father Peter Slocombe, our Parish Priest in Winchcombe said: “We’ll be sharing good company, prayer and an awareness of our local history. Our route will take us through the Clent and Lickey Hills and along the Worcester and Birmingham Canal with its many locks. We don’t know the exact route the monks took as they carried St. Kenelm's body but the churches and wells dedicated to him along the way will be a guide.”
To prepare for the walk, Churches Together in Winchcombe members fathered for evening prayer in St Nicholas last Sunday (12 July) when a local authority on St Kenelm preached.
Upon their return this evening the pilgrims, friends and day walkers will end with a service in St Peter’s, Winchcombe at 6.00 pm, followed by a barbeque in the gardens of the presbytery in Winchcombe.
Walkers from churches in the Winchcombe area are have set off on a 60 mile pilgrimage over five days to celebrate their most famous local saint, St Kenelm. The event culminates in a service tonight (17 July) in Winchcombe’s St Peter’s.
Nine members of the local Catholic, Methodist and Church of England churches have been retracing an ancient route. They began on Monday (13 July) from St Kenelm’s Church, Romsley (in the Clent Hills south of Birmingham). The pilgrimage finishes at St Peter’s Church in Winchcombe on the day St Kenelm is celebrated, today (17 July).
“In Winchcombe we're very conscious that we benefit from a heritage of Christian faith stretching back into the Dark Ages,” says Team Rector for the Church of England, Reverend John Partington. “One of the most famous examples of this is St Kenelm. His stone coffin (or so it is claimed to be) is still on display in St Peter's Church. More than a thousand years later, as we retrace the route along which his body was carried, we'll be reflecting on our own Christian discipleship”.
Mentioned in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, St Kenelm was a boy king of Mercia around the turn of the ninth century. Legend has it that after being murdered by an ambitious relative, a well sprung up at his first burial place, now the site of St Kenelm’s Church, Romsley and one of the sources of the River Stour. His body was later carried to Winchcombe by local monks, and as they rested at Sudeley within sight of their Abbey, another well sprang up.
Methodist Minister Revd Steve Ward says: “This walk is a wonderful chance for all Christians in Winchcombe to come together, recognising our shared heritage.”
Father Peter Slocombe, our Parish Priest in Winchcombe said: “We’ll be sharing good company, prayer and an awareness of our local history. Our route will take us through the Clent and Lickey Hills and along the Worcester and Birmingham Canal with its many locks. We don’t know the exact route the monks took as they carried St. Kenelm's body but the churches and wells dedicated to him along the way will be a guide.”
To prepare for the walk, Churches Together in Winchcombe members fathered for evening prayer in St Nicholas last Sunday (12 July) when a local authority on St Kenelm preached.
Upon their return this evening the pilgrims, friends and day walkers will end with a service in St Peter’s, Winchcombe at 6.00 pm, followed by a barbeque in the gardens of the presbytery in Winchcombe.
Images
Your comments
© Clifton Diocese 2010 | Disclaimer
