Iona of My Heart: Just Walk

How did I even end up on a pilgrimage to Iona anyway?

Funny you should ask.

It started as someone else’s dream and someone else’s plan more than a year ago in Cambridge. The idea of going together to Iona for a pilgrimage came up in conversation and someone asked if it could become an elective course, since we all had to take an elective at some point. Great! Yes! Who wouldn’t want to go to Iona for class? But as we all transitioned back into the “real world” of life outside our community at Wesley House the dream of Iona faded.

Except for three of us. For three of us, the call to Iona just got stronger. And stronger. Until one day in September, I put a deposit on a house on the Isle of Mull for a week in August, a house with room for 10 people.

We had no professor. No class. No plans. No idea how this would turn out. We just knew we needed to go. That something good could happen if we went. That Iona was calling.

I talked to one of our professors about our ideas. And he spoke to another professor. Who took the dream and ran with it.

Except we were never sure. Would the class actually happen? Could this work? If it did work, what would it look like? Someone else was now in charge. All I had was a deposit on a house. In Mull.

We spent the next eight months wondering. (And yes, worrying a bit.)

Finally in March, a couple of us started booking reservations for flights and ferries. We started making concrete plans. But we still didn’t know. I literally had a Plan A (class happens), a Plan B (independent study?), and a Plan C (I take a vacation in Scotland, use the time to work on my dissertation with the hopes that St Columba offered some inspiration and then would figure out my elective later). Yeah, Plan C wasn’t a great plan. But it was all I had. I was going to Scotland. I was going to Iona. Everything else would work out somehow.

By the Spring we knew the class would make. But we still didn’t know what shape it would take. We got on planes and ferries and crossed oceans and countries,

Three classmates, a husband, and a ferry. From Oban to Mull.

 

classmates (now four of us) who still held on to the vision that somehow time on Iona would be important. We added a few family members so the house became a community of nine. We added another classmate (yay, Laura!) and a professor (who was amazing and perfect and exactly, of course, what we needed). And we went on a journey together.

St. Augustine once said “It is solved by walking.” Brian McLaren has a book titled “We make the road by walking.” Eugene Peterson has a book called “Long Obedience in the Same Direction.” That’s what a pilgrimage is…a way, a journey. It’s not completely about the destination. It’s about walking, even when the destination is too far away to see. We’re called to walk and to keep walking, obedient to the Way.

Iona was a lesson in obedience. Keep walking. Let the journey unfold.

And boy did it ever unfold. In the most beautiful way possible. Because we all kept walking toward Iona (metaphorically, at least). Worship that I needed. Conversation to refresh, renew, and strengthen. Knowledge to expand. Time to process. God’s beauty to surround.

Sometimes we Christians get confused about our calling. We think the point is to get to heaven, that heaven is our destination or our goal. I think it’s more that we’re called to the Way. We’re called to follow Jesus, a long obedience in the same direction. We keep walking, following Jesus – and our destination will work itself out. Because the destination isn’t nearly as important as the journey of discipleship. When we take a pilgrimage approach to discipleship, there’s no quick fix, no easy answer. No black or white answers. Just a road ahead for us to walk knowing that Jesus walked before us, walks with us, and will continue to walk after us.

First view of Iona, from the ferry. Sunday morning heading to worship in the Abbey

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Iona of My Heart: Rhythm of Life

I’ve been home now for a week and, other than a newly discovered addiction to shortbread biscuits, I find myself sinking right back into my same old routine. Work. Paper writing. Research. Feed the dog. Sleep. Repeat.

We all have our daily routines, our rhythm of life. Even Her Majesty the Queen has a daily routine. On one of my free days in Edinburgh, I visited the Royal Yacht Britannia. I enjoyed every minute exploring this amazing palace on the water. I am hopelessly fascinated by the royals (I know, how American of me, right?) and touring the yacht just ticked all the boxes for me! Just before you board the yacht, there’s a picture of

A Day in the Life: The Queen on board Britannia

the Queen’s daily schedule when on board the Britannia. 7:30am – Queen woken by personal maid and served a cup of tea. 8:30am – Breakfast. 9:15am – office time working through official papers. 11:00am – coffee break. Yeah, I could get used to that rhythm of life.

One of the best parts of travel is the opportunity to adopt a new rhythm of life, at least for a few days. Traveling on your own gives you the chance to have even more control over that new rhythm. For me, days on my own in a new place usually involve an early start and an early evening (I’m not a fan of walking around at night on my own!). Edinburgh was teeming with people arriving for the Fringe Festival or the International Festival or any one of the other million festivals going on during August. Travel note – if you don’t like crowds of people, Edinburgh in August is NOT for you. I got up early and enjoyed a quiet walk around the city, enjoying the peace knowing that in a few house the crowds would be back.

My favorite part of traveling in the United Kingdom is the rhythm of tea. During my time in Cambridge for classes, morning coffee breaks and afternoon tea breaks were an essential part of our daily routine. Stopping for morning tea on the Royal Yacht was literally one of my favorite travel experiences. Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin singing in the background, fresh-baked scone, perfect cup of tea…in a completely royal environment? I was in heaven. Those are the kinds of indulgences that good travel brings.

Pilgrimage also brings a new rhythm of life. For those tackling a pilgrimage like walking the Camino de Santiago, the new rhythm may look something like: walk, eat, sleep, repeat. Our pilgrimage to Iona certainly involved plenty of walking but it also included daily commutes by ferry and long drives on one-track roads, stopping to wait for cows and sheep to move out of the way. Days in class were a balance of intense conversation and deep listening followed by long walks among the cows and the scenery to settle and process. Time on Iona was a balance of learning and devotion followed by more long walks (with more sheep and cows). Sometimes those walks were for asking questions and trying to listen for answers. Sometimes walks, especially alongside good friends, were times for more processing and dreaming out loud together. Sometimes we just walked, breathing in the air of the holy isle. As often as possible, I walked the beaches, shoes off, searching for shells and rocks and sea glass. My pilgrimage set a rhythm of life that included movement alongside rest, talking alongside listening, community alongside solitude. A pilgrimage rhythm allowed for a balance that my daily routine at home doesn’t always allow (or I don’t make space for).

What kind of rhythm of life are we seeking? Fast-paced, always on the go? Or one of balance?

Walking through the Abbey at Iona, I thought about the rhythm of life the Iona community followed for hundreds of years. Iona was home to a Benedictine community from about 1200 until the Reformation. Benedictine monks and nuns would have followed a strict pattern each day of prayer and work. Set hours of prayer interwoven with daily chores, meals, and study. No community is perfect and no one rhythm of life works for every person, but the balance of work and prayer, prayer and work, of the Benedictine community, certainly challenges me to consider my own rhythm of life. Where am I seeking a balance of work and prayer, busyness and worship?

Pilgrimage breaks up our daily routine and sets and new routine. In the disruption, we are disoriented in order to find a new orientation, a new rhythm of life.

 

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Iona of My Heart: Packing Light

I am a recovering over-packer. I shudder to think what was in my suitcase for my first trip out of the country (a trip to Poland, oddly enough). I’m pretty sure I packed a complete outfit for everyday. And maybe extras for “just in case.” I’ve gotten better each trip, slowly but surely learning how to plan better and pack smarter. Traveling to and from Cambridge these past few years for my D.Min classes, packing smarter became the ultimate challenge. Last summer, when I was traveling for 3 weeks including time on my own in France, I thought I had mastered the art of packing

France and Cambridge 2017

lighter. Not light, mind you, but lighter. I knew I would have to be able to handle my own luggage getting on and off trains. I knew the moment I tried to wrestle my bags on the train to Bayeux – literally having to throw one bag on the train and then reach back for the second (yes, second) bag that I had utterly failed in the packing light. It’s not that I brought too many clothes because I really didn’t. But I have an unfortunate tendency to pack for the “just in case” moments. As if somehow I couldn’t get extra shampoo or ibuprofen in France (which I did…even navigating the conversation in the pharmacy with little English. Turns out I can say ibuprofen in French since it’s the same word in English.) We had a grocery store a block down in the street in Cambridge, for heaven’s sake. But that didn’t stop me from packing for the “just in cases” anyway.

 

Scotland would be different. It had to be different.

Scotland 2018

Four people in a rental car driving across Scotland would not have room for me to pack all my “just in case” nonsense. I committed early on in the planning to sticking with one carry-on size bag. When I bought my plane tickets, that sealed my fate. Two weeks in Scotland would have to fit in a carry-on. And I did it. I was actually a little disappointed that I ended up with my larger backpack instead of just a tote-bag as my “personal item.” But in the end, I brought one carry on suitcase and my backpack mainly so I would have room for at least a little shopping.

No extra clothes. No extra “just in cases.” No computer. No frills. In the end, I had exactly what I needed and nothing that I didn’t need. (Oh ok, I had one pair of shoes I didn’t need.)

Why all this detail about packing? One of the first disciplines of pilgrimage is learning to pack light. Whether walking the Camino de Santiago de Compostela in Spain or walking across Scotland to Iona (no, we didn’t walk), if a pilgrim doesn’t pack light they won’t survive the journey. It’s not a matter of an extra airline fee, it’s a matter of physical survival. You can’t walk the pilgrimage if you can’t handle your pack.

I’m nowhere near being ready to pack for a journey like the Camino but I’m learning to let go of the “just in cases.” And isn’t that a lesson for our pilgrimage of life? Learning to trust that we have what we need, even for the emergencies or just-in-cases…

When we begin to understand life as a journey, as a pilgrimage we learn to pack carefully for the journey. We learn to consider the unnecessary things we carry through life that weigh us down as we walk. Guilt. Shame. Anger. Hurt. We cannot carry them with us. Material possessions that accumulate, filling storage containers and closets. We have no room for them in our luggage.

Packing for pilgrimage means packing carefully and lightly. It means learning to let go of the unnecessary and the “just in cases.”

It also means discovering the joy and freedom to be had in letting go of burdens and heavy packs…

*On a non-pilgrimage note, if you’re looking for packing advice there are plenty of articles and blogs to be found. I might not be your best source of advice but nevertheless, here are my packing tips:

• Make sure to exchange money before you go. If you are a AAA member, take advantage of your membership and exchange money with them. Specifically ask for at least some small bills. And while this doesn’t have anything to do with packing, here’s my #1 travel advice. As soon as you arrive at your destination, buy something small – a coffee or drink, etc – using cash. This will give you some change. Keep change with you always. Why is this so important? You will need money for most public toilets. Having 20p on hand will be very important indeed at some point along your journey. Trust me on this.
• Adapters and converters and extra power cords. External batteries are a must. Especially if you get stuck on an overseas flight that doesn’t have electrical outlets at each seat like I just did. 😦
• If you’re traveling someplace where rain is likely (like Scotland!) a water-proof jacket with a hood is better than an umbrella. It will also serve as a windbreaker. Plus consider pants made from material that will dry quickly. When it’s raining in Scotland, denim is not your friend.
• Ziplock bags – small and large. I used these bags to pick up shells along the beach in Iona and Calgary Bay in Mull.
• Fold-up or collapsible shopping bag. Bags cost money in Europe so having your own comes in handy!
• Layers for your clothing. No need for bulky sweaters or jackets, just layer up.
• If you’re worried about wet shoes (which I was), find some old newspapers and stuff your wet shoes overnight. By morning the newspaper will be wet and your shoes dry. Special thanks to Sarah (our house “mum” for the week in Mull) for this one!

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Iona of My Heart: Pilgrimage Reflections Pt 1

As I write this, I’m bundled up in my office shivering against the cold air-conditioning. After 2 weeks in Scotland, air-conditioning feels like an affront to my system! Even as I shiver (and look like an idiot wearing a jacket when it’s 90 degrees outside), it’s time to start putting into words (and a few pictures) my reflections from my pilgrimage to Scotland.

I went to Scotland for the last class I needed to take as a part of my Doctor of Ministry degree. We all had options for electives but in the end, I couldn’t turn down the opportunity to travel to Iona, Scotland! I also tacked on a few days of vacation and renewal time. I had the pleasure and privilege of traveling with some of my classmates and their families, making this trip particularly special.

So why do I call it a pilgrimage? What is a pilgrimage? “A pilgrimage is an intentional journey from the pilgrim’s context to a place of religious significance to promote spiritual growth or transformation” (from the Missional Wisdom Foundation website). A pilgrimage is a journey to a thin space, a space where heaven and earth feel as if they touch.

Iona Abbey

In this case, Iona was our destination. The holy island of Iona has been a pilgrimage destination for centuries. St. Columba came to Iona from Ireland in 563 and established a small religious community there. The Iona community connects to the religious community that produced the Book of Kells when viking raids pushed the

Abbey Cloisters

community off the island. A Benedictine community settled on Iona in the 1200s and

lasted up until the Protestant Reformation. In the 1930s, George MacLeod established an ecumenical community devoted to prayer, community, social justice, and worship. This community continues today. One has only to experience worship in the Abbey or breathe the fresh sea air of the holy isle to know that Iona is indeed thin space.

But a pilgrimage is not completely about the destination. A destination itself does not necessarily transform; pilgrimage is about the journey. Through travel we are disoriented – we wander into a new culture, a new way of living, new foods, different everything. In the disorientation, we are reoriented, learning more about who we are at our core. In the journey of disorientation and reorientation, we grow, we discern, we are renewed, we are challenged. Pilgrimage takes us into liminal space where transformation can occur. (For more on liminal space, here’s my sermon from June 2018 Finding Home)

This pilgrimage to Iona began a year ago in the dreaming and in the planning. It’s been an interesting journey waiting to see if the class would actually happen and how this trip would take shape. A deposit was placed on a house on the Isle of Mull almost 10 months before we traveled and it would be 8 months until we knew whether the class would actually make. From the start, this was a journey that, for me, was about letting go of expectations and control. It was about learning to embrace the process of becoming instead of trying to control the outcome.

The next few blog posts will be my reflections on the journey and what I learned on pilgrimage. I don’t know how long it will take me to get all the ideas running through my head into blog form but somehow – between the jet-lag related delirium and the back-to-school craziness – the reflections will take shape.

 

 

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