Day 65 of Pilgrimage – a week to go to Sale

Friday 23 October 2020

By the end of today I will have walked 650k and will arrive ‘virtually’ in Sale, Victoria at St Paul’s Cathedral next Friday. On Tuesday this week (20 October) I passed the 2/3 mark in the pilgrimage – it is amazing to think that it will all be over on Sunday 22 November!

If you read last week’s blog – you will have seen a beautiful sunrise over the Dandenong Range. This week the weather hasn’t been as kind and one morning I walked in particularly heavy rain:

However, the rain cleared by the time I got to the high point in my route and I took this lovely shot:

Just to keep things above board – I post a screen shot of my last week’s walking – the average is still above 10k a day!

Last Sunday we had stage four restrictions eased a little and barbers were allowed to open and I took the chance to get my first haircut in SIX months – here are the before and after shots:

I want to share from another book I have been reading and pondering in this pilgrimage – it’s by Samuel Wells – Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields, London, UK and is titled “Face to Face: Meeting Christ in friend and stranger”

Samuel writes the following:

Hands are given to those in ministry to discover three things: when to touch, how to touch, and when not to touch. In the story of the transfiguration in Matthew’s account, we read, “But Jesus came and touched them, saying, ‘Get up and do not be afraid.” (17.7) In other words, Jesus does four things. He comes to them. He touches them; he touches each of the disciples before he said anything. He encourages them to get up while they’re still frightened. And then finally he says: “Do not be afraid.” This fourfold action of coming, touching, raising and empowering is a microcosm of the whole gospel story. Jesus first comes to us in his incarnation. Jesus then touches us in his teaching and healing ministry. And then in his cross and resurrection and in the coming of his Spirit at Pentecost Jesus raises us up and clothes us with power and gives us reason not to be afraid. The whole gospel is in this single verse. (pp xxv and xxvi)

I have lost track of the number of times I have read that passage and the many times I have preached on the feast of the Transfiguration – and this was for me a fresh and empowering interpretation of the text. Much to ponder as I continue to walk.