Filter menu

Sort

A Pilgrimage to Canterbury for the beginning of Lent 2026
&nbsp;

It was at school, doing my O levels in the late ‘70s, that I first came across the Canterbury Tales. I studied the Prologue and the wonderful Nun's Priest's tale of Chanticleer, a vain and silly cockerel,&nbsp; his sensible wife Pertelote and a sly fox. It was a great introduction to the poetry of Geoffrey Chaucer, and to the activity of making a pilgrimage.&nbsp;

Some years ago, as a young family, we walked the Saint James’ Camino from Northern Portugal to Santiago de Compostela in Spanish Galicia. Pilgrimage is a bug. Once you've got it in your system, it's always there. I have long been thinking about making the pilgrimage from London to Canterbury; this year I had promised myself (and the Archdeacon) to make a retreat; why not spend my retreat walking prayerfully in the footsteps of so many making pilgrimage to the shrine of St Thomas Becket?

Becket is an interesting person. He was appointed Chancellor (effectively First Minister) and then Archbishop by Henry II who wanted a friend and counselor who would see things his way and take the king's part. Appointing Thomas was already an abuse of power. But once Thomas was ordained and in post the story shifted in ways the king never expected. Thomas spoke for the rights of the Church, not the wishes of the king and they were often at loggerheads until Henry, in frustration, said the fateful words ‘Will no one rid me of this meddlesome priest?’ Four loyal knights of King Henry heard this outburst and set off to Canterbury bent on murder. More abuse of power and influence in public life. A pilgrimage for peace and against abuse of power seemed a good use of my pre-Lent retreat, given the news from both sides of the Atlantic in early 2026.

So on Monday 16 February I set off from home, through Greenwich, up onto Blackheath and then up to the top of Shooter's Hill. I expected this to be a hard slog, but was buoyed up by people who stopped me to talk, and wished me a good pilgrimage (I wore my pilgrim's shell throughout the walk, so there wasn't any doubt what I was doing). From Shooter's Hill I walked to the Thames at Erith where in the 1930s my grandfather (also Thomas) began his ministry as a curate. I know Erith Reach from the deck of my boat. It was new to me as a walker.&nbsp;

The route takes you east along the riverside and then through an ugly industrial estate to the mouth of the River Darent, as it joins the Thames. This is a favorite place of mine to watch seals from my boat; but again unfamiliar as a footpath. I was to walk along the Darent for the rest of the afternoon and most of Tuesday. It is beautiful, first as a wild navigable creek and then as a twisting chalk stream. Because of the rain since January the river was in spate, but that only added to its loveliness. I ended Monday in Dartford, and would begin to walk again from there on Tuesday morning.

&nbsp;

When you walk the Camino to Santiago you have a Pilgrim's Passport to collect rubber stamps which prove you have put in the miles. When you reach the shrine of St James you present this record of your journey and you get a certificate. Pilgrims’ passports for British routes are now available from cathedral bookshops and online. The only issue is that cafes, pubs and hotels don't always have a stamp, and then you have to be creative. But the Bull and Royal Victoria Hotel in Dartford had a super stamp. This is an old galleried coaching inn which has always welcomed pilgrims, but also Jane Austen and Queen Victoria.&nbsp;

From Dartford I walked to South Darenth where Joseph Cubitt built an amazing brick viaduct, then up the valley to Lullington Castle which shields the parish church within the castle walls. The churchwardens there were changing the hangings to purple for Lent, but they were happy to stop and chat. Better than that, they had a stamp! I probably stayed too long - my target was Wrotham which was still five or six miles away. It was a tired pilgrim that finally reached the station there as it grew dark.

On Wednesday I had arranged to walk with Andrew Camping from Wrotham to Halling on the banks of the River Medway. Andrew has been walking the Santiago Camino in stages for many years - a real inspiration to me. His happy banter about music, the Church of England, pilgrimage and his career as a teacher helped me to ignore my tired legs and a blistered foot. This leg of the journey was just how I imagine the Pilgrim's Way: paths worn&nbsp; like tunnels through the trees as they hugged the North Downs. But the walking was muddy in parts and piercingly cold all morning. We were glad of our lunch in Halling before returning to the Isle of Dogs for the Ash Wednesday service.

&nbsp;

On Thursday I was on my own again, walking from Halling to Aylesford. The route took me across the river near the ruins of the Bishop of Rochester's country palace, then to ‘the lonely church’&nbsp; at Burham, and then on past a solar farm and through a water treatment works. Finally I reached the Carmelite Friars’ shrine at Aylesford, which again had a good stamp. Aylesford Friary was redeveloped for pilgrims by Adrian Gilbert Scott who also was the architect of St Mary and St Joseph's church, Poplar.&nbsp;

Aylesford felt like the right place to break off from my pilgrimage and to recover from the blisters before going back to it at a later date. The path will take me south east to Ashford and then north east to Canterbury. My last task on this leg was to visit the shrine of St William of Perth. William was a baker, and one of the many Scottish pilgrims to Canterbury. He was murdered for his purse leaving the grounds of Rochester Cathedral, and was buried by the monks in the north aisle there. His shrine was associated with many healing miracles. He is pictured in one of the stained glass windows with his pilgrim's shell, his pilgrim's hat and his scrip or pilgrim's purse. I was glad I went on this detour - William’s sad but inspiring story reminded me of why I felt the need to walk in the first place, for peace in the world and wisdom in the hearts of those who have power.

Fr. Tom

A person hiking with a backpack and walking stick on a dirt path.

Parish of the Isle of Dogs

A Pilgrimage to Canterbury for the beginning of Lent 2026



It was at school, doing my O levels in the late ‘70s, that I first came across the Canterbury Tales. I studied the Prologue and the wonderful Nun's Priest's tale of Chanticleer, a vain a...

A Pilgrimage to Canterbury for the beginning of Lent 2026

Hello, Have you given up anything for Lent yet? Be careful, I gave up meat for Lent nearly 40 years ago and haven't eaten it since!
If you think giving up meat, chocolate, wine etc. for nearly seven weeks is hard , spare a thought for the Christians from previous centuries who had a much harder time of it. The word Lent comes from Lencten, the Old English/German word for Spring or the Lengthening of Days. In the early days of the Church the forty days before Easter was a time of preparation, with fasting , prayer and alms giving. That period called Quadragesima (Fortieth) was used in the 4th Century by the Council of Nicaea in 325AD recognising Jesus's forty days in the desert. In consequence this period of fasting became the rule for most religious houses like monasteries, abbeys, convents and churches. Saint Thomas Aquinas made a list of forbidden foods and actions during Lent. Lent was tough in the Middle Ages...

1) Ash Wednesday and Good Friday were Black Fasts (no food at all).

2) Water was allowed, but because of the dubious purity of the water most people drank light beer(ale) or wine watered down!

3) No animal meat, fats or oils.

4) No eggs

5) No dairy, no milk, cream, butter cheese or yogurt.

The Lenten diet consisted of bread, vegetables and salt, with fish allowed if it was available. Not much different from the regular diet eaten by the poor. Many religious houses had their own fishponds or altered the course of streams to enable them to have a source of fish. Some used small rivers or streams to drive mills to grind the wheat,rye or barley to make bread. The food was normally eaten in one meal normally after sunset or Vespers, a time of prayer in monasteries. The meal began to be eaten earlier in the day, at Nones roughly 3pm. This was held as the time Jesus died and thus more holy. It must have been hard only to have the one sparse meal and gradually the Nones meal was eaten earlier at midday giving the new time Noon.

&nbsp;In 900 AD German Catholics were allowed to consume dairy products in return for payments and good works, like extending Church buildings;&nbsp; this was known as 'Butterbriefe'. Many Churches were partially built by the proceeds of such exemptions. One of the steeples of Rouen Cathedral in France is known as the Butter Tower.

This general prohibition of eggs and milk is perpetuated in the custom of blessing or making gifts of eggs at Easter, and the English custom of making pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, to use up the eggs and milk before Lent began the next day. Shrove Tuesday gets its name from people making confessions and being forgiven or Shriven of their sins.

The using up of meat, fats milk etc. was given the name Mardi Gras in France. I it means Fat Tuesday - today it sort of means a party atmosphere and was an excuse for a bit of light partying ,eating food that would not be allowed until Easter. Likewise in Italy, notably Venice, there is a period of Carnival activity until Ash Wednesday. The word Carnival is a derivative of Carne Vale 'Goodbye to Meat' again making a party connection before the solemnity of Ash Wednesday.

Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent. In our Church the Palm Crosses from the year before are burnt to fine ash. During the Mass the congregation comes forward to have the sign of the Cross put on their foreheads and they are told to remember they are dust and to dust they will return. This is called the Imposition of Ashes you can wash it off easily, but sometimes I used to get funny looks going home on the bus. However you spend Lent, think about actions that will help others, instead of giving up something you like for seven weeks, donate the money you would have spent on chocolate etc. to a good cause. This is a positive act of almsgiving, so eat the chocolate and the butter, but pray more and try to do good deeds. Perhaps Butterbriefe is a good idea; give it a go.&nbsp;

Barbara Liddell.

Three wooden sticks arranged to form a stylized, overlapping cross pattern against a green background.

Hello, Have you given up anything for Lent yet? Be careful, I gave up meat for Lent nearly 40 years ago and haven't eaten it since!

If you think giving up meat, chocolate, wine etc. for nearly seven weeks is hard , spare a thought for the Christi...

Lent Traditions and Church Teaching

Last Sunday&nbsp; in church we celebrated Candlemas&nbsp; or the Presentation of Christ in the Temple. After explaining the significance of Christ being recognised as the 'Promised One' by Simeon and Anna, Father Tom made a special candle with the help of the Sunday School children. The children behaved impeccably, and thank Heaven all went well even with the dangers of boiling water, hot wax and a gas burner. Fr. Tom was very safety conscious. We had a Fire Marshall in attendance and the congregation had taken part in a Fire Drill the week before. Our lovely newly made candle signifying&nbsp; the risen Jesus Christ 'The Light of the World' will be the first one lit at the Early Mass of Easter morning. Fr. Tom will then light the tall Easter or Paschal Candle and call "The Light of Christ " and every candle&nbsp; will be lit, bathing the whole church in the Glorious Triumph of the Resurrection! It is so moving ,a truly wonderful experience.
I am writing this article on February 3rd, the saint's day of St. Blaise who has connections with candles.&nbsp; So I thought I would write about this saint who is famous all over the world. His saint's day is celebrated by the Eastern Church on February 11th. Blaise was a doctor, born in Sébaste, Armenia (now part of Turkey), he was a pious man and was elected to be a Bishop. Legend has it that he not only healed people but animals that were sick, even wild animals!&nbsp;
In 316 Agricola the governor of Cappadocia (also in Turkey) was ordered to kill Christians by the emperor Licinius. Blaise was arrested, but as he was being taken to gaol, a mother whose only son was choking on a fish bone set him at Blaise's feet and begged him to cure the boy. Blaise blessed him and he was cured instantly.&nbsp;
The governor, unable to make Blaise renounce his faith, beat him with a stick and ordered that his flesh be torn by huge metal combs similar to those used for carding or combing sheep's wool. After ripping his flesh they beheaded Blaise.

Stories of&nbsp; cures associated with St Blaise in his lifetime abounded, one being about a wolf that had seized a pig to devour it. The lady owner of the pig beseeched Blaise to save her pig. Blaise rebuked the wolf and it let the pig go. Later when Blaise was in prison she brought tall candles to his cell to bring light to the darkness of the dismal place.&nbsp;
Stories like these were told all over the world, and harking back to the cure of the fish bone, a ritual called the Blessing of St. Blaise is still performed today. Two tall candles blessed at Candlemas are held crossed over the throat of a believer and sometimes the throat is touched or the sign of the Cross is made above the person hoping to be cured or protected.

The following Blessing is said, "Through the intercession of Saint Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, may God deliver you from every disease of the throat and from every other&nbsp; illness. In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen" Sometimes people who have been blessed wear a red ribbon around their necks for 9 days after.&nbsp;
Saint Blaise is known as St. Biagio in Italy, Sveti Blaz in Croatia (Dubrovnik's Patron Saint) , St. Blassius in Iceland,&nbsp; Germany and Jersey, and Sao Bras in Goa, India. He is depicted holding two candles and steel combs. He is called upon to help people with sore throats and even sleep apnoea!

Multiple relics are claimed for St. Blaise including several whole bodies, at least 4 heads, 8 arms and several jaws and so on; if they gave people comfort and hope perhaps even a small bit of him could be real.&nbsp;
There is a small church dedicated to St. Blaise near our village in Brittany and the former owners of our house were called Blaise. Some years ago I remember the late Father Tom Keighley performing the Blessing of St. Blaise here in our church.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Barbara Liddell.

Two rolled-up white papers tied together with a red ribbon.

Last Sunday in church we celebrated Candlemas or the Presentation of Christ in the Temple. After explaining the significance of Christ being recognised as the 'Promised One' by Simeon and Anna, Father Tom made a special candle with the help of the...

St Blaise

Over the years; there has been a history of far right groups seeking to intimidate our neighbours by marching through parts of Tower Hamlets. 90 years ago, it was our Jewish neighbours on Cable Street that were targeted.&nbsp;More recently, it has been our Muslim neighbours on the Whitechapel Road. Each time, local Christians have stood against such marches - not despite our faith, but because of it. The attempt by the far right to brand this event a “walk with Jesus” is a disturbing attempt to hijack the Gospel to allow such a march to pass.&nbsp;Christians in Tower Hamlets hold a public walk with Jesus every Palm Sunday. Thousands of us take part, in neighbourhoods across the borough. Each year, our Muslim neighbours have greeted us with warmth, friendship and respect when we have been walking. Those bonds of trust flow from the fact that we work together to build a common life, even as we hold to our distinct religious beliefs and practices. A good example of this work together is happening on Cable Street right now - where churches and mosques are at the heart of a struggle to hold politicians to promises for the affordable housing that is urgently needed by people of all faiths and none.&nbsp;On Palm Sunday, we remember that Jesus - our true Lord and King - came not on a horse with might, but on a donkey in humility and joy. We remember that he poured out his life for the world, and loved even those who crucified him. That is what it means to walk with Jesus.&nbsp;As we prepare for Palm Sunday 2026 on the 29th March, there is an invitation to everyone in Tower Hamlets who is interested in walking with Jesus to come to our churches to learn more about who he really is - and why walking with him involves loving our neighbours and working with them to challenge injustice.&nbsp;Fr Angus Richie

A painting depicts Jesus riding a donkey, surrounded by a crowd of people.

Over the years; there has been a history of far right groups seeking to intimidate our neighbours by marching through parts of Tower Hamlets. 90 years ago, it was our Jewish neighbours on Cable Street that were targeted.

More recently, it has bee...

A Pilgrimage to Canterbury for the beginning of Lent 2026

Lent Traditions and Church Teaching

St Blaise

Really walking with Jesus