Meta tags:
description=Posts about pilgrimage written by Sharon Ely Pearson;

Headings (most frequently used words):

share, this, of, pilgrimage, the, archives, reflections, posts, blog, rows, sharon, tag, journey, across, time, and, spirit, sacredness, all, things, walking, pilgrim, way, walls, doors, judean, desert, navigation, thoughts, christian, educator, subscribe, recent, comments, stats,

Text of the page (most frequently used words):
the (120), and (57), new (54), opens (50), window (50), share (47), for (25), this (22), #pilgrimage (22), iona (16), june (15), july (15), email (14), august (13), 2020 (13), from (13), march (12), april (12), february (12), #sharon (11), may (11), 2012 (11), 2013 (11), 2015 (11), 2016 (11), 2019 (11), god (11), was (11), 2010 (10), november (10), 2011 (10), all (10), reddit (10), bluesky (10), threads (10), linkedin (10), print (10), tumblr (10), pinterest (10), facebook (10), our (10), with (10), that (10), october (9), january (9), 2014 (9), 2025 (9), december (8), 2017 (8), journey (8), time (8), like (8), reading (8), jerusalem (8), israel (8), sacred (8), have (7), ely (7), pearson (7), reflections (7), spirituality (7), loading (6), september (6), 2022 (6), link (6), desert (6), world (6), you (6), holy (6), way (6), has (6), earth (6), celtic (6), ancient (6), place (6), other (5), 2021 (5), across (5), prayer (5), more (5), friend (5), continue (5), there (5), can (5), travel (5), about (5), but (5), john (5), christianity (5), scotland (5), comment (4), comments (4), view (4), subscribe (4), rows (4), blog (4), 2018 (4), diplomatic (4), gaslighting (4), sacredness (4), between (4), history (4), out (4), posts (4), judean (4), bus (4), own (4), jericho (4), west (4), back (4), sea (4), being (4), wadi (4), qelt (4), land (4), which (4), two (4), read (4), what (4), when (4), people (4), faith (4), pilgrim (4), life (4), not (4), been (4), philip (4), newell (4), were (4), mull (4), pilgrims (4), another (4), physical (4), island (4), sign (3), already (3), archives (3), living (3), women (3), spirit (3), your (3), christian (3), psalm (3), almost (3), who (3), far (3), years (3), jordan (3), while (3), others (3), see (3), short (3), heart (3), leave (3), past (3), again (3), off (3), well (3), really (3), after (3), would (3), today (3), their (3), palestine (3), both (3), one (3), children (3), books (3), soul (3), they (3), made (3), ireland (3), columba (3), isle (3), thin (3), creation (3), where (3), ferry (3), rain (3), spiritual (3), body (3), required (2), content (2), log (2), subscribed (2), wordpress (2), com (2), join (2), subscribers (2), month (2), self (2), care (2), stones (2), address (2), author (2), educator (2), followed (2), hillside (2), silence (2), hour (2), still (2), those (2), top (2), city (2), below (2), into (2), green (2), only (2), small (2), many (2), midst (2), before (2), changing (2), bank (2), such (2), eventually (2), temptation (2), monastery (2), jesus (2), walls (2), doors (2), relationship (2), know (2), live (2), understand (2), here (2), sunday (2), will (2), posted (2), continues (2), day (2), grow (2), wild (2), grapes (2), love (2), angry (2), called (2), promise (2), old (2), ago (2), church (2), long (2), writing (2), sites (2), visited (2), spiritually (2), around (2), palestinian (2), just (2), thoughts (2), culture (2), walking (2), yourself (2), youth (2), resources (2), formation (2), things (2), wisdom (2), healing (2), religion (2), known (2), centuries (2), rome (2), located (2), empire (2), 563 (2), toward (2), inner (2), hebrides (2), community (2), very (2), glasgow (2), waiting (2), weather (2), something (2), renewal (2), recognized (2), special (2), sky (2), home (2), abbey (2), heaven (2), much (2), essence (2), call (2), movement (2), its (2), come (2), threshold (2), set (2), search (2), quiet (2), curriculum (2), website, name, write, collapse, bar, manage, subscriptions, site, reader, report, privacy, account, now, 526, 2023, select, 229, 505, hits, stats, carolewageman, sarah, jennings, thi, tim, johnjwall526, consolation, lent, darkness, wilderness, public, policy, egoism, nation, cry, recent, 552, enter, receive, notifications, older, navigation, stumbling, dirt, path, gathered, brief, given, reflection, scattered, find, ways, await, sunrise, listen, air, cool, climbed, distance, oldest, dating, 000, 900, feet, level, water, running, pastures, waters, valleys, shadow, comparison, truly, humbling, viewpoint, scopus, easily, vastness, north, leaving, dawn, left, drive, stark, change, scenery, impressive, vegetative, mountainous, urban, landscape, yellow, rocky, scene, instantly, riverine, gulch, once, perhaps, used, individuals, king, david, runs, river, near, dead, mount, bible, complicated, exacerbated, week, visits, congress, desiring, visit, family, npr, news, sources, these, palestinians, muslim, occupied, territories, don, believe, most, americans, happening, how, government, upsetting, precarious, balance, readings, 10th, pentecost, proper, spoke, help, great, sermon, sour, gave, beautiful, vineyard, sweet, cease, divisions, neighbor, weeps, yesterday, luke, isaiah, hebrew, scriptures, light, nations, chosen, technically, abraham, received, his, descendants, offspring, show, right, fallen, covenant, power, rule, tendency, let, leaders, forget, responsibilities, ultimately, leads, division, corruption, testament, times, repeat, itself, recall, role, prophets, kept, calling, months, thirty, episcopal, connecticut, taken, articulate, reactions, feelings, political, climate, regarding, numerous, historically, skirted, reality, experienced, surface, postings, bethlehem, samaria, galilee, princess, basma, centre, occupation, peacebuilders, israeli, settlements, tolerance, ramblings, considered, center, privileged, trip, had, always, dreamed, experience, politically, everyone, able, post, lauren, winner, labyrinth, confirmation, chartres, cathedral, ministry, ministries, adult, preparation, group, sponsored, asked, retreat, leader, begun, title, mouthful, perfect, reawakening, souls, hartford, international, university, peace, illustrious, cradle, common, era, bce, northern, neighbors, greece, description, keltoi, strangers, hidden, ones, gaels, romans, galatia, turkey, galicia, spain, gaul, france, rural, agricultural, lived, closely, nature, few, chose, beyond, roman, grasp, led, mission, thus, establishing, colony, removed, rest, galli, field, thistles, willing, going, southwest, coast, polycarp, pelagius, irenaeus, worth, act, enduring, red, eye, jfk, edinburgh, early, morning, meet, fellow, travelers, pub, evening, plus, uncertain, becomes, metaphor, discovering, husband, 2006, vacation, held, vowed, someday, return, easy, get, twenty, flew, oban, full, boarded, caledonian, macbrayne, bound, winding, through, hills, via, mostly, carried, sound, sight, rising, against, recalled, moment, first, encountered, stepped, luggage, tow, along, hill, nunnery, ruins, fields, flowers, filled, birdsong, hotel, could, feel, anxiety, pattern, daily, recede, overheard, exalt, present, immanent, transcendent, human, divine, breathed, tasted, touched, heard, seen, true, twelve, companions, landed, remote, outcrop, rock, heather, exiled, seeking, build, foundation, established, become, beacon, rhythms, shaped, part, hear, offers, rare, stillness, respite, noise, newsfeeds, technology, rhetoric, anxious, heartbeat, space, reconnect, merely, arrival, destination, crossing, boundaries, every, carries, challenges, fierce, slanting, needles, winds, take, breath, away, getting, touch, bit, endurance, any, searching, discover, wind, sun, seek, some, hungry, lay, down, griefs, too, heavy, bear, alone, gratitude, mark, transition, vocation, letting, comfort, zone, familiar, surroundings, placing, open, unknown, amidst, shifting, blues, grays, stands, geographical, drawn, aura, veil, imagine, layer, tissue, paper, britain, weaves, together, hardship, joys, contemplation, inward, listens, gulls, soaring, overhead, unending, stirrings, journals, road, discernment, tag, ten, needs, eucharist, environmental, worship, baptism, resource, recommendations, editor, skip, menu,

Text of the page (random words):
pilgrimage rows of sharon rows of sharon thoughts of a christian educator menu skip to content about author editor resource recommendations baptism children and worship curriculum for children curriculum for youth environmental resources eucharist faith at home special needs top ten books search for tag archives pilgrimage a journey across time and spirit july 10 2025 christianity discernment on the road again spirituality travel journals celtic spirituality formation iona john philip newell pilgrimage prayer spirituality the iona community travel sharon ely pearson reflections on a pilgrimage to iona a pilgrimage to iona is as much an inward journey as a physical one in the island s quiet the pilgrim listens to the gulls soaring overhead to the sea s unending movement to the stirrings of their own heart the abbey set amidst the shifting blues and grays of scotland s inner hebrides the small island of iona stands as both a geographical and spiritual threshold for centuries pilgrims have been drawn by the island s ancient aura and its promise of renewal it has been called a thin place a veil imagine a layer of tissue paper between heaven and earth a journey to iona is as old as christianity in britain one that weaves together history hardship and the quiet joys of contemplation in creation what do pilgrims seek some come hungry for healing or to lay down griefs too heavy to bear alone others come in gratitude or to mark a threshold a transition in life a new vocation a letting go to set out on a pilgrimage is to leave your comfort zone and familiar surroundings in search of the holy placing yourself open to the unknown for those who hear the call today iona offers a rare stillness a respite from the noise of 24 hour newsfeeds technology angry rhetoric and an anxious heartbeat it is a space to reconnect with the sacred and with the self pilgrimage is not merely arrival to a destination but movement a crossing of boundaries physical and spiritual every pilgrimage carries its challenges for iona it s the weather which can be fierce rain slanting like needles winds that take your breath away for me it was getting back in touch with silence and a bit of physical endurance as with any pilgrimage when searching for god you discover that god is already there waiting for you in earth wind rain sun sky or sea the call of iona in 563 ce st columba and twelve companions landed on this remote outcrop of rock and heather exiled from ireland and seeking a place to build a new foundation of faith there he established a monastery that would become a beacon of christianity a place where the rhythms of prayer shaped the island s heart where god is recognized as part of all creation and the sacred is the essence of our very being in celtic wisdom the sacred is as present on earth as it is in heaven as immanent as it is transcendent as human as it is divine as physical as it is spiritual the sacred can be breathed in tasted touched heard and seen as much in the body of the earth and the body of another living being as in the body of religion it is the true essence of all life john philip newell in sacred earth sacred soul my husband john and i visited iona in 2006 just for a day while on a scotland vacation we recognized that this place held something special and vowed that someday we would return it s not easy to get there but after twenty years in june 2025 we flew to glasgow and made our way to oban on a bus full of pilgrims where we boarded a caledonian macbrayne ferry bound for the isle of mull after winding through mull s wild green hills via another bus mostly in the rain another short ferry carried us across the sound of iona the sight of the abbey s ancient stones rising against the sky recalled that moment years ago when we first encountered this thin place as we stepped off the ferry with luggage in tow along with other pilgrims and made our way up the hill past the nunnery ruins and fields of flowers filled with birdsong to the st columba hotel i could feel the anxiety and pattern of daily life recede as i overheard another pilgrim exalt i am home the very act of travel enduring a red eye out of jfk to edinburgh followed by an early morning bus to glasgow the waiting to meet fellow travelers at a pub that evening plus the uncertain scotland weather becomes a metaphor for the soul s own journey toward discovering something new a renewal continue reading a journey across time and spirit share this share on facebook opens in new window facebook email a link to a friend opens in new window email share on pinterest opens in new window pinterest share on tumblr opens in new window tumblr print opens in new window print share on linkedin opens in new window linkedin share on threads opens in new window threads share on x opens in new window x share on bluesky opens in new window bluesky more share on reddit opens in new window reddit like loading leave a comment the sacredness of all things february 8 2025 books worth reading christianity faith culture spirituality the church care of creation celtic spirituality iona community irenaeus john philip newell pelagius pilgrimage polycarp sacredness sharon ely pearson god willing i will be going on pilgrimage to the isle of iona in june a thin place located in the inner hebrides off the southwest coast of mull in scotland a view from iona in a field of thistles toward the isle of mull iona has a long and illustrious history and is well known as being the cradle of christianity in scotland in the centuries before the common era bce the northern neighbors of ancient greece and rome were known by the description keltoi strangers or hidden ones or gaels galli by the romans they were located in galatia ancient turkey galicia ancient spain and gaul ancient france they were a rural and agricultural people and lived closely to nature they were not an empire like rome a few chose to journey beyond the roman empire s grasp and eventually made their way to ireland in 563 st columba led a celtic mission from ireland to iona thus establishing this celtic colony far removed from the rest of the world in preparation for this pilgrimage our group sponsored by hartford international university for religion and peace has been asked to read two books by our retreat leader john philip newell i ve begun reading sacred earth sacred soul celtic wisdom for reawakening to what our souls know and healing the world the title is a mouthful but this has been a perfect read for a time such as this continue reading the sacredness of all things share this share on facebook opens in new window facebook email a link to a friend opens in new window email share on pinterest opens in new window pinterest share on tumblr opens in new window tumblr print opens in new window print share on linkedin opens in new window linkedin share on threads opens in new window threads share on x opens in new window x share on bluesky opens in new window bluesky more share on reddit opens in new window reddit like loading view all 2 comments walking the pilgrim s way august 19 2020 adult formation children s ministries resources spirituality youth ministry chartres cathedral confirmation labyrinth lauren winner pilgrimage sharon ely pearson there was a time when jerusalem was considered the center of the world in june of 2019 i was privileged to go on pilgrimage to the holy land israel palestine and jordan a trip i had always dreamed of it was a life changing experience both spiritually and politically you can read see for yourself from my post pilgrimage reflections but not everyone is able to travel to jerusalem or other holy sites around the world continue reading walking the pilgrim s way share this share on facebook opens in new window facebook email a link to a friend opens in new window email share on pinterest opens in new window pinterest share on tumblr opens in new window tumblr print opens in new window print share on linkedin opens in new window linkedin share on threads opens in new window threads share on x opens in new window x share on bluesky opens in new window bluesky more share on reddit opens in new window reddit like loading one comment so far pilgrimage reflections walls doors august 19 2019 faith culture thoughts ramblings tolerance holy land israel israeli settlements jerusalem jerusalem peacebuilders palestine palestinian occupation pilgrimage princess basma centre sharon ely pearson two months ago i was in the midst of a pilgrimage to the holy land with thirty others from the episcopal church in connecticut it has taken me that long to articulate in writing my reactions and feelings about the political climate regarding israel and palestine i have already posted numerous reflections on the sites we visited both spiritually and historically but i have skirted around writing about the reality of the palestinian people that i experienced it was just below the surface in all my postings about bethlehem jerusalem samaria and galilee in the hebrew scriptures israel is called to be a light to the nations as a people chosen by god technically abraham received this promise for all his descendants offspring to show the way back to right relationship to god today s israel has fallen short of this covenant power and rule have a tendency to let leaders forget their responsibilities which ultimately leads to division and corruption as in old testament times history continues to repeat itself recall the role of the prophets who kept calling god s people back this past sunday s readings 10th sunday after pentecost proper 15 spoke to me with help from a great sermon which i will link here when it is posted from isaiah 5 1 7 and luke 12 49 56 israel continues to this day to grow be the wild sour grapes while god gave all of us a beautiful vineyard to live in to grow sweet grapes if we would only cease our divisions and love god as well as love our neighbor god is angry jesus weeps yesterday and today the u s and israel have a complicated relationship which was exacerbated this past week with the on again off again visits of two u s congress women desiring to visit family in the west bank you can read about it here from npr as well as many other news sources these two women know what it is like for the palestinians muslim and christian to live in the occupied territories i don t believe most americans really understand what is really happening in israel or how the u s government is upsetting the precarious balance you have to see it to really understand continue reading pilgrimage reflections walls doors share this share on facebook opens in new window facebook email a link to a friend opens in new window email share on pinterest opens in new window pinterest share on tumblr opens in new window tumblr print opens in new window print share on linkedin opens in new window linkedin share on threads opens in new window threads share on x opens in new window x share on bluesky opens in new window bluesky more share on reddit opens in new window reddit like loading leave a comment pilgrimage reflections the judean desert july 19 2019 bible jesus spirituality holy land jericho judean desert monastery of the temptation mount of temptation pilgrimage psalm 23 wadi qelt sharon ely pearson wadi qelt psalm 23 from the viewpoint on mt scopus in jerusalem you can easily see the vastness of the judean desert to the north and west leaving before dawn we left jerusalem for wadi qelt a short drive from the heart of the city the stark change in scenery is impressive changing from a vegetative mountainous urban landscape to a yellow rocky desert scene almost instantly a riverine gulch in the west bank once perhaps used to travel between jericho and jerusalem by individuals such as king david wadi qelt eventually runs into the jordan river near jericho and the dead sea stumbling out of the bus we followed a dirt path up the hillside in silence we gathered for a brief prayer and a reading of psalm 23 given almost an hour for our own time of prayer and reflection we scattered to find our own ways to await the sunrise and listen for god the air still cool for those who climbed up to the top of the hillside far in the distance was jericho to the west the oldest city in the world dating back 10 000 years almost 900 feet below sea level in july there was no water running into the jordan no green pastures no still waters only valleys of shadow and while this is a small desert in comparison to many others in the world being in the midst of it was truly humbling continue reading pilgrimage reflections the judean desert share this share on facebook opens in new window facebook email a link to a friend opens in new window email share on pinterest opens in new window pinterest share on tumblr opens in new window tumblr print opens in new window print share on linkedin opens in new window linkedin share on threads opens in new window threads share on x opens in new window x share on bluesky opens in new window bluesky more share on reddit opens in new window reddit like loading view all 3 comments posts navigation older posts sharon ely pearson author and christian educator subscribe enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email email address sign me up join 552 other subscribers recent posts living between time a journey across time and spirit the stones cry out egoism of nation public policy prayer self care in the wilderness women s history month lent darkness consolation diplomatic gaslighting comments johnjwall526 on living between time a journey across tim on the sacredness of all thi sarah jennings on diplomatic gaslighting sharon ely pearson on diplomatic gaslighting carolewageman on diplomatic gaslighting share this blog share blog stats 229 505 hits archives archives select month december 2025 july 2025 april 2025 march 2025 february 2025 january 2025 june 2023 november 2022 september 2022 july 2022 june 2022 march 2022 february 2022 august 2021 june 2021 may 2021 april 2021 january 2021 december 2020 november 2020 october 2020 september 2020 august 2020 july 2020 june 2020 may 2020 april 2020 march 2020 february 2020 january 2020 october 2019 august 2019 july 2019 june 2019 may 2019 april 2019 march 2019 february 2019 july 2018 may 2018 march 2018 february 2018 december 2017 november 2017 october 2017 august 2017 july 2017 may 2017 april 2017 february 2017 december 2016 november 2016 october 2016 august 2016 july 2016 june 2016 may 2016 april 2016 march 2016 february 2016 january 2016 december 2015 november 2015 october 2015 september 2015 august 2015 july 2015 june 2015 april 2015 march 2015 february 2015 january 2015 november 2014 august 2014 july 2014 june 2014 may 2014 april 2014 march 2014 february 2014 january 2014 december 2013 november 2013 october 2013 august 2013 july 2013 june 2013 may 2013 april 2013 march 2013 february 2013 january 2013 december 2012 november 2012 october 2012 september...