Catholic League Pilgrimages
early Pilgrimages to Walsingham 1926-31
Together with the League of Our Lady, The Catholic League provided
the earliest framework of regular group pilgrimages to the restored
Shrine. What follows are all the reports of CL pilgrimages in their journal The
Messenger from 1926. The pilgrimage in 1926 was made by a group of
priests, and the first general pilgrimage was made in the following year. These
great early pilgrimages are brought vividly to life here.
These extracts, from a bound volume lent us by a pilgrim, are reproduced
here by kind permission of the Director of the Catholic League.
Messenger 50: 1926
PRIESTS’ PILGRIMAGE TO WALSINGHAM
A pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham will be made by a number of C.L. priests on
Whit Monday to Wednesday, as an act of Reparation for the insults offered to our Blessed Lord and His
Mother by the heresies of Modernism and as an act of Intercession for Catholic reunion. This place,
once the principal Shrine of Our Lady in England, with its copy of the Holy House of Loretto, and a goal
of pilgrimage for all W. Christendom, is under its Vicar, Fr Hope Patten and with the cooperation of the
L.O.L. becoming once again a home of devotion to which hundreds go every year as pilgrims. The site
of the old Shrine in the Abbey is now, alas, but a green sward in the grounds of a lay owner, but a
beautiful figure of Our Lady of Walsingham, copied from an ancient seal depicting the image burnt by
impious hands at the great Pillage, is set in the Church and perpetually venerated. We hope that this
pilgrimage will lead to the organisation of a C.L. pilgrimage open to all members later on.
Messenger 52: 1927
PILGRIMAGES
Members of the League are invited to join in the C.L. Pilgrimage to Our Lady of Walsingham. It has
been arranged that the pilgrims leave London on Whit-Tuesday, meeting first for Mass at St Magnus’. It
involves sleeping two nights at Walsingham and returning by midday Thursday.
A wonderful work has been done by Father Hope Patten and his coadjutors in this old-world village to revive the
ancient devotion to Our Lady. A replica of the old image, burned at Chelsea in the great pillage of the sixteenth
century times of horror, forms a shrine in the transept of the beautiful parish Church. We are able to visit the
mediæval Slipper Chapel and the ruins of the old Abbey where, alas! only the site of the ancient wooden House of
Mary built in imitation of the House at Nazareth can now be found, and also the three wells in the Abbey grounds,
so long a scene of miraculous answers to prayer, and recently blessed in no small measure.
The pilgrimages are very well organised, with beautiful services and a torchlight procession, and no one who can
possibly come should miss this opportunity of helping to make again this shrine a centre of fervent piety and
widespread influence for the conversion of England.
Messenger 54: 1927
FIRST C.L. PILGRIMAGE TO WALSINGHAM
A Pilgrimage is being arranged for members of the League to this once famous and beloved shrine of Our Lady in
Norfolk. It is our wish to do our part in the revival of devotion at this holy place that once more it may be a fervent
centre of true religion. The League of Our Lady has led the way in this revival and has two pilgrimages this year.
The pilgrimages are well ordered under the inspiration of Father Hope Patten, and include a visit to the site of the
old “House of Mary” in the Abbey ruins. To see the reverent crowd there and at the ancient Wells of healing amidst
the remnants of the Monastery is to see the wonderful life again springing in the English Church amid the ruins of
the Reformation. The old village Church with its beautiful replica of the ancient image of Our Lady of Walsingham
and the warm welcome from the villagers, such a large proportion of whom are practising Catholics; the pilgrim
hostel of Our Lady, Star of the Sea, maintained by the good Sisters from Horbury, hard by the cottages many of
which are the old pilgrim hostels adapted; all these are unforgettable in inspiring memories.
The pilgrims leave London at 3,00 on Whit-Tuesday after Mass in St Magnus’ at 12.15 and stay until midday on
Thursday after Whitsun. The inclusive charge for fares and lodging and board is £2.13.6 Full particulars from Miss E
Few, C.L. Office.
Messenger 58: 1928
PILGRIMAGE OF OUR LADY OF WALSINGHAM
The Second C.L. Pilgrimage to this ancient shrine will be made from Tuesday, June 19th to the 21st, under the direction
of Fr Fynes-Clinton. The order of Pilgrimage is –
Tues 12.15 Sung Mass and Blessing of Pilgrims in St Magnus’, (Monument Station).
3.00 Leave King’s Cross, motor from Fakenham to Walsingham.
7.15 First visit to Shrine, Sol. Vespers, Address and Confessions.
Wed 7.00 High Mass and Low Masses. 10.30 Stations. Visit Pilgrim (“Slipper”) Chapel at Houghton in the Dale.
3.00 Rosary Procession from Church to Site of Holy House in the Abbey grounds. Prayers at the Holy Wells.
7.30 Sol. Vespers and outdoor Procession.
Thurs 8.00 Holy Communion. 10.15 Last Address and Mass.
12.30 Leave: Arrive King’s Cross 4.30 pm
All meals at the Hospice of Our Lady, Star of the Sea.
We hope that as many members, especially Priests, as possible will join this Pilgrimage. The development of
Walsingham into a centre once more of Faith and Devotion is of vital importance to the Catholic Counter-reformation,
and the League must do all it can to foster it. All Catholics are welcome to join in this Pilgrimage.
The charge inclusive of fares, board and lodging, is £2.12.6. Pilgrims coming by other routes are charged £1.6.0
exclusive of fares.
The C.L. Fraternity of Our Lady de Salve Regina, in St Magnus’ Church has presented a large votive Candle to the
Shrine at Walsingham, and the Pilgrimage Association there has presented one to the Fraternity Shrine in token of our
common Devotion and the mutual sympathy and prayers that are we hope a growing bond between the peaceful
country shrine and the church in the heart of the hurrying City, from the Altar of which the Pilgrimages regularly start.
Messenger 59: 1928
C.L. PILGRIMAGE TO WALSINGHAM
The C.L. Pilgrimage to Walsingham was this year from June 19th to 21st and although this time was not so suitable to
members as the date of last year (Whit week) and the attendance therefore somewhat smaller, those Priests and
layfolk taking part felt that there was the true Catholic atmosphere both devotional and social of a great pilgrimage.
The arrangements throughout were excellent and we must thank our C.L. Pilgrimage Secretary, Miss Few and also Miss
Lloyd, the Secretary of the Walsingham Pilgrimages, for their every attention to our wants.
Walsingham is rapidly becoming a Catholic centre, and English Catholics must strive to the utmost to bring to England
the old times when thousands and thousands of Pilgrims visited “The Holy Land of Walsingham” each year. The Shrine
in the ages of Faith was as great a centre of Devotion to Our Lady as Lourdes in proportion to the means of travel of
those days and as well known throughout Europe. This year there are no less than seven “Great Pilgrimages,” and it is
to be hoped that next year there will be at least one every week. Then truly England will become once more “Our
Lady’s Dowry” in its full meaning.
Our Pilgrimage started with Mass and the Blessing of Pilgrims at St Magnus’ by London Bridge, and those of us who
came from London caught the 3 o’clock from King’s Cross and on arrival at Fakenham cars were waiting to take us the
five miles to Walsingham Church, where we met other Pilgrims from all parts. Met by the Rector at the doors, we
immediately paid a first visit to the shrine which is in the Chapel of the Church where the Blessed Sacrament is
reserved. One of the great lessons brought before us is the close union of devotion to Our Lady with the Blessed
Sacrament, and throughout the Pilgrimage this thought is very much brought to the front. After this supper is served at
the Hospice of Our Lady Star of the Sea, kept by Sisters of St Peter’s, Horbury, and everything is exceedingly well
arranged.
The Pilgrimage was under the direction of Fr Fynes-Clinton, who based his addresses on the first Pilgrimage to our
Lady: that of the Shepherds at Bethlehem. Then followed the first Vespers in Church and Confessions. In the morning
there were High Mass well sung and served by the Choir and Servers of the village, and Masses said by all the Priests
on the Pilgrimage. Stations of the Cross, followed by a visit to Houghton St Giles’ and the Slipper Chapel there,
occupied the morning. The Slipper Chapel is so called, because here, about a mile from Walsingham the Pilgrims in the
olden times used to take off their shoes and complete the journey barefoot. In the afternoon the central act of the
Pilgrimage took place. A Rosary procession through the village to the site of the original Shrine, alas, now in ruins. This
was in the Abbey of Walsingham, and was known throughout the world as “England’s Nazareth,” and was chosen by
Our Lady herself who appeared in a vision to Lady Richeldis in 1061 and directed that a Chapel, after the model of the
Holy House at Nazareth, should be built in honour of the Mystery of the Incarnation. As a proof of this vision healing
waters suddenly burst forth in the meads. The visit to the site of the House is followed by one to these wells and the
Pilgrims drink of the waters, and any sufferers are bathed with the water. In the evening Solemn Vespers are followed
by a Procession in the Churchyard and Devotions and the Pilgrimage closes the next morning with Mass, Communion
and a last Address.
The date of next year’s C.L. Pilgrimage has been fixed at the same season as last year, Whit-week, when we hope that
a very large gathering of members and friends will be made. Book the dates now, Whit-Tuesday to Thursday.
Messenger 62: 1929
PILGRIMAGE OF OUR LADY OF WALSINGHAM
The Third C.L. Pilgrimage to this Shrine, the greatest of mediæval England and pearl of “Our Lady’s Dowry,” will be led
by Fr Fynes-Clinton on Whit Tuesday. The order of Pilgrimage is –
Tues 12.15 Sung Mass and Blessing of Pilgrims in St Magnus’, (Monument Station).
3.00 Leave King’s Cross, motor from Fakenham to Walsingham.
7.15 First visit to Shrine, Sol. Vespers, Address and Confessions.
Wed 7.00 High Mass and Low Masses. 10.30 Stations. Visit Pilgrim (“Slipper”) Chapel at Houghton in the Dale.
3.00 Rosary Procession from Church to Site of Holy House in the Abbey grounds. Prayers at the Holy Wells.
7.30 Sol. Vespers and outdoor Procession.
Thurs 8.00 Holy Communion. 10.15 Last Address and Mass.
12.30 Leave: Arrive King’s Cross 4.30 pm
All meals at the Hospice of Our Lady, Star of the Sea.
We hope that as many members, especially Priests, as possible will join this Pilgrimage. The development of
Walsingham into a centre once more of Faith and Devotion is of vital importance to the Catholic Counter-reformation,
and the League must do all it can to foster it. All Catholics are welcome to join in this Pilgrimage.
The charge inclusive of fares, board and lodging, is £2.12.6. Pilgrims coming by other routes are charged £1.6.0,
exclusive of fares.
The C.L. Tabernacle Treasury, formed by the alms of our members, has given a Crown for the Ciborium at Exposition in
the Church of Walsingham, and this will be presented during the Pilgrimage.
Messenger 63: 1929
THE WALSINGHAM PILGRIMAGE
Our third Annual League Pilgrimage took place from Whitsun Tuesday to Thursday and was attended by some 55
persons including several priests. We hope to make Whitsun week the regular annual season for our Pilgrimage.
Those members who cannot come at this time would be very welcome at those organised by the League of Our Lady
in May and August annually.
No one who takes part can fail to enjoy the time spent and also to rejoice that this shrine is becoming each year
better known and loved and draws an increasing number of Mary’s children. In these days, when the Bishop of
Birmingham delights to insult our Blessed Mother, (which all Catholics must take as worse than a personal insult to
themselves) the work of reparation and of propagation of the Faith can be done in a very real and most powerful way
by promoting these pilgrimages. The usual programme was followed under the direction of Fr Fynes-Clinton, but we
sadly missed the presence of the Rector, Father Hope Patten, who was ill. Fr Wodehouse of St Paul’s, Oxford, preached
and Bishop O'Rorke, formerly Bishop of Accra, kindly pontificated at Vespers and received us afterwards in the
Refectory.
A priest, non-member, who took part writes as follows:-
The director said we had come to give honour and worship to God through the veneration of Mary, whose name had
been for so long associated with this place and whose powerful intercession had won so many blessings for our
forefathers. He touched on the social pleasure of a pilgrimage. We had come to be happy together in the home of our
Mother, the place which she chose, and by our love and devotion to offer some small measure of reparation for the
insults offered by English people in the time of the Reformation. It did not, like a Retreat, take us out of everyday life
and sanctify our holidays and friendships with the remembrance of God, of Mary our Mother, and the Saints our
friends. It was the work of God the Holy Ghost to take of the things of Christ and show them unto us. Amongst the
things He had shown to the Church was the love and constant intercession of Mary, and at her shrine we were
conscious of a renewed and enlarged perception of spiritual things. The impressions left upon me who shared the
Pilgrimage are as follows:-
First, the perfection of the arrangements, and the smoothness of their working. Everything possible was done to
eliminate distractions and to minister to the bodily and spiritual needs of the pilgrims. The devotions were sufficient to
maintain the spiritual level, but no so numerous or prolonged as to cause fatigue, and the points of interest were
brought into notice in such a way as to furnish constantly a fresh stimulus to devotion. The Pilgrimage was
psychologically right.
Secondly, there was a marked absence of extravagance or self-consciousness. The writer must confess that when
urged by a friend to join in the pilgrimage, he asked, with a remembrance of certain services which he had attended,
whether there were likely to be many cranks in the party. There were none. The party was a happy family, and there
was nothing extravagant as to devotion or attire to be seen. Devotion seemed to come easily in such surroundings,
but it was a happy, quiet devotion; and there was, I think, a common perception of the nearness of the spiritual
world, and of the love and intercessions of Our Lady and the Saints. The Social side of the gathering was all that could
be desired; there was no one dull, and no one boisterous; no cliques and no neglect; lively conversation without
scandal, keen arguments without heat. One believed that here were manifested more plainly than is common the
fruits of the Spirit whose coming we were celebrating.
Thirdly, there was feeling that we were engaged in a work which might bring vast benefits to the Church in this land.
It was a work of reparation. The Conductor more than once spoke of “our forefathers” as guilty of throwing down the
holy images and defacing the painted figures of the Saints. The work of reparation is peculiarly our own. No others,
however orthodox or devout, can make expiation for deeds done by Englishmen and sons of the English Church. We
felt and hoped that the work would grow and that thousands and tens of thousands hereafter would stand where we
stood and make their offering of sorrow for the shameful past. That there were abuses connected with the shrines of
Our Lady and the Saints no one doubts; but that with the abuses should be swept away all veneration, all loving
appeals, finally all perception of Sainthood, what Christian could approve? Not Erasmus, with all his satire; not the
country people of England who often frequented the holy shrines and mourned what seemed the ruthless banishment
of their friends and intercessors.
One sentence spoken by Fr Fynes-Clinton seemed to find an echo in the hearts of many. He said these pilgrimages
might do more for English religion than Congresses and meetings. No Catholic, of course, would disparage the
immense value of the Anglo-Catholic Congresses in arousing enthusiasm and imparting instruction. But it is the fact
that English religion – sometimes even that of Anglo-Catholics – tends to be cold and rather rationalistic, with a weak
sense of the supernatural. At Walsingham everything tends to increase and foster belief in the reality and powers of
the spiritual world. Here one might well realise for the first time how warm and intimate our relations with that world
can be, and how the dwellers in it, from the Blessed Mother downwards, are concerned with our sorrows and
struggles, and love to help us with their intercessions. This quickened perception reacts upon devotion in other ways,
and nowhere has the writer been so vividly conscious of the presence and love of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament as
when here at the Shrine of Mary. Many gracious and marvellous things has God done for the Church in this land
during the last hundred years. It may be that the revival of pilgrimage, in spreading abroad the perception of spiritual
realities and powers, will prove to be the greatest of His blessings.
GIFT TO WALSINGHAM CHURCH
During the Pilgrimage a Crown to enhance the dignity of the Pyx at Exposition was presented by Mr Fisher, the
General Secretary, as a gift from the Tabernacle Treasury. This Fund exists for the purpose of making grants for the
adornment of Tabernacles or giving Monstrances, etc., where the Holy Sacrament is duly adored. In these times when
we owe so much Reparation for the outrages offered to the Blessed Sacrament Reserved, members may be glad to
know of this way of adding to the external worship that should be so greatly increased.
Father Hope Patten kindly writes:
“The Crown is most effective and everyone seems so pleased with it. We are using it for service constantly, and so the
C.L. is represented every time. Please thank the League very much and tell them how disappointed I was in not being
able to be with them on their pilgrimage.”
Messenger 66: 1930
THE WALSINGHAM PILGRIMAGE
The fourth C.L. Pilgrimage to this wonderful shrine will be made from Tuesday to Thursday of Whit-week. Full
particulars can be obtained from the Pilgrimage Secretary at C.L. Office. Every member should resolve to offer the
devotion and witness of this Pilgrimage at least once in reparation for the wrongs to Our Lady perpetrated in this age
of unbelief, and intercession for the triumph of the Faith of our land. Director: Fr Fynes-Clinton
The order of Pilgrimage is –
Tues 12.15 Sung Mass and Blessing of Pilgrims in St Magnus’, (Monument Station).
3.00 Leave King’s Cross, Motor from Fakenham to Walsingham.
7.15 First visit to Shrine, Sol. Vespers, Address and Confessions.
Wed 7.00 High Mass and Low Masses. 10.30 Stations. Visit Pilgrim (“Slipper”) Chapel at Houghton in the Dale.
3.00 Rosary Procession from Church to Site of Holy House in the Abbey grounds. Prayers at the Holy Wells.
7.30 Sol. Vespers and outdoor Procession.
Thurs 8.00 Holy Communion. 10.15 Last Address and Mass.
12.30 Leave: Arrive King’s Cross 4.30 pm
All meals at the Hospice of Our Lady, Star of the Sea.
The inclusive cost of fares from London, board and lodging is £2/12/6. A Manual of Prayers and information for the
Pilgrimage can be had for 1/6. Applications for room should be made as soon as possible to the Pilgrimage Secretary,
St Magnus’, Lower Thames Street, E.C.3.
Messenger 67: 1930
THE PILGRIMAGE TO WALSINGHAM
Walsingham is the ancient National Shrine of Mary in England, and was known throughout Europe as England’s
Nazareth. The Sanctuary was founded by a lady named Richeldis in the reign of St Edward the Confessor about the
year 1061. Walsingham became the goal of countless pilgrims seeking to honour the Incarnation of our Lord and to
obtain the prayers of his blessed Mother. The chief object of veneration was a small house or chapel, the original one
began by Richeldis and transported by supernatural power to another site a good many paces distant. In this House
was the image of the Mother of God known as Our Lady of Walsingham. Near by, and like the Holy House all under
cover of the Abbey Church, were the Holy Wells which had sprung up when the Holy House was removed. In these
miraculous waters pilgrims who had bodily disease bathed. The powerful intercession of Mary at Walsingham was
signalized by countless miracles in that place from the time of the foundation of the Shrine until its destruction by
Henry VIII in the 16th century. From that time until recently the fame of Walsingham dwindled and almost expired.
The religious houses, notably the Abbey Church itself, were destroyed. The village forgot its erstwhile fame and
prosperity and became insignificant and poor. Yet it is certain that during all those dark ages Walsingham was not
forgotten, but that from time to time pilgrims made their way thither to make what reparation they could for the
sacrilege and desecration that had overtaken the once-famous and holy Shrine. Some nine or ten years ago devotion
to Our Lady of Walsingham flamed afresh under the inspiration and effort of the Rev. A. Hope Patten, who became
vicar of the parish church. Not only was this pre-Reformation building repaired and made beautiful for Catholic
worship once more, but the special devotion to Our Lady of Walsingham was restored within its walls. From the title-
deed seals in the British Museum artists recovered the likeness of the ancient image of Mary and Jesus. A new image
so fashioned was placed in the Lady Chapel of the parish church. Then pilgrims began to come, few at first, and then
in large numbers. One of the ancient hostelries was purchased for the Pilgrimage Association and put into comfortable
condition for the entertainment of modern pilgrims. It is in charge of Sisters of the Community of St Peter, Horbury, as
the Hospice of our Lady Star of the Sea. Now there are two other hostels of SS Michael and George and of St
Augustine.
In Whitsun Week this year it was my privilege as an American Priest to go to Walsingham with the Catholic League
and Yorkshire Pilgrimage. We went on Whit Tuesday, June 10th. There were three groups to come. The largest, led by
Fr Fynes-Clinton, came from London. Fr Ferrier and Fr Orr brought the Yorkshire pilgrims: I came with the group from
St Paul’s, Oxford, with Fr Roger Wodehouse. In all there were about seventy.
The late afternoon sun flooded the Vale of Stiffkey, the holy land of Walsingham, when we gathered for the first formal
act of our pilgrimage outside the church were the Shrine now is. The London Pilgrims were the last to arrive, but as
soon as they did, led by Fr Fynes-Clinton, the Director of the Pilgrimage, we entered the church in procession singing
the Litany of Loreto in Latin. That moment gave the keynote to the whole Pilgrimage. The pilgrims united in that
procession coalesced at once into a spiritual family. Joy and peace, two notable fruits of the spirit, took possession of
us all. Devotion inspired our hearts. Henceforth the spirit of prayer and gaiety came down upon us.
After our first visit, we returned to the Hospice of our Lady for supper and the business of getting acquainted with one
another socially, no great difficulty seeing that we were all there in the love of our Lord and our Lady. In the evening
we returned to the church for Vespers and a sermon by Fr Fynes-Clinton on the Pilgrimage of the Wise men.
Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament ended our formal worship, and the pilgrims made their confessions and visited
the Shrine, the altars, and the lesser shrines in the Church. The next morning, Wednesday, the twelve or fourteen
Masses began at half past six and occupied the time until nearly nine o’clock with High Mass at seven. At half past ten
the Director led the Stations of the Cross. Immediately afterwards the pilgrims walked informally, yet still in spirit of
pilgrimage, the mile to St Giles’ Church at Houghton. Fr Leeds met us there and took us into the Church to recite the
glorious Mysteries of the Rosary. Here again is an ancient church restored and adorned for Catholic worship. The pre-
Reformation rood-screen still stands, an exquisite piece of religious craftsmanship, carved and painted, though the
face of each saint depicted has been meticulously scratched out by non-believers in Protestant times.
From St Giles’ we walked in procession, singing the Litany B.V.M., to the exquisite architectural gem, the ancient
“Slipper” Chapel of St Catherine, now the property of the English Benedictines in communion with the Holy See. Here
in former days pilgrims arriving from the south put off their shoes to walk to Walsingham barefoot: hence the name of
Slipper Chapel. We stood in the roadway outside the Chapel and said prayers for the reunion of Christendom, and
then sand the Easter Anthem of our Lady, the Regina Cœli. Afterwards, in small groups, the pilgrims crowded into the
tiny fane to say private prayers and to examine its interesting though bare interior. St Catherine’s has not been
restored for worship.
The climax of the Pilgrimage came at three o’clock on Wednesday afternoon. The pilgrims assembled at the Shrine in
the church and after Intercession set off in solemn order, singing the Sorrowful Mysteries, for the abbey grounds. The
people of the village stood respectfully at their doors to watch the procession pass down the streets. We entered the
abbey enclosure under the ancient gateway, one of the few standing remains of the old grandeur in stone of
Walsingham. At the site of the Holy House, a grassy bank on the lawn, we fell to our knees, kissing the earth in
reparation for its desecration and destruction. There we offered our prayers fervently and silently. Sight-seers and
curious persons gathered around, surprised, at first amused, then awed and impressed by the evidence of faith and
devotion of the pilgrims. Another visit was made to the location of the high altar. We knelt on the grass beneath the
single arch, all that remains of the one-time glory of Walsingham Abbey Church. That arch stands, grand yet pathetic,
as the witness in stone to our Lady of Walsingham. It is, in its way, the symbol of the fact that though the despoiler
intended to eradicate Mary’s honour and glory in England he did not quite succeed, and the continuity of faith and
love, Mary’s and man’s, still stands strong as an arch, bridging the centuries until the restoration come.
The last point of visitation was the Holy Wells. There are three wells, two small ones in round copies of stone, and a
larger one like a great bath in a square pool, faced with stone. Here the miracles of our Lady’s intercession for the sick
and afflicted were wrought in the days of faith and are now manifested once more in a number of authenticated
instances. We stood about the wells, praying. Two priests ministered to those who wanted, the bathing of the waters.
Many received this ceremonial and devotional washing. All of us drank of the water from the well, and each was given
a small bottle of water to take home with him. After the visit to the abbey grounds, the vicar Father Hope Patten,
entertained the Pilgrims to tea in the vicarage garden. No more beautiful and lively scene could be imagined than that
tea-party on the smooth and sunny lawn. Everybody was so happy. Conversation buzzed gaily, and, of course,
inevitably, we had a group photograph taken. In the evening there was Vespers again in the church. Dom Benedict
Lee, OSB of Nashdom Abbey, preached a sermon. Then came the glorious procession of our Lady. The large
congregation went forth with the pilgrims from the church, singing the Legend of Walsingham. All carried candles. The
various sodalities and confraternities had their banners. Two young girls carried on their shoulders the Statue of the
Virgin Mother of God. Outside, scores of people from the village and the countryside witnessed the procession. Around
the churchyard we went and back into the church. Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament ended our day.
Again next morning, Masses occupied the early hours. After breakfast there was a last Mass for us all. It was a Low
Mass with music, the organ and one or two hymns. No more impressive and devotional presentation of the Liturgy
could have been possible. Everybody felt the beauty and solemnity of that act of worship. After Mass, at the Altar of
St George, was venerated the Relic of St Vincent, and then passed into the Lady Chapel for our last visit to the Shrine.
The final prayers were informal. We knelt crowded close together in the chapel. A multitude of candles burned about
the Shrine. Above glimmered the silver lamps before the face of the Holy Mother, giving to the world the Divine Child
in her arms. The leaders of the various groups of the Pilgrimage made the last thanksgivings and intercessions, then
our Director blessed us and dismissed us. The Pilgrimage was over. T. BOWYER CAMPBELL
Messenger 69: 1931
ENGLAND’S NAZARETH
It is very desirable that the knowledge of this ancient English centre of devotion to Our Lady of Walsingham should be
more widespread in our midst and that a Pilgrimage to it should be made at least once by every Catholic. With this
object lantern slides have been prepared and can be hire (1d. each, carriage extra), together with a lecture if desired.
We hope that all our priest-members will make use of these to bring the matter before their people. Those who have
been always wish to go again; and for those who at present cannot go such a description of the history and liveliness
of the village and its shrine will be of real value in showing the actual carrying out in the present day of the Catholic
way of love and prayer.
The Council of the League initiated a Committee, with Miss Few as Secretary, for making a beginning of such
propaganda. A successful concert, with the aid of Mrs Neal (Miss Kathleen Cooper) and her friends, was held in
Kensington Town Hall, during which were shown some twenty of the slides of Walsingham, and the Rev Fr R Kingdon
spoke on the Pilgrimage. We were able to hand over some £23 to the Walsingham Fund. This fund is in desperate
need, and we again appeal for help, which should be sent as C.L. donations through Fr Fynes-Clinton. It is imperative
that the Vicar, on whom the whole work depends, should have a “living wage.” For this and for the stipend of the
Assistant Priest we need £500 a year.
The fifth Pilgrimage organised by the League will be again at Whitsuntide. We start after Midday Mass and Dedication
at St Magnus’ on Whit Tuesday and return Thursday afternoon. Full particulars will be sent on application to Miss Few,
C.L. Office. We hope for an increased number of members this year.
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