Opinion Articles

SOUL MATTERS: Journey together echoes journey of one man
By Bishop Michael Malone and Bishop Brian Farran

“All my bags are packed, I’m ready to go.”

John Denver’s line is appropriate, and not only because efforts to meet airline weight limits have so far proven successful. One of the differences between being a tourist and a pilgrim is that the tourist must simply have luggage and documents ready to go. The pilgrim must also cultivate an open mind and a willingness to embrace the new and unfamiliar, to look inward as well as outward.

Tomorrow we will join another 44 pilgrims setting out from Newcastle, following the footsteps of St Paul, to visit key sites in Greece and Turkey. We will be leading members of our diocesan communities.

Next month begins the Year of St Paul, declared by Pope Benedict XVI to commemorate the 2000th anniversary of the saint’s birth. St Paul was the Apostle to the Gentiles, or non-Jews, so St Paul is for all. Christians hear his words often in the liturgy, but we can forget that Paul was also an indefatigable traveller, evangelising peoples in Asia Minor (present day Turkey), Syria, Macedonia, Ephesus and of course Rome.

His epistles or letters to the individuals he encountered and communities he founded, written in the first millennium, still speak to us in the third millennium. There is a moment for Christians when we realise that what we have heard proclaimed in church so many times were actual letters, written to people anxious to hear from the man who had preached Christ so passionately to them.

Most of us know the story of St Paul’s dramatic conversion, and the expression ‘the road to Damascus’ has become part of our vernacular. Pilgrimage offers the opportunity for metanoia, or change of heart. We are excited by the prospect of seeing places about which we have heard so often, and we know that we will hear differently the words of St Paul ever after.

There is also something appealing about following literally in the footsteps of someone who has influenced you. Doing so as part of a group of like-minded travellers is a bonus, and of course each will have a unique experience.

A highlight will be crossing the Dardanelles to visit the Gallipoli Peninsula, a place sacred to all Australians. We are looking forward to spending time at what is now a peaceful place, and praying for peace where so many young men gave their lives for others. Greater love hath no man…

The fact that Anglicans and Catholics are sharing this pilgrimage can only be enriching for all. We will be on the road together, sharing meals and visits to sacred places, taking time to be alone and to pray together. We will be fulfilling Paul’s injunction to the Corinthians: “In the one Spirit we were all baptised into one body – Jews or Greeks, enslaved or free – and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.” (1 Cor 12: 13)

Bishop Brian Farran of the Diocese of Newcastle and Bishop Michael Malone of the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle.

Dr Beverly Zimmerman RSJ is the Chancellor of the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle.