My Journey

This evening we went back to Durham Cathedral for a prayer pilgrimage. When we arrived they closed the Cathedral to the public and it was only our group left in the whole building. We received pamphlets and then met our guide Cannon Rosalind Brown. In keeping in mind that this was for pilgrims, we began our journey through the church from the out side. As all the pilgrims before us we followed their footsteps into the cathedral. We then were guided from the back of the church to the front (beginning of the Christian faith through the end of it). We learned a lot all the way from the baptismal font to the high altar. Now, as some of you might know…before we left on our journey we got to pick a friend. However for me this friend was assigned by Sally and my peers. It turned out that all our friends are Saints, and they all played a significant part in the creation of the church. My friend is St. Cuthbert. Before I left I researched him some but most of what i found was all biographical information. Once I arrived I began to learn the stories of his ways and the impact he had. I have followed his story from the monasteries to the Farne Islands. As I learned, he died on his island and was moved several times before finally being buried in Durham. It was his wishes to be taken to Durham and the cathedral was built in his memory. With that being said I was beginning to feel a connection with the place. We were then lead to thef many small alters behind the high altar. Finally, we reached the end of Christian faith on earth, “Death”. Behind the high alter is the shrine of St. Cuthbert. We were led into the shrine for group prayer followed by individual prayer. At that point I began to think… Why was I given Saint Cuthbert? The answer that came to me was that God is trying to teach me something, something about myself. St. Cuthbert was known to be quiet yet inspirational and I find myself the same. In the words of the Saint, I also “rather have friends not compete but co-operate to reach a common goal. I have found guidance through Cuthbert with his wisdom and knowledge. He is telling me to use my talents for the good works of God. I found myself questioning what I will find next along this pilgrimage. That brought me full circle and put everything into perspective. We are following the footsteps, the footsteps of everybody in front of us, thus I find myself starting my own “way”. I understand that I too have a mission for god just like Cuthbert. His journey finished in Durham but that is where mine has begun!

By: Trevor Hyssong