Norfolk Pilgrim

This week's pilgrimage took me in the opposite direction from last Sunday. In some ways it echoed last weeks walk, going  to  another ancient church, another empty niche and another 15th century tower. All in the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. My destination was St. Peter's, Belaugh, through frosty meadows... Belaugh Church's patron was the first Bishop of Rome, St. Peter, the Apostle, the fisherman from Galilee. With a river and a boatyard, I think St. Peter would feel at home in Belaugh. His mate, the chippy from Nazareth, might have made himself useful in the boatyard. When they built this church, a link with Rome was considered , 'a good thing'!  The Pope was head of the Church, Rome was a pilgrim destination, so to have a statue of Peter seemed natural.  The empty niche dates from the Protestant Reformation  in Henry VIII's reign. In a reverse of all that had been, Rome now represented all that was bad in religion; getting rid of the statue seemed the

I was not a happy! It was the Sunday before Blue Monday!  The most depressing day of the year!  Over 89,000 had died from Covid 19.  Intensive care wards were full to overflowing! Staff were exhausted and running on empty! I was not H-A-P-P-Y!  I knew I wasn't!  I was sure I wasn't!  HappyClappy choruses seemed completely empty - completely devoid of meaning! My path took me through the village, past the silent tower of Coltishall Church. Bells have not rung here since March. Once again the ringing chamber was empty of ringers! The church empty of worshippers!  And on the west front, the two plinths that once supported the statues of saints were empty too! I made my wayover the bridge to  All Saints', Horstead.  In normal times, services alternate between Coltishall and Horstead, but on this Sunday both churches were empty! Worship had migrated online!  Still, I walked the miles, "to kneel where prayer has been valid" and to show solidarity with past generations.

 I go to church on Sunday. On foot, if possible. Following in the footsteps of countless others. 10th January 2020 was the Feast of the Baptism of Christ. So I walked to my parish church -  St. John the Baptist, Coltishall. Questions abound: How many generations of Christians were baptised and buried here? On how many Sundays have Christians gathered in this place? How old is the church?  You can catch a  glimpse of the oldest bit of the church from the road. There's the ghost of a quoin in red Roman brick and two double splayer circular wind-eye windows under the eves, by the North Porch. They suggest that this bit of the church was built in 11th or early 12th Century.  By my calculation, that's 900 years X 52 weeks in a year =  468000 Sundays. And very few of those would have been without a service. Even during lockdown the church is being prayed in every week! Find the Facebook Video Here The church may date from the 11th Century, but people may have been gathering here for