The Pilgrimage

The Pilgrimage We regret to share that The Pilgrimage has permanently closed.

Our beds have found new life and our space is finding new ways of supporting community!
08/19/2022

Our beds have found new life and our space is finding new ways of supporting community!

On Sunday, we celebrated the ministry of the Pilgrimage and staff as we close this chapter. Many could not join us on z...
07/31/2020

On Sunday, we celebrated the ministry of the Pilgrimage and staff as we close this chapter. Many could not join us on zoom since they were leading other worship services, so here is the recording.

Ashley Goff, Director for 19 years ('99-'18), shared that "the Pilgrimage isn't a program or an idea, but a way of being and living in the world." This is what we have practiced together: a way of being in the world that sees people and their humanity, that welcomes the outcast, that centers the stories of the marginalized.

The Pilgrimage has been engaging people in spiritual formation for 47 years. That work continues in the thousands of people who were pilgrims in DC. Mary Ester shared three haikus in worship about the Pilgrimage, ending with this:
The Pilgrimage lives
the seeds of social justice
planted in DC

Friends, keep listening to the stories of others and make space in yourself to be changed by them. When we seek greater understanding of one another, we join God's work in the world of healing, justice, and building stronger communities.

https://youtu.be/OL3OsgrGy30

07/26/2020

Join us in worship to celebrate the Pilgrimage!

We will have a special worship service via Zoom this Sunday, July 26, to celebrate the Pilgrimage. We invite all our pas...
07/20/2020

We will have a special worship service via Zoom this Sunday, July 26, to celebrate the Pilgrimage. We invite all our past participants, leaders, and other friends of the Pilgrimage to join us.

If you're interested, email [email protected] and we will send you the Zoom information when it's ready!

We want to celebrate and share the impact the Pilgrimage has had on people. Please share your stories! We are looking fo...
07/14/2020

We want to celebrate and share the impact the Pilgrimage has had on people. Please share your stories! We are looking for video clips, written stories, poems, photos, etc.

We want to hear how your Pilgrimage experience has changed you. How are you different after your time in DC?

Please send these contributions as soon as possible, either by DM or to [email protected], so we can share them on a rolling basis or simply tag the Pilgrimage account in your own post.

Debra Frazier is a community organizer and advocate who has been working with Pilgrimage groups for 7 years. She has liv...
07/13/2020

Debra Frazier is a community organizer and advocate who has been working with Pilgrimage groups for 7 years. She has lived in DC her entire life and is passionate about showing people this unique city beyond the monuments and museums. Many of our groups have spent a morning or afternoon with her by exploring root causes of poverty, understanding how development turns into displacement, and learning the visual signs of this process in particular neighborhoods of DC. She shares how DC residents (over 700,000 people) are disenfranchised without voting representation in Congress and without control over the local city budget.

David Harris and Debra Frazier have been two of our most important learning partners at the Pilgrimage. Our groups have learned a lot from these two individuals and it is a loss that these partnerships are ending. We are collecting a love offering for David and Debra to express our gratitude for their years of relationship and dedication to walking alongside groups while they are pilgrims in DC.

If you would like to contribute to this love offering, you may give online through July 26:
Debra Frazier love offering: https://onrealm.org/pilgrims/-/give/pilgrimage-debra

David Harris has been meeting with Pilgrimage groups for 19 years. He shares his story of experiencing homelessness, de...
07/13/2020

David Harris has been meeting with Pilgrimage groups for 19 years. He shares his story of experiencing homelessness, depression, and other challenges throughout his life. Poetry has been an important practice for him, so he shares some of his poetry and invites groups to write reflectively about their experience in whatever form works for them. His gentle presence is encouraging and he invites people individually to share their writing, often calling on each person by name. Ten years ago, the Pilgrimage (Jen McClurg and Ashley Goff) helped publish a book of David's poetry that he wrote while experiencing homelessness. It's called Street Corner Majesty and some of our groups use this as a gift for their students.

David Harris and Debra Frazier have been two of our most important learning partners at the Pilgrimage. Our groups have learned a lot from these two individuals and it is a loss that these partnerships are ending. We are collecting a love offering for David and Debra to express our gratitude for their years of relationship and dedication to walking alongside groups while they are pilgrims in DC.

If you would like to contribute to this love offering, you may give online through July 26:
David Harris love offering: https://onrealm.org/pilgrims/-/give/pilgrimage-david

It is with a heavy heart that we share the news that the Pilgrimage is closing. As you know, the impact of the pandemic...
07/07/2020

It is with a heavy heart that we share the news that the Pilgrimage is closing. As you know, the impact of the pandemic on travel and group activity grows with each passing week and we are unable to bridge this massive financial gap.

For 47 years, the Pilgrimage has been a vibrant ministry of Church of the Pilgrims in Washington, DC. The Pilgrimage has impacted thousands of people: youth, college students, adults of all ages, and emerging leaders in the wider church. We have facilitated experiences that stretch perspectives, encourage seeing the image of God in every person, and challenge faith to be active. We have joined God’s work in the world by educating people about the systems that perpetuate poverty and inequality. As we have shared the news with our group leaders, we have begun to hear affirmations of how significant this place has been to so many people and their formation.

It has been a joy and privilege to do the work of the Pilgrimage over the last several years. Working with group leaders, students, learning partners, and social service agencies has been a rich experience for all Pilgrimage staff, past and present. We will greatly miss this work of transformation, education, and practicing faith and values through action. We have also been changed by this work alongside the groups we host.

Through July, we will be working on closing and archiving the Pilgrimage. We also want to celebrate and share the impact the Pilgrimage has had on people. Please share your stories! We are looking for video clips, written stories, poems, photos, etc. We want to hear how your Pilgrimage experience has changed you. How are you different after your time in DC? Please send these contributions as soon as possible so we can share them on a rolling basis or simply tag the Pilgrimage account in your own post.

We will have a special worship service via Zoom on Sunday, July 26 to celebrate the Pilgrimage. It would be wonderful if past participants and leaders could join us. If you're interested, email [email protected] and we will send you the Zoom information when it's ready.

These days we see death all around us. God is with us in our grief. Once we have lamented, we proclaim and root ourselves in the story of resurrection and new life. The Holy One is at work creating life and reminding us that death does not have the final word. Let us continue to turn our ears to hear what God is calling us to be, turn our hearts to understand how Christ is healing, and turn our eyes to see what the Spirit is doing.

May the peace of Christ be with all of you.

Address

Church Of The Pilgrims, 2201 P Street, NW
Washington D.C., DC
20037

Telephone

+1 202-387-6612

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