Welcome...

From Brett:
Welcome to the website of the School of the Pilgrim! The School of the Pilgrim offers people an opportunity to leave the "religion of the rush hour" by re-introducing the ancient and contemporary practice of pilgrimage to further our spiritual growth and development.

At the School of the Pilgrim we are invested in exploring the way that the life of faith--individually and collectively--is an ongoing and all-encompassing journey most often revealed in intentional pilgrimages. The companion on this holy trek is the Pilgrim God, who leads us in re-discovering the meaningfulness of being called people of “The Way” (Acts 9:2).

Photos from a Pilgrimage in the Holy Land

There are new photos from the most recent pilgrimage to the Holy Land in the Gallery. Simply go to the side bar marked "Gallery", click the cursor, and enjoy the images from the Holy Land, October 2008. These are photos taken by Jaqui Tutt of New Zealand, who joined us on this pilgrimage.

Pilgrimage in the Holy Land: Postponed!

Because of the uneasy peace in Israel, the School of the Pilgrim pilgrimage in Israel, April 15-24th, 2009 has been postponed! We are working on plans for this pilgrimage at another time in either 2009 or 2010, when the political tensions in Israel decrease a bit more.

SlideShow

The School of the Pilgrim has just created a slideshow to introduce our vision and work. You can download and view the slideshow by clicking here.

We have made a copy of script of this slideshow available for those who may not be able to hear the audio portion. You can download and read the script while watch the the slides. This script is available by clicking here.

Validated Ministry

The School of the Pilgrim was made a validated ministry of the Presbyterian Church USA on July 15, 2008. Being confirmed as a Validated Ministry by the PCUSA is one more affirmation of the School’s relevance in helping people with their contemporary spiritual development through the ancient yet timeless practice of pilgrimage. With the director’s connection to the PCUSA, this validated recognition will also allow him to access important benefits packages such as health insurance and pension that were not previously readily available through the School itself. The addition of these added benefits through the validation process further affirms the important ministry of the School and the director.


Facebook

The School of the Pilgrim just established itself on Facebook, a popular social networking website. Visit our Facebook entry by clicking here.

"Practicing Pilgrimage: Being and Becoming a Pilgrim Church" Accepted for Publication!

Church Publishing Group, based in New York City, the official publisher of the U.S. Episcopal Church, is going to be the official publisher of the new book, "Practicing Pilgrimage: Being and Becoming a Pilgrim Church". This book is a "how-to" book or manual that will enable congregations and parishes to bring ancient and contemporary pilgrimage practices into the lives of the people of the body of Christ. Look for the publication of the book in 2009!

Additional Activities :

• New and Expanded List of Resources and Links! Click on "Resources and Links" where you will find an expanded list of resources--including other books, music, and movies--along with new links to other pilgrimage sites in the world!

• A New Side Bar: Destinations! Check out the list of pilgrimage sites there are around the world. In recent editions of National Geographic Magazine and U.S. News and World Report, there was a listing of "sacred sites". We took that list and expanded it, hoping to stir interest in all the places where there is a "thin membrane" between the mundane and the Holy.
  
  
• The Church Divinity School of the Divinity awarded the School of the Pilgrim funding to help support the School of the Pilgrim retreat at the Gray Center in Canton, Mississippi Nov. 7-9, 2008, and in support of our website in publicizing the event and all other activities of the School of the Pilgrim.
  
  
• Fundraising: As always, thanks to those people who have already responded with a generous support of the School of the Pilgrim in 2008. We now have a new credit-card link through "justgive.org" on the "Contribution" page for those who would like to contribute to the ongoing growth of the School of the Pilgrim. Click here to go to the "Donation" site for donation information!
  

• Henry Carse of St. Georges College in Jerusalem and Brett Webb-Mitchell of the School of the Pilgrim, are inviting one and all to join us on a Holy Land pilgrimage, the School of the Pilgrim Wilderness Journey, from September 23 through Oct. 3, 2008. This pilgrimage will include a pilgrim's view of Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth, and other parts of the Holy Land! Contact Brett for further information:
  Brett @schoolofthepilgrim.com

• Nov. 7-9, 2008: A Pilgrimage Weekend at the Episcopal Gray Center outside of Canton, Mississippi! Watch here for more information.

• Many thanks to our friend Jaqui Tutt from New Zealand, whose photographs from Santiago de Compestela in Spain now grace the side bar images on the right side of this website.
  
  
• Additions and changes to Upcoming Activities! We've added a new option for a pilgrimage event, and also have provided a list of charges for School of the Pilgrim events.
  
  
• Interested in working with the School of the Pilgrim? We are soon going to offer a position as an office assistant. Contact me if interested by going to the "Contact Page" if you or someone you know is interested!