Departure, Arrival and Jet Lag

We started off our journey when we took off for NYC around twelve on Monday. We had to wait in the JFK airport for 5 hours. We wandered about the terminal, got snacks, and read and talked to kill time. Finally, at 8:00 we boarded our Delta flight to Dublin, Ireland. The flight was long and although we all tried to get much needed sleep, it was difficult. Maybe everyone got a few rough hours of sleep or none at all. I may have gotten an hour.
After the long six hour flight, we reached our destination. Excited but exhausted, we met up with our bus driver, Owen. He drove us to a little restaurant where we had scones and coffee for breakfast. We then toured the mansion of Sir Alfred Beit, a man who inherited his uncle's diamond fortune. Sir Alfred Beit and his wife lived in the Russborough estate and collected many famous and old works of art and furniture from all over the world to decorate their home. We found out when, where, and who is associated with each work. Each was unique and interesting.
By the time the tour had finished, it started had to rain outside, and was freezing. So we boarded the bus once again to go to buy breakfast foods and things at a local grocery store, then headed to the inn where we would be staying. The inn is nice and cozy. We had a bit of free time, then went to another restaurant for dinner. The options offered were between turkey and salmon. As I am a vegetarian, I got to have stir fry vegetables and rice, which was very good.
Finally we had reflection time with the group. We were all exhausted, not having gotten a decent amount of sleep in over a day. But we discussed why we had chosen to come on this pilgrimage and what we hoped to gain from it. We prayed and recited the compline. Now we are going to get to bed early as we're all extremely tired, and want to make the best of our day tomorrow!

-Eason

5 Days Until Departure

Each summer, rising 11th grade students at All Saints’ are invited to make a holy pilgrimage. The J2A pilgrimage provides our teenagers with an opportunity to deepen their relationship with God in Christ, strengthen their ties to the church community, and forge stronger bonds with their peers.

Unlike many student trips abroad, this is not a typical tourist-type trip. It is intentional, spiritual and holy travel. We spend a good amount of time visiting significant religious sites. We also learn about local culture and attempt to understand Christian traditions and practices of the local churches. Each day is structured to include time for individual reflection and prayer. Each evening includes group discussion, usually focusing on the sites, events and themes of that particular day. Every evening comes to a close with student-led Compline, a form of prayer found in the BCP.

This year we will make a pilgrimage to Ireland. We will visit the monastic communities of St. Kevin, St. Brigid and St. Ciaran. We will visit the Hill of Tara, where St. Patrick converted the High King of Ireland, and Dublin where we will see the Book of Kells and attend Evensong at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. We will see the legacy of monasticism on the Aran Islands and the natural beauty of the Burren and the Cliffs of Moher. This is not the complete itinerary, but you see that this pilgrimage is full of significant sites and will provide us with a great amount of material on which to reflect.

This year, our pilgrims are Jeffrey Cox, Janine Depree, Eason Weinmann, William Parker, Addie Henderson, Ellie Studdard, Max Collins, Quill Yates, and Susanna Morphis. They will be led by chaperones John Herring, Keri Herring, Luke Barton, Elizabeth Barton, and Lisa Bell-Davis. Please keep them in your prayers.