‘And so to Canterbury’ – photo essay
After nearly three months reflecting on pilgrimage in different ways, there is a certain inevitability to it that I should make my way to Canterbury. As Chaucer wrote:
Thanne longen folk to goon on pilgrimages,
And palmeres for to seken straunge strondes,
To ferne halwes, kowthe in sondry londes;
And specially from every shires ende
Of engelond to caunterbury they wende
‘Wend’ my way to Canterbury is what I did, and found a mixed experience of pilgrimage. (Note that each image below will display in full screen on a separate tab if you click on it).
The cathedral was as beautiful and majestic as ever both outside and in:
Inside, the pilgrim stairs still bear the mark of tens of thousands of knees as they have passed:
Just outside the ‘temple gates’ there are still money changers (note the sign in the center of the image below)
In some places, there are mixed messages for the would-be pilgrim, as seen in the notices below:
Meanwhile, on the main floor of the cathedral bookshop there was only one tiny book on pilgrimage to be found – nestled amongst the trinkets and the bathtime ducks dressed as Bishops:
Tucked away in the Eastern Crypt there was a chapel closed for a pilgrimage service, but apart from that the remains of this ancient pilgrimage thread stretching back down the centuries were few. For an international treasure like Canterbury Cathedral to retain both its integrity as an ancient monument and its identity as a contemporary worshipping community is a balancing act few can manage. A service of choral evensong where tourists balance their guidebook open on their knee to read the description of the architecture in which it takes place is just one reflection of this. Maybe many cathedrals suffer from an identity crisis, and if they do we should pray for those who manage them.
When sculptor David Mc Fall completed his final artwork ‘Son of Man’ for Canterbury cathedral in 1998, he said it was to be ‘a fearless man, a prince of the poor and dispossessed’ who would advocate ‘reconciliation, charity and peace by the simple gesture of benediction’. The ambivalence of those around the statue in the candid photos below maybe reflects some of the confusion, ambiguity and indifference to be found all around this ancient site of pilgrimage.
