12.04.2019
New Celtic Camino from Bray to Dublin Gathers Momentum
The Celtic Camino from Bray to the Church of St James took a new twist last weekend when more than 50 intrepid walkers made their way along the pilgrim route from Booterstown to the Dublin church which has close ties to the Camino de Santiago.
The Bray Celtic Camino Coastal Route is being developed by the Camino Society of Ireland and stamps will be available for the Celtic Camino Passport along the route. Last Saturday’s walk, led by Turlough O’Donnell of the Camino Society and Myles Duffy of Trekkers Walking Club, was the second leg of the journey, walkers having made their way from Bray to Booterstown previously. During their walk the considered the ideas of movement and neighbouring.
Archbishop Michael Jackson joined the walkers at Christ Church Cathedral which is on the route which follows the shoreline to Sandymount village before heading to Ringsend and then Trinity College Dublin. The group stopped at Trinity, which was a stop on the Medieval Camino (as All Hallows), to hear a short talk by Prof John Hegarty, a former Provost. They then followed the Dubline to Christ Church Cathedral where they had the Credentiales stamped and were greeted by staff and given a tour of the cathedral and its crypt. They then proceeded to St James’s for the stamp there and the certificate of completion of the Pilgrimage in Dublin for those who completed both legs.
Speaking at Christ Church, Archbishop Jackson drew together the experiences of Christchurch, New Zealand and Christ Church, Dublin, through the medium of the labyrinth that now adorns the entrance to the cathedral.
“The centre piece of the labyrinth is an imperfect stone that points us to the stone that the builders rejected that became the cornerstone in the First Letter of Peter – Jesus Christ,” he observed. “The need for an understanding and an acceptance of humanity as the basis of our belonging to the earth and its gifts to us is fundamental to a faithful and to a secular state in 2019. The recognition of individual insufficiency is the grace of divine belonging. The labyrinth in front of the cathedral connects directly with the labyrinth carved on a tenth century stone in Hollywood which is the starting point of the Camino of Glendalough which the United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough have promoted in recent years.”
The archbishop spoke of three aspects the camino: movement, neighbouring and dialogue. He suggested that in the context of an Ireland that is in danger of fracturing emotionally and culturally 20 years after the outbreak of peace these three activities are more vital and energising than ever.
The Bray Celtic Camino starts at Bray Seafront (where a stamp will be available at Finnbee’s Coffee House) and continues to St James’s Church Crinken, Station Road in Killiney, Convent Road in Dalkey, to Joyce Tower in Sandycove, to Seapoint Tower, to Merrion Gates, to Hannover Quay, to Christ Church Cathedral (stamp), finishing at St James’s Church (stamp). There will be further stamps along the route. The total route covers 30.2 kilometers. Passports can be purchased at www.caminosociety.ie which also has further information on the Celtic Camino and where stamps are available.
