Bishop John says: "I’m delighted to be inviting another group to join me on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 2015.
"I’ve almost lost count of the visits I’ve made to the Holy Land. They’ve all been wonderful and memorable in different ways.
"Like thousands of Christians before me, I’ve found that pilgrimage has nourished and stimulated my faith in a unique way.
"What’s different this time round is that we are calling this visit a ‘Pilgrimage for Peace’. While we will certainly spend time visiting sites associated with the birth, ministry, death and resurrection life of Jesus, we will also visit his heirs - the small but remarkable Christian communities who live in extremely difficult circumstances in this troubled land.
"Our aim is to offer the Christians of today’s Holy Land our support and prayers, and to hear their stories – stories that are sometimes as profoundly moving and inspiring as the stories of the Gospels.
"But we won’t just hear their stories. We’ll dig deeper, and meet people from Jewish and Arab communities with different experiences to share and a profoundly different understanding of their place in the ‘Land of the Holy One’.
"In addition to this fascinating programme there will be opportunities for guided reflection and study.
"So please think of this as a study tour, in pursuit of reconciliation, rather than easy answers. Be warned, we should expect unsettling conversations with those we meet – which might challenge our understanding of this troubled land."
The group is travelling with Lightline Pilgrimages, a Christian travel company who work exclusively with Christian pilgrim houses, restaurants, and tour guides, and which was recently named as being the “official and preferred” pilgrimage operator for the Anglican Diocese of Jerusalem.
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