A Collection Of Homilies Preached in the Year of Jubilee 2022

The celebrations in 2022, marking the Centenary of the restoration of the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham and of pilgrimage to England's Nazareth by Fr Hope Patten, gave cause for great rejoicing and thanksgiving. We rejoiced in the extraordinary fruits of Fr Patten's work, vision and faithfulness, but above all his devotion to the Mother of God, his deeply held conviction about Mary's indispensable role, not only in the story of our salvation but also in the lives of every Christian. We gave thanks for the many blessings and graces received in Walsingham over the past 100 years by countless pilgrims and by those who continue to make their way to the Shrine.

Walsingham is a remarkable place and much that makes it is is captured in the homilies preached at the major anniversary celebrations and Solemnities of the Annunciation and the Immaculate Conception held during the Shrine's Centenary Year of Jubilee. In particular, the visit of the Image of Our Lady of Walsingham to the Cathedrals of Exeter, Blackburn and Durham, and to pilgrim parishes within those Dioceses, was a reminder of the Shrine's on-going witness to our nation of the mystery of the Incarnation and of Mary's powerful intercession for pilgrims in their homes, communities and daily lives.

Reflecting on these themes, and celebrating all that Walsingham has meant and continues to mean to countless pilgrims, I hope the wisdom contained in these homilies will be a source of inspiration and encouragement to all who love the Shrine and serve to deepen our devotion to Mary under her ancient and venerable title of Our Lady of Walsingham.

Fr Kevin Smith

Priest Administrator

March 2023