Quaker Youth Pilgrimage

The Quaker Youth Pilgrimage is a long standing ministry which helps young people aged between 16 and 18 from the United States and Europe to explore their Quaker roots. The pilgrimage is organised jointly by the European & Middle East Section and the Section of the Americas of FWCC, the world body of Friends. It’s an opportunity to promote loving understanding of our diversities within the Quaker worldwide family. Pilgrims will come from different cultural, language and theological traditions. During your time together they travel and learn together and seek to nurture their spiritual lives.

The Pilgrimage takes place every two years, alternately in Europe and in the United States. In 2008 the Pilgrimage was in Europe on the theme ‘A Journey through Conflict to Peace’. After home stays in Glasgow the pilgrims travelled to Yealand Conyers, where they explored the ‘1652 Country’ and had three days for facilitated community building exercises. Their next stop was Dublin, where they were involved in a service project before travelling on to Moyallon Quaker Centre in N. Ireland. Among other activities, they were able to visit Quaker House, Quaker Cottage, Stormont and Maghaberry Prison Visitor Centre. The pilgrimage was brought to a close with two days at Wiston Lodge near Biggar, outside Glasgow. Read the report.

The most recent Pilgrimage took place in July-August 2010, when pilgrims met in Seattle, USA & after short homestays travelled to Quaker Cove on Puget Sound where they spent over a week building their community & being involved in service projects. They returned to Seattle and were welcomed by NSF – North Seattle Friends church where they learned about the work of AFSC and about Native American issues. In the third week they moved on to Portland, attending a variety of meetings & churches and being involved in service projects before spending a few days at Camp Mugruder on the Oregon Coast. The pilgrimage ended with a closing retreat hosted by Camas Friends Church. Read the epistle and see the pictures.

The next Pilgrimage will take place in Europe (England and The Netherlands) in July-August 2012. See more information for pilgrims.