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Ole Chr. M. Kvarme, 18 Juni 17
Pilegrimsgudstjeneste med utsendelse av
pilegrimer – fra Oslo til Nidaros,
i ruinene av St. Hallvards kirke, Gamlebyen
GO WITH GOD!
Psalm 23
In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
We have just heard a pilgrim´s psalm from the Bible, and we give you this prayer of David that you may take it to heart and keep it in your heart: The Lord is my shepherd.
One of our Norwegian poets, Erik Bye, has also written a song for pilgrims where the pilgrimage is our walk through life.
We were born to seek, to search and to walk
Towards destinations we hardly can grasp,
And the road we have to walk alone…
There is a pilgrim´s path stretching
Through the life of every human being,
And the road we have to walk alone.
Each and every one of us has a life story, and this life story and our expectations accompany us wherever we go. The next days, however, you will not walk alone, but together. You will experience the beauty of creation, enjoy common meals and pray together. But there will also be some hard walking through forests, hills and mountains.
The prayer of David is beautiful and marked by confidence in God. But we are mistaken if we read it with romantic eyes. David had been a shepherd in the Judean wilderness with its rocky mountains, steep hills and dangerous landscape. One expression in his prayer may also illuminate your walk the next days as well as our walk through life.
David speaks of paths of righteousness. In the Judean wilderness there were no straight paths or roads, on the contrary they moved forward in curves and circular shapes. There were also many paths, and you needed expert knowledge to choose the right one leading to your destination. This background to David´s prayer is good news to us.
First, our lives seldom follow a straight line. Our life stories are not like modern highways, easy to travel. The landscape of our lives are more like rocky mountains, often we have to climb steep hills, and we go forward with circular movements. But on this walk it is possible to find the right path, the good path of mercy and righteousness.
Second, in order to choose the right path, with its many curves and circles, we need the company of an expert guide and we need one another. In the desert as well as in our mountains it is a good rule: Never walk alone.
David was a desert expert, but in his life he also experienced loneliness, and that he could go astray. In this loneliness he nevertheless got company. He became aware of the presence of God and that God found him, even when he felt surrounded by shadows of death. Then he discovered something greater: the goodness and mercy of God carrying him on his path.
When some years ago I walked as a pilgrim to Nidaros, one of my friends suddenly wanted to walk alone. He chose his own path, went off - and went astray. It took hours before he was found. That evening we were reminded of the picture of Jesus Christ: The Good Shepherd is always searching for lost sheep, for those who go astray, and he wants to bring us back to the company of others and to set us on the right path for our lives.
Today it is our prayer that the goodness and loving mercy of God will follow you on your present pilgrimage as well as on your life´s pilgrimage. In older days in our country people would some times say to those leaving: “Go with God!” Today we say: May the God of grace go with you and bless you, and may the Good Shepherd Jesus Christ keep you from evil, guide you in days to come and lead you to eternal life.
Glory to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning, is now and always will be, one true God forever and ever. Amen.