“We will come back changed. Of that I am certain. But of course that is why you go on pilgrimage in the first place, to find the holy, stumble upon God in action, and be changed forever by the experience.”
Waymarkers: Collected Prayers, Poems & Reflections for the preparation and Pilgrimage to Iona
“What I love and think is very helpful about this collection is that it concentrates on the pilgrimage to and from Iona: our pilgrimage doesn’t start when we arrive on the island – and it certainly doesn’t end when we leave.”
“There are many guidebooks to Iona but none like this that captures the full understanding of pilgrimage as a journey and not a destination – and that pilgrimage is not simply to a sacred site but is the ongoing way we participate in the sacred journey of life. I will use this over and over in my Iona retreats.”
Waymarkers thoughtfully aids the pilgrim in preparing a sacred time where both a journey and a place will guide the traveler to greater connectivity with self, others and the sacred. By engaging the ancient discipline of pilgrimage, the journey will require the traveler to practice listening for the quiet voice of Creator within creation.
Waymarkers was written to guide and engage this sacred act of listening while on the journey of a lifetime. Comprised of two sections, Waymarkers provides both comprehensive information on the general practices and stages of the archetypal pilgrimage, as well as reflections specific to the pilgrimage to Iona.
Waymarkers engages this pilgrimage to Iona from the perspective of the "universal round" of the sacred journey; through reflective writings and questions, it explores the spiritual dimensions of the archetypal stages that take us from home, to journey, to arrival, to back home again. Like the centuries-old knot work of the ancient Celts, the journey is likened to the thread that wanders far from the center, and then spins back in again. What results from this design is not only beautiful art, but a profound way to see life's journey as a single, unbroken thread weaving in and over itself, returning and going out from the center, creating an overall image of guided, inspired living.
“Some books about pilgrimage are guidebooks to the travel aspect, and most are focused on the spiritual and transformative aspects.
In Waymarkers, Mary DeJong has written a wise workbook that encourages interaction before, during and after your journey to Iona, sprinkled with poetry, wise quotes, prayers and other helpful references - alongside just enough travel information to help you on the journey but not so much that you will not feel the wonder and surprise of your new experience.
This wee book will be in my bag as I’m preparing for my next Iona pilgrimage, as well as with me when I leave and close at hand when I return home.”