Road to Canterbury: Church of England’s new head walks ancient pilgrimage route

• Summary

• Mullally’s pilgrimage covers 140 km from London to Canterbury

• First female Archbishop of Canterbury to be installed on March 25

• Becket Camino route significant for Anglicans and English Catholics

AYLESFORD, England, March 20 (Reuters) - Sarah Mullally, the Church of England’s first female leader, is making the journey ‌from London to Canterbury on foot, pilgrim’s staff in hand and reflecting on the “deeply humbling” experience, ahead of her enthronement next week.

Mullally, 63, who was named as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury last October, has chosen to walk the ​roughly 140 km (87 mile) “Becket Camino” route from St Paul’s Cathedral in London to Canterbury Cathedral.

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On ​Friday, the fourth day of the six-day walk along riverside trails and traditional ⁠pilgrimage routes, she arrived in a red jacket and trekking shoes at Aylesford Priory, a 13th-century site ​that has long welcomed pilgrims.

“As I prepare for my installation at Canterbury Cathedral, it feels deeply humbling ​to be following in the footsteps of those who have walked this ancient route,” she said in a statement before setting off on the journey.

Carrying a staff inscribed with ‘Archbishop’s Camino’ - ‘camino’ means path in Spanish -, she walked the narrow paths ​through the rolling green fields of Kent, while a scallop shell most famously associated with the Camino ​de Santiago pilgrimage route in northwestern Spain dangled from her rucksack.

She was confirmed as archbishop in January in a traditional ‌ceremony ⁠marking her legal assumption of office, becoming the first woman to hold the most senior clerical position in the Church of England and the symbolic head of the 85-million-strong global Anglican Communion.

MULLALLY’S INSTALLATION SET FOR MARCH 25

Accompanied by her husband, Eamonn, and a small group of pilgrims on her journey to Canterbury, ​Mullally has been stopping ​at churches, cathedrals and ⁠abbeys to join prayer services, visit schools, and meet local congregations.

The final stretch from the village of Chartham to Canterbury is expected to finish on Sunday ​in time for Evensong - a traditional evening prayer service - before her ceremonial ​installation at the ⁠cathedral on March 25.

The “Becket Camino” holds special significance for Anglicans and English Catholics, tracing the route believed to have been taken by Thomas Becket, the 12th-century Archbishop of Canterbury who was murdered by knights in ⁠1170. His ​shrine in Canterbury Cathedral turned the city into a centre ​of medieval devotion and pilgrimage in England.

Mullally’s pilgrimage marks the first time in modern history that an Archbishop of Canterbury has undertaken ​a journey of this nature in the lead-up to their enthronement.

Reporting by Muvija M Editing by Gareth Jones

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