What’s your experience with the Wesley Pilgrimage?

I first attended as a pilgrim in 2024, and began transitioning into the director role in 2026. 

What are you you looking forward to on the Pilgrimage?

My favorite part of the pilgrimage is always getting to connect with pilgrims who come from such a broad range of backgrounds and ministry contexts. I always learn something from hearing how that diversity of experiences shapes how pilgrims experience the trip and think about how our heritage as Methodists shapes how we think about ministry today.

Out of the sites we visit, I have a particular love for our time in Oxford. So much of our history as Methodists can be traced back to John and Charles Wesley’s time in school there, and especially their conviction that a life of faith must be more than just “going through the motions”, but truly seeking holiness of heart and life in community. As a major academic center still today, Oxford is also a reminder that our faith doesn’t call us to “check our brains at the door”, but that the Holy Spirit can be powerfully at work as we engage our entire selves – mind, body, and spirit – in the life of faith.

Who should join the pilgrimage?

The pilgrimage is designed to be a powerful experience for anyone who wants to go deeper in their faith and their understanding of who we have been and are called to be today as the people called Methodists. I first participated in the pilgrimage soon after ordination, and it was incredibly meaningful to connect my own journey to that point with the journey of the Wesleys. I’ve also gotten to see pilgrims of all different callings and stages of ministry – laity and clergy, newly ordained and retired, serving local churches and serving beyond the local church alike – gain a deeper appreciation for the truth that we are all called to ministry, and are part of a tradition that not only acknowledges but celebrates that.

Anything else people should know about the Pilgrimage?

Something we’ll talk about repeatedly during the pilgrimage is that discerning who we are called to be in the future is often rooted in who we have been in the past. This includes both how we have faithfully answered God’s call throughout our history, and the how we can learn from the times when we have fallen short. I believe that the Wesley Pilgrimage is a vital way that we learn about the fullness of our history and, especially at this moment in the life of our connection, might be inspired to more fully live as the people that God has created and called us to be.