THE Bishop of Oxford is set to take to the road for a pilgrimage with a distinctly local flavour.

The Rt Rev John Pritchard has led eight pilgrimages over the last 20 years, including taking a group of 116 people to Jerusalem and the Holy Land last October.

But when he starts on a tour of 15 churches within the Diocese of Oxford on Monday, it will be the first time he has done a pilgrimage of the churches in his own diocese.

Bishop John said: “Obviously I have been around a lot of the places in the diocese, but with 812 churches even if I visited two every Sunday, I still wouldn’t have got round them all.

“I am hoping that my trip acts as a trigger for people to value the many special secret places we have. I will be meeting people, spending some time praying and then moving on, and hopefully I can encourage some of them to go to visit some of the other places on my route.”

Of the 15 churches, six are in Oxfordshire and include the grandeur of Christ Church Cathedral and the intimacy of St Margaret of Antioch in Binsey.

Maps showing Bishop John’s route have been published and have proved so popular that the initial print run of 20,000 was increased to 35,000.

The map includes a leaflet explaining what pilgrimage means, and offering guidance on how to make a pilgrimage from your armchair, at home, within the community or further afield.

Bishop John said: “People obviously are wanting to visit our special places but I want it not just to be the usual suspects, but some new faces too.

“Churches are not just places of worship for churchgoers on Sundays, but places of pilgrimage, rest and spirituality.

“I always encourage people to see the sanctuary as a place for prayer, but the nave is for the community, so I am delighted to find things like concerts, festivals and farmers’ markets happening in our churches.”

The tour is part of a year-long Pilgrim Project designed to encourage pilgrimage of all kinds.

The maps, including a full list of Bishop John’s route, are available from churches.