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About The Joan of Arc Pilgrimage of May 2004
We wish to give thanks to the God of the Bible (the same God Jeanne d’Arc followed and gave her life to) for the very rich, rewarding, and safe French pilgrimage we just completed in May 2004. It surpassed our hopes, goals, and expectations. We also wish to thank the many people who were keeping our pilgrimage group in their prayers, and also to all our fellow pilgrims who came with us.
We have been amazed at the wonderful people and experiences that have come into our lives, thanks to Jeanne d’Arc. Here’s a little about the pilgrimage we just completed.
First, we should say that people there were not used to having an American pilgrimage group following Joan’s steps. This was quite out of the ordinary for them. Also, during the last 3-4 years, we had been in contact with many of the people in the 'Joan of Arc community'. We believe that these two things together contributed to the red carpet of hospitality and graciousness being rolled out for us many times. At no time did we feel any 'anti-American' feelings. We all had a common interest there, France’s Patron Saint, Jeanne d’Arc.
The book we were using as a foundation for the pilgrimage was JOAN OF ARC-HER STORY, by Regine Pernoud and Marie-Veronique Clin (certainly one of the leading experts on Joan in France today). For the first day of the pilgrimage, Ms. Clin had graciously invited us all for lunch at one of her places of work, Le Musee de l’Histoire de Medicine (she is also in charge the Joan of Arc Center in Orleans). It was quite a sumptuous meal in one of the beautiful museum halls, in the middle of Paris. Marie-Veronique was so warm to us all. A great way to begin the pilgrimage!
Then we spent 3 days in Orleans. On May 8, nearly every year since it’s liberation in 1429, Orleans has celebrated its liberation from the English. After predicting this, Joan pulled off this quite unlikely event, and the city has never forgotten. It is quite a festival. The Sound and Light show on the Cathedral stones were especially impressive to us. We were also able to meet the mayor of Orleans, and the young 17-year-old chosen to play Joan this year. We stayed in the centuries old, and quite beautiful Benedictine monastery, St Benoit.
Next we spent 3 days at Domremy, where the food and hospitality were also way beyond our hopes. We spent a morning alone at La Chapelle de Bermont (still located out in the woods, where Jeanne often went to pray), with the President of the Association of Bermont. He had opened up just for our group, and spent a couple of hours explaining to us the many new discoveries related to Joan, and uncovered in Bermont the last few years. Another day we went to Vaucouleurs, and had a tour of the Joan of Arc sites still present today, by one of the city’s leading experts. Domremy still has that old small village feeling of centuries ago, and many of the group told us they felt like this was certainly one of the highlights of their trip.
Of course, we went to Rheims, where Joan finally arrived to have the King anointed and crowned, according to ancient French custom. This is one of France’s most beautiful Cathedrals, and so full of history. We also made a champagne stop, to see how it is done, and taste some of the fresh 'Bubbly'.
Finally, we ended up in Rouen. We stayed 4 nights in the Benedictine monastery, Le Bec Hellouin, which is close to Rouen, but out in the countryside, in a lovely pastoral green valley. From here we made day trips to Chartres, Monet’s Giverny, and of course to Rouen. There we spent the day with another of the leading experts on Jeanne d’Arc, this time in relation to her history with Rouen. We then drove back to Paris to have our final meal together in a small family owned restaurant close to the airport.
By the end of the pilgrimage, we had become a small family. We shared so much together in such a small time, and everyone had pulled together to support each other. A spirit of graciousness and warmth had developed. Certainly, the daily meditations, travel and experiences together, and our common goal were some of the reasons for this.
As this pilgrimage went so well, it has given us the will to continue in 2005.
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