Yet God pleads with you still:
Stand at the crossroads and look,
and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way lies;
travel there, and you will find rest for your souls.
Jeremiah 6:16
Journey to the Heart of Wonder
Iona, Scotland
May 28-June 7, 2026
Ever since Abraham and Sarah answered God’s call to journey by stages to the place that God would show them, pilgrimage has been a practice by which faithful women and men have set out to encounter God, to see, as one pilgrim-poet has written, “a glimpse of the underglimmer” of holiness that pervades all things. While we can certainly have such glimpses at home, our holy scriptures and even our own experiences teach us that some places are remarkably “thin,” revealing God as very near. Pilgrimage is travel that is sacramental, an outward and visible sign of our inward and spiritual seeking of deeper and more profound relationship with God.
The holy isle of Iona, among the Inner Hebrides off the southwest coast of Scotland, has welcomed Christian seekers, saints, and scholars to its stone-strewn beaches, heathered hills, and ancient abbey for nearly 1500 years. In 563, Saint Columba established a community that would spread the gospel of Jesus Christ far and wide, although the island itself where they lived was only three miles long and one mile wide, and populated by far more sheep than people. Pilgrims continue to journey to Iona today, to walk the way of its enormous stone crosses, to worship among the layered ruins of the communities of faith that have called Iona home, to meet God in sea and sand and stone, and to watch parables come alive in the sheep and shepherds. Iona is one of our Christian faith’s thin places, where the veil between heaven and earth seems to disappear in the Hebridean light and wild Atlantic winds.
On the left is the Bishop’s House, our lodging on Iona, and on the right is the abbey.
We will make a pilgrimage to Iona, May 28 - June 7, 2026. On the island, we will stay at the Bishop’s House, a retreat center of the Scottish Episcopal Church. We will worship there daily, along with attending services at the Iona Abbey that is now an ecumenical community welcoming pilgrims from all over the world. Our group of 23 pilgrims will use a variety of psalms, readings, songs, and prayers as touchstones for daily reflections and the journeys we will make around the island.
Each day we will walk together to a different part of the island–beaches, hilltops, caves, pastures, and ruins. A few of the pathways are roads, most are sheep paths (sometimes level, sometimes steep), and some, in the words of poet Antonio Machado, are paths we simply make by walking. The people of the island practice radical hospitality, allowing access to ancient sites through their fields, and even providing gates and stiles to help pilgrims make their way. There will be some time each day intentionally left open for pilgrims to re-visit sites on their own, or to explore any parts of Iona not on our itinerary.
Pilgrimage Details
Itinerary at a Glance
May 28: Arrive in Edinburgh
May 29: Full Day in Edinburgh
May 30: Travel to Iona by way of Oban
May 31-June 5: Iona
We’ll spend these six days walking the holy isle and soaking up her wisdom and wonder!
June 6: Return to Edinburgh by way of Duart Castle grounds
June 7: Depart
Pilgrimage Cost
Double Occupancy: $2900 per person
Single Occupancy: $3400 (limited availability)
Air travel to/from Edinburgh is not included in the costs above.
A deposit will be due once we confirm your registration, and final payment due by April 30, 2026. Additional payment details and schedule will be provided upon registration.
Cost Includes:
Accommodations for 10 nights
Three meals/day (except alcohol, and 1 lunch on your own in Edinburgh)
Entrance fees to scheduled sites
Ground transportation for group travel
Daily rhythm of prayer and time for reflection
Pre-pilgrimage preparation (materials, bibliography and Zoom gatherings)
Gratuities/taxes for group travel and meals