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Bicester and Islip Deanery

Five benefices working together for faith and the future

Pilgrim Paths

Pilgrim Paths is a series of circular walks around the villages of the Bicester and Islip Deanery, linking groups of two, three or four churches. Learn more

For information about upcoming community walks, check the What's On page.

If you want to contact the team or receive email updates about future community pilgrimages then email bicislip.pilgrimpaths@gmail.com.

Please find information on individual walks, including leaflets, see below.

Anyone is welcome to join the group on Facebook; it's a great way to stay informed about new leaflets being published.

Walks

A pilgrimage is a spiritual journey to a sacred place.

These leaflets offer Bible passages and reflections to accompany your journey, with suggestions of places to pause. Please allow much more time than you would usually spend on a walk to be able

to contemplate the journey.

The circular walk may include road walking through villages, footpaths through woods and fields and negotiating some stiles. You may also encounter sheep, cattle or horses grazing in the fields.

Below, you'll find eight leaflets available for download, with more scheduled for publication. While some leaflets are accessible in churches, all can be downloaded here.

Hethe to Hardwick to Cottisford

Circular Walk

Distance: 4 miles

Lower Heyford to Upper Heyford

Circular Walk

Distance: 3.25 miles

Oddington to Noke to Islip

Circular Walk

Distance: 5.25 miles

Weston-on-the-Green,
Kirtlington, Bletchingdon

Circular Walk

Distance: 5.6 miles

Oddington to

Charlton-on-Otmoor

Circular Walk

Distance: 3.65 miles

Bletchingdon, Hampton Gay,

Kirtlington
Circular Walk

Distance: 7.6 miles

Oddington to Noke
Circular Walk

Distance: 3.75 miles

Bletchingdon Kirtlington

Circular Walk

Distance: 3.9 miles

Bicester Town
Circular Walk

Distance: 3.2 miles

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The Bicester and Islip Deanery Pilgrim Paths group is a small dedicated team whose purpose is to
create a number of pilgrimage routes linking up the churches within the Deanery.

A pilgrimage is a spiritual journey to a holy place and can be undertaken alone or in a group, with friends,

family or strangers and these Deanery pilgrimage routes offer an opportunity to enjoy the beauty of the
countryside, while exploring and learning. Each walk is accompanied by a leaflet that describes the
route and offers Bible passages and reflections to accompany the walker on their journey, with
suggestions of places to pause and reflect. The leaflets also contain information about the history of
the churches visited, as well as other places of interest along the route. The walks generally follow
footpaths and bridleways and are of varying distances, ranging from 3 miles to 12 miles.

The group also organises occasional community pilgrimage walks in the Deanery and these have
proved to be very popular. A group of about 25 walkers recently enjoyed a gentle stroll from Charlton-on-Otmoor to Oddington and back, and there will be a further walk on Sunday 8th September,
starting at 2pm at St. Olave’s Church, Fritwell. Further details of this walk will be published on the
group’s Facebook page in due course, and also on What's On section of this website.

The team is keen to promote pilgrimage within the Deanery, so if any churches feel they want to
organise a pilgrimage walk of their own and want advice, then the team would be happy to help.
The team would also welcome new members who want to get involved in developing the pilgrimage
walks as part of the team’s ongoing work. If you want to find out more about what this involves
then we would love to hear from you.

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