What comes into your head when you hear the word \u201cpilgrim\u201d\u009d \u201d\u201c not, admittedly, a frequent occurrence these days? For some it may be the Pilgrim Fathers and the Mayflower, but for many it must be: \u201cHobgoblin nor foul fiend\/Shall him dispirit\u201d\u009d, or some other lines from John Bunyan\u2019s great hymn \u201d\u201c \u201cWho would true valour see\/Let him come hither\u201d\u00a6\u201d\u009d, which actually has an alternative first line, \u201cHe who would valiant be\u201d\u00a6\u201d\u009d Anyone brought up in one of our Protestant churches will have sung that hymn, To Be a Pilgrim. As a child I always used to belt out the hobgoblin and foul fiend line, albeit tunelessly. Even today it\u2019s a favourite, and sometimes appropriate, funeral hymn.<\/p>\n
Now, a group in the Church of England is so concerned about the seeping away of our inherited Christian culture that, alarmed by the discovery that even the Lord\u2019s Prayer and the Ten Commandments are unfamiliar to many, it is offering parishes what it calls \u201cthe Pilgrim Course\u201d\u009d to teach \u201cthe basic tenets of Christianity\u201d\u009d. \u201cGive us each day our daily bread\u201d\u009d, as you might say.<\/p>\n
This seems an excellent idea, whether you are a believer and practising Christian or not.<\/p>\n