Ever since Abraham and Sarah answered God’s call to set out on a journey of faith, pilgrimage has been a spiritual practice of seeking what one pilgrim-poet called a glimpse of the underglimmer of the holy. Such glimmer can be experienced anywhere, but it is especially restorative to travel to those thin places where the holy breaks through with abandon.

Since 2016, the Rev. Jennifer Deaton has been leading folks to explore the beauty and wonder of Iona, Scotland while also traversing their inner landscapes to strengthen their faith journeys. The (now) Rev. Jenny Newman joined Jennifer on that first trip not only as a pilgrim, but as an aspirant for the priesthood. Neither imagined that just seven years (and one ordination) later, they would join together as Little Coracles, a pilgrimage ministry that aims to teach the spiritual practice of wonder.

In case you’re curious, a coracle is a small boat traditionally made of wicker and leather in which Christian saints once set out to sea in search of opportunities to know and serve God in Christ. Though they travel today by plane, bus, and ferry, it is no less a journey of faith seeking restorative encounters with God. Their pilgrims have come mostly from the Diocese of Mississippi, but have included Episcopalians, Methodists, Presbyterians, and even a Quaker from up and down the east coast.

Another group will travel to Iona in June of 2026. Before returning to Iona, however, Jennifer and Jenny are leading a pilgrimage they have been dreaming about for years. From June 21 – July 1, 2025 they will travel to an even older, more storied shore, exploring the breathtaking landscapes from one edge to another of the northern Wild Atlantic Way of County Donegal (in the Republic of Ireland) and Northern Ireland.

County Donegal’s edges are almost all coastal and launched many faithful people across the wilderness of the sea to take light of the Gospel and the Celtic Christian tradition to new lands. On one of its beaches, John Newton composed the beloved hymn Amazing Grace. Above another, rises Sliabh Liag – the highest coastal cliffs in Europe and three times higher than the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare. The land is dotted with holy wells, sacred ruins, and natural beauty. Northern Ireland tells the story of reconciliation and healing, bridging painful political and religious rifts of society, and is home to another bridge – The Giant’s Causeway – that passes under the sea to the Isle of Staffa, a much loved visit on the Iona pilgrimage. In these places and more, they will walk in the footsteps of saints and pilgrims through a landscape filled with wonders and wild edges, ancient and yet ever-changing, contemporary, and yet transcending time and place.

The pilgrimage will begin and end in Belfast. For most of the pilgrimage, their home will be at the Ards Friary on the north coast of County Donegal. From there, they will travel by coach each day to sacred sites and natural wonders in County Donegal as well as neighboring Derry and the Antrim Coast in Northern Ireland. Additional accommodations will be at hotels in Belfast, Killybegs, and Derry, with delicious meals in local restaurants. There will be a significant amount of walking – sometimes on paved surfaces, sometimes on footpaths, and sometimes, in the words of poet Antonio Machado, on paths we simply make by walking.

In addition to Ireland in 2025 and Iona in 2026, they will lead a group to Portugal and Spain in 2027 for a walk along the Camino. If you would like to learn more about upcoming pilgrimages, you can find them on FaceBook and Instagram as @LittleCoracles, or you may simply email them at LittleCoracles@gmail.com.

The Rev. Jennifer Deaton serves St. Stephen’s, Indianola and St. John’s, Leland. The Rev Jenny Newman serves Ascension, Hattiesburg and Canterbury USM. With the support of Bishop Seage, and now Bishop Wells, they formed Little Coracles so as not to burden their local parishes with organizing and managing the financial details of the work. Little Coracles enriches the ministry of their communities, our diocese, and the church as a whole and does not personally profit either priest.