Phil Carr, who worships at St Peter and St Paul Church in King’s Somborne, has always been a keen walker, but last October on a 6 mile walk to see Bishop David bless the new car park at Awbridge Church, he suffered debilitating pains in his hips. It became worse over the coming weeks till eventually he could barely walk.
What began as an the investigation into hip pain, led to the discovery of unrelated prostate cancer during routine blood tests. “I wouldn’t have found it had I not actually gone in for the test for the hip.”
The diagnosis required urgent attention and the hip treatment became a secondary concern. He faced a series of tests and consultations at various hospitals and in early March this year he underwent three hour surgery to successfully remove the cancer. That was followed in April by the hip replacement.
Phil said, “It took probably another three months before I was mobile again, but I was very thankful for God’s healing process and I wanted to show my appreciation for that.”
This month Phil embarked on a two day ‘walk of thanksgiving’ along part of the Camino Way pilgrim’s trail, setting off from Winchester Cathedral to journey to Southampton.
Phil continued, “I wanted to walk between the two centres where I had the two operations, which is Winchester and Southampton. I’m not visiting the hospitals, but I feel that just by walking through those cities, I can pray not only for the people who did the treatment, the surgeons, the nurses and all the other staff, but also for the people who prayed for me.
“Prayers were said in Winchester churches for me, as well as my own church of King’s Somborne and I feel that those prayers and everybody’s good wishes and thoughts has really enabled this whole process to go as well as it has.”
Ahead of the walk Phil met with Lynn Power, Chaplain at Winchester Cathedral who heard his story and prayed for his journey ahead. They met in the Saint Alphege Chapel which is home to the Canterbury Cross.
She said, “I think pilgrimage is such a privilege. It’s a break in our ordinary life, a time to pull together our thoughts, to give thanks, as Phil is doing for his healing, but also a time to think about where we are going and where God is calling us to go. It’s a time often to meet with other people and have conversations that you would never have at other times as well so I think it’s a real blessing.”
76 year old Phil is eco lead at this church. His two day walk from Winchester to Southampton took him through St Cross, Twyford and Bishopstoke. He visited St Denys Church in Southampton to meet their eco team before finishing at Holy Rood Church in the city centre.
Phil has taken part in pilgrimages across the world including in Scotland and North Wales, Israel and Palestine, Ukraine and Canada. In the coming months, he is hoping to walk the Pilgrims Way from Winchester to Canterbury and pray for world peace along the route.
Along with the curate and vicar of his church, he has also created a series of walking routes between the six churches in the Braishfield Benefice, with instructions for fellow walkers to follow. He hopes to inspire others to explore God’s creation and take strength from his story.
Phil concluded, “I think on a walk through beautiful countryside, you get a sense of nature. You see flowers, trees, plants in the natural environment and if you’re lucky, you see animals and birds. If you’re walking with other people of faith, you can have interesting discussions. I know often people talk about pilgrimages and having quite deep thoughts as they’re walking and sometimes I feel God’s talking to me as I go but other times it can be just a sense of well-being and inner peace.”
