Pilgrimage 2027 leaders
Canon Vicars Hodge |
ArchBishop David Edwards |
 Vicars Hodge
The Rev. Canon Vicars Hodge plans the itinerary and program for our pilgrimage tours. He is the liaison between our tour operators, hotels, guides & drivers, restaurants, and our group and is responsible for reservations and arrangements.
Vicars is an experienced Anglican Priest with a passion for the Holy Land and her people. Over the past 35 years he has accompanied a number of pilgrim tours in the land that St. Jerome called "The Fifth Gospel." Vicars is a retired Rector of Trinity Church, Sarnia where he continues to serve as Associate Priest. He is the Canon Missioner of the Diocese of Huron. Vicars has a keen interest in the Bible, history and theology. He will supplement the local Tour Guide’s talks, offering devotional moments and Biblical insight to the various sites we visit. Vicars will be available to answer questions as they arise. This will be Vicars’ seventh group pilgrimage to the Holy Land. As well, in 2017 he spent a 60 Day Sabbatical living at Tantur Institute, on a hill outside Jerusalem overlooking Bethlehem. Asked why he keeps returning to the Holy Land, Vicars says: "Pilgrims to the Holy Land never return home unchanged. I am thrilled to watch as the stories of scripture come to life in context and faith grows deeper.. As well, my heart sings as I watch new friendships form between western pilgrims and the people of the land. Pilgrimage has deep and enduring kingdom value and I feel honoured to be part of it." Vicars is married to Carole (who will be join this pilgrimage) and they have three adult children and three grandchildren. When he is not preaching or on pilgrimage he is usually found in his woodworking shop. |
 David Edwards
The Most Rev. David Edwards will share in the teaching and spiritual leadership of our May 2027 pilgrimage. Archbishop David brings a lifetime of pastoral ministry, biblical teaching, and evangelistic leadership, along with a deep desire to help people come to know Jesus and understand the Scriptures more fully.
Archbishop David is the tenth Bishop of Fredericton and Metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical Province of Canada, which includes the dioceses of Quebec, Montreal, and the Atlantic Provinces. Born and educated in Shropshire, England, he studied at Loughborough University and Homerton College, Cambridge, and worked as a high school history teacher before preparing for ordained ministry. He later completed studies in Religious and Evangelism Studies and earned a Master of Arts in Applied Theology from the University of Kent at Canterbury. Ordained in 1995, David served in the Diocese of Chelmsford in England, including as Bishop’s Advisor in Evangelism and in the Parish of High Ongar. In 1998 he moved to New Brunswick to become Principal of Taylor College of Evangelism. Since then, he has served in parish ministry in Saint John, as Parish Development Officer for the Diocese of Fredericton, and in wider diocesan and national leadership. David was elected coadjutor bishop on May 10, 2014, and installed as the tenth Bishop of Fredericton on September 20, 2014. In 2020 he became the 25th Metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical Province of Canada, and therefore Archbishop. He has also served on the Board of Trustees of Wycliffe College, Toronto, and as Liaison Bishop to Mission to Seafarers Canada. David enjoys reading, walking, and is a lifelong supporter of Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club — the Wolves. He is married to Debbie, who will also be joining our pilgrimage. |