In the week that followed my ordination to the priesthood in 1988, I went to stay in Goathland on the North Yorks Moors with my immediate family. There, we visited many of the places connected with Bl Nicholas Postgate. Each day we went down to Egton Bridge and its church, where I celebrated the Mass in the chapel dedicated to this martyr saint.
In the week following my Silver Jubilee celebration I made a return visit to this area, stopping to see Ugglebarnby, Ugthorpe and other places where Bl Nicholas had lived and celebrated the Mass. One such place was Fyling Old Hall near Robin Hoods Bay, and also The Hermitage, near Ugthorpe, where his house once had stood. The photo below shows the new farm house on this site.
I also drove over to see Red Barn Farm, where in 1678, he had been arrested (photo below).
This pilgrimage, twenty five years on, was a very powerful experience, for in seeking to renew my acquaintance with these sites and to gain the martyr's intercession, so much of the last twenty five years was set in relief. The extraordinary nature of the priesthood is that it has a life and direction which is unchanging yet always effective. Both we and our world were made for the Mystery of Christ. The Mission of Christ uniquely embraces the whole of reality. Being just a part of this is our joy and our all.
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