蜜芽传媒

There were plenty of photos of Prince William in the media this week 鈥� not at Ascot this time or another social occasion, but launching the annual report of his homelessness project, 蜜芽传媒wards.

The Prince of Wales first launched 蜜芽传媒wards two years ago and this years鈥� report records all kinds of different initiatives designed to tackle homelessness. But one initiative particularly intrigued me, and it鈥檚 about storytelling.

蜜芽传媒wards is now backing a project called Invisitble Cities, which trains people who have been homeless to become tour guides. The Prince鈥檚 project will help fund more guides to give visitors insights into what they love about the cities where they live. But they鈥檒l talk to them not just about the usual tourism hotspots but the city they鈥檙e familiar with as somebody who knows what it is to be homeless. In other words, the idea is to provide a different perspective.

Travelling alongside others to see life in a different light is an ancient tradition in many faiths. There is something a about the shared experience of a journey 鈥� what believers call a pilgrimage - that provides a space for conversation, bringing people that bit closer.

Other journeys, not just walks, can be helpful too. Parents have told me that teenage children who barely talk to them
will open up during a drive, whether it鈥檚 on the way to school or going off on holiday. Perhaps it鈥檚 the rhythm of a journey, or the space it gives in a crowded schedule that makes the difference. Travelling along somehow frees people to focus on something much deeper too.

One such journey 鈥� one that was life-changing 鈥� is mentioned in Luke鈥檚 Gospel. Two of Jesus鈥� followers were walking along the road to Emmaus, a few miles from Jerusalem, deep in conversation about the dramas they had recently experienced. They discussed Jesus being arrested, condemned to death, crucified, and then his body disappearing from his tomb. Joined by someone they did not recognise, they told him all about it, only for this person to offer a detailed interpretation of all that had happened. They realised eventually that this man was Jesus, risen from the dead. 鈥淲ere our hearts not burning within us while he was talking to us on the road,鈥� they said. For Christians, this is one of the key stories of the Resurrection but it seems to me another message is here too: that on your journey, if you are fully open to the other, even a stranger, if your heart burns within you, then it can be a special moment of revelation and understanding.

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