On Sunday 10th May, some hundred people partook in a Walk for Life through the narrow streets of the ancient city of York over a two mile distance. The Walk was organised by the lay organisation ‘People for Life’ of the Diocese of Leeds.

After one hour of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament at the RC Church of St Wilfrid, sited alongside York Minster, the procession walked through the city’s narrow streets which were thronged by residents, tourists and shoppers. Passers-by were offered a Divine Mercy leaflet which also referred to pre-abortion and post-abortion counselling contacts via phone or e-mail.

The Walk halted at the bank of the River Ouse where prayers were said and flowers were strewn into the river to commemorate the seven million victims of abortion in the UK since the 1967 Abortion Act. The next stop was at the Bar Convent grounds where a martyrs litany was prayed and individual veneration of the preserved hand of St Margaret Clitherow. She was the wife of the Protestant Mayor of York, a convert to Catholicism, who harboured clandestine priests, and it was this that caused her to be executed whilst still carrying her unborn child.

The Walk then continued to York racecourse, known as the Knavesmire, on part of which site lay and priestly Catholics were hung, drawn and quartered. Here the Walk for Life held further prayers and sang hymns. It was to the Knavesmire racecourse that Pope John Paul II made a Rally visit during his England tour in 1982.

The Walk concluded with Holy Mass at English Martyrs Church.