Like many other solo grey nomads, Eddie Davies, was excited beyond words when he pulled out of his driveway last week to head off on another epic Outback adventure.
But, unlike most other travellers, it’s not just the stunning scenery, campfires, bushwalking, and the prospect of meeting new friends that motivated the 79-year-old to head bush, it’s also the chance to talk to others about their spiritual life.
Eddie is a member of the Order of the Knights of the Southern Cross, a national organisation of Catholic laymen, and he believes it is out on the open road is where he can make the biggest difference.
Last summer, he travelled around western Victoria giving talks and offering support to those who needed it, and he will now be spending the next two months ‘spreading the joys of the gospel’.
Eddie enjoys talking to people ... and relaxing on the road
Exciting times … Eddie pulls out of his driveway,
The basic plan is to head to Bendigo and then travel the Newell Highway to Narrandera, and then across to The Rock Nature Reserve near Wagga Wagga, and then on up to Armidale.
“It’s not all about preaching and I don’t approach other travellers pushing religion,” Eddie said. “I will be camping the same as everyone else, doing a bit of fishing and generally being friendly and approachable.”
And he’s hard to miss.
Eddie drives a Mitsubishi Triton utility and tows a small second-hand caravan emblazoned with the words ‘Travelling Rosary Crusade Ministry’.
“I would expect to be approached by travelling Catholics maybe to join me and pray for an end to all wars and peace in our world, or even for them to request a prayer or blessing for themselves or a loved one,” he said. “Every town that I pass through, I stop and say the Rosary and read a gospel for the residents of that area … I’m a good listener and have helped many people find themselves.”
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We find that just being out in the bush surrounded by nature is enough of a religious experience for us.
NATURE, THE CATHEDRAL OF AWE.