Mary is a sign of God's peace to both the Church and the world - the Archbishop of York, the Most Revd Dr David Hope, said in his address at the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham National Festival in York Minster today.

Over 3,000 pilgrims from all over the country packed the Minster to celebrate Magnificat 2004 - an initiative during which the image of Our Lady of Walsingham has been taken on a fascinating journey taking in many secularplaces including, Gatwick Airport, troops based at Aldershot, Pentonville Prison and a school in Abderdare.

Dr Hope said that "if you need either a sign or a model for evangelisation today then you could not do any better surely than this Walsingham initiative - the celebration of Mary's Magnificat. Representatives of each of the places where the image had visited were present at the Service. They were joined by bishops, priests and laypeople representing a large number of churches nationwide. Music was specially composed for the service and inmates at Pentonville Prison led the prayers after preparing and recording them in advance.

Archbishop Hope added: "Whilst certainly we have in our minds those places of strife and conflict - and not least all those caught up in the ongoing hostilities in Iraq and the Middle East more generally - that message is also one which is for the Church." Dr Hope said that "moral and medical matters, questions of lifestyle and living - all of these have the possibility of leading towards separation, alienation and vision" without the message of Mary which pointed the Church to reconciliation.

Father Philip North, Administrator of the Shrine, thanked everyone who had taken part in Magnificat. He said that the response had been "fascinating - particularly the response of so many different groups of people to the message of Mary".