I recently completed a walk on the El Camino in Spain. I went on a pilgrimage with three friends, walking from Portugal to Santiago de Compostela. We walked 100 miles over 10 days. Most pilgrims walk 500 miles in a month from the French border.
Going on pilgrimage is common to almost all religions: in Islam, the Hadj, going to Mecca; in Judaism, going to Jerusalem. There are many sacred places for Hindus; I have been to Varanasi on the Ganges River. Of the many Buddhist pilgrimage places, I have been to the Bodi Tree where the Buddha attained enlightenment. And I have been to the Golden Temple in Amritsar, the holy place for Sikhs.
I find going on a pilgrimage to be both spiritual and moving.
Of course, I have been to many Catholic pilgrimage sites. Our three main places of pilgrimage are Jerusalem, Rome and Compostela. I have been to all three. I have also been to many Marian shrines including Fatima in Portugal, Aparecida in Brazil and Guadalupe in Mexico.
Compostela is the traditional burial site of St. James, one of Jesus’ 12 apostles. Because various sultans during the time of the crusades made it difficult for Christians to visit Jerusalem, Compostela, as the westernmost part of continental Europe, came to be seen as a substitute for Jerusalem.
Since the Middle Ages, Christians have walked to Compostela. In 2019, 350,000 pilgrims completed the walk. The estimation is that by the end of this year, half a million people will have completed the pilgrimage. It has been the subject of several films, including “The Milky Way” by Luis Buñuel and, more recently, “The Way” with Martin Sheen and Emilio Esteves.
Pilgrimage is both a social and spiritual experience. Each night, we enjoyed dinner together, conversation and wine. I was reminded of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales as we shared stories and experiences.
We met pilgrims from everywhere: a couple from Taiwan, pilgrims from India and the Philippines, and of course from every country in Europe and the Americas. After brief conversations we sent each other on our way with the phrase, “Buen Camino,” or Good Journey. This was also a time to reflect and pray as we walked.
When we arrived at Compostela, tired and sore, it was an exhilarating experience. The last day we attended the pilgrims’ Mass in the Cathedral and bid each other a safe journey back, Buen Camino.
John Bunyan’s classic, “Pilgrim’s Progress,” tells us our whole life is a pilgrimage; the walk to Compostela reminded me of that. I thought of the poem by Antonio Machado:
Caminante, no hay camino,
se hace camino al andar.
Al andar se hace el camino,
y al volver la vista atrás
se ve la senda que nunca
se ha de volver a pisar.
Wayfarer, there is no road,
you make your way as you go
and when you turn your head
to see where you have been,
you see the path
you will never again tread.
Father Jose Rubio is the Retired in Residence Pastor of St. Mary’s Catholic Parish in Gilroy. He is one of the original members of the Interfaith Clergy Alliance of South County. Father Jose can be reached at jo********@*sj.org.
