So what is the Camino de Santiago? The Camino is a Catholic
pilgrimage route to the burial place of St. James the Apostle in northwestern
Spain. While there are many ways to walk to the cathedral in Santiago,
Spain the most popular route begins in the Pyrenees mountains between Spain and
France and is called the Camino Frances or "the Way" (like the Martin
Sheen movie). The earliest pilgrims began walking this same "way" in
the 11th century (1000 years ago).
President John Adams wrote about the pilgrimage in his
autobiography:
"We were informed that the original of this shrine
and Temple of St. Iago was this: A certain shepherd saw a bright light there in
the night. Afterwards it was revealed to an archbishop that St. James was
buried there. This laid the foundation of a Church, and they have built an
altar on the spot where the shepherd saw the light. In the time of the Moors, the
people made a vow, that if the Moors should be driven from this country, they
would give a certain portion of the income of their lands to Saint James. The
Moors were defeated and expelled and it was reported and believed, that Saint
James was in the battle and fought with a drawn sword at the head of the
Spanish troops, on horseback. The people, believing that they owed the victory
to the Saint, very cheerfully fulfilled their vows by paying the tribute upon
the supposition that this is the place of the Sepulchre of Saint James, there
are great numbers of pilgrims, who visit it, every year, from France, Spain,
Italy and other parts of Europe, many of them on foot."
This route is
approximately 500 miles from start to finish. Depending on how quickly
you walk, you can finish the pilgrimage in a little over a month. I plan
to take 40 days. Somehow 40 days seems to be the right number: like the 40 days
of the biblical flood and Jesus' own 40 days in the desert. I am hopeful at the
end of the 40 days I will have a new appreciation for my faith and a clear sense
of God’s call for my life.
I welcome your prayers and good wishes.
So excited for your adventure and will be praying for you for renewal, clarity for the future and some fun surprises and friendships.
ReplyDeleteYou are in our prayers!! So excited for the adventures you are going to have and the people you will meet. Love ya Sista. 💖🌅🌈☀️🌟⛈💦✈️⛪️🎎
ReplyDeleteThanks little sisters for your comments and prayers. I leave tomorrow and I am so excited. Maybe next time you all will come with me. Love, Cathy
ReplyDeletePraying for you and excited to follow along with the blog!
ReplyDeleteThis is so exciting. Melissa from ADW! Prayers for a wonderful spiritual adventure.
ReplyDeleteBeautifully written. I pray your journey brings you new clarity for your path going forward.
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