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The Camino Isn’t A Pilgrimage Anymore

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It has always been my intention to surprise / astonish, if at all possible. On this topic, as a religious / spiritual individual, my recommendation is to experience. That is all, just experience. If hikers are not peregrinos to start, and return for more, they have begun to evolve.

It's not the duty of peregrinos to judge / police the intentions of everyone on a Camino. It is our task to become a better version of ourselves. A good way to do that, is to walk your own way first, and help those who you find in need, as you go.
 
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I have no religious belief. I’ve only walked 2 Caminos and COVID deprived me of my attempt at the entire Frances in 2020. I love long distance walking and have walked a number of trails in England. One of the reasons I love the Camino is the “spiritual” impact of those who have walked it over the course of its magnificent history. It really feels like a privilege and a dutyto walk their footsteps. Footpaths develop over time and they also have their own story. Whether or not a person is religious it is impossible to attempt to understand our civilisation without an appreciation of the role played by religion. I am also a hispanophile, I speak the language and love the landscape, the culture and the people. Oh, and I love the food and wine.
 
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Such a good question @VNwalking: ‘And what do I want to sow’. Thank you for that.

You know it seems this topic is on the one hand, posing an individual lens question about a large body of participants headed to Santiago on the pilgrimage routes. And on the other, it is considering whether this large collective body of people is no longer on pilgrimage.

We can maybe laugh at the paradox.

I get the pondering. It’s a busy trail these days.

And yet, arguably any large body of people can never be taken as a homogenous group. Why does it need to be?Even three or four people will have different reasons. Even one or two. Even one will have different reasons within themselves, conflicting and jousting for importance. along different stages. It did for me, consciously and unconsciously.

None of us are immune from judging others. Mea Culpa. But my pack is lighter when I notice judgement slumped, heavy and moldy in my pack. I don’t want to carry it the whole time. I need to biff it out quite often when I am walking.
Instead I work to replace this response by allowing the process of journeying on Camino to in tun, cradle, rough, and tumble me as I draw my own meanings. Footfall in footfall.

Buen Camino!.
 
I'm new here, and this year will be my first Camino but a few years ago I did John O'Groats to Land's End (the length of Great Britain) which wasn't a pilgrimage in and of itself but there's something about a long walk like that which changes you. For me, committing to a do a journey like this where I'm going to be walking day in, day out for several weeks, is accepting that I'm going into a process where I don't know what the outcome will be for me. Whoever you are, to walk that sort of distance in that manner involves having to spend a lot of time in your own head and starting to understand the size of the world around us. I think it's about accepting we can't know what the answer is for ourselves, let alone for others, until we've done it.

Though as a newcomer to this, the one thing that strikes me as very different about the Camino to other walks and ways I've done or read about is that wider community around it. Having seen a few accounts of walking it by different people one thing that strikes me is that those who came out of it feeling dissatisfied with it were those who saw it as just another long-distance walk and weren't engaging in the community around it, which isn't just the people who happen to be walking it with you. But I'm still exploring and discovering all this.
 
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When I go its like detaching from everyday life. Once asked I explained " its like meditation that's only ends when you reach your final destination". I'm going to Porto in May so I can leave life behind once again and get in touch with the auld H.P for 14 days and that's good enough for me. Daniel
 
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I know what a hipster is. I use to work with some and we'd bust their chops calling them "hipster" and they'd bust us back with "boomer". All good natured and fun and that's just the chop busting we did to each other that I can share on here without being vulgar .
I do remember their propensity for a type of beard, skinny jeans and boots.
 
I'm only able to answer for myself: Yes, the Camino is a pilgrimage for me, a Christian, non denomination.
I was given the call at a very crucial time in my life, I answered it. It was an answer to my prayer and a true blessing. My life has never been the same and I can't imagine life without the Camino, it's in my DNA. I take seriously the pilgrimage to Santiago, to pay homage to the apostle of Jesus, St James. Every step I take is mine and that of all who have walked before me. I love the Camino and all the people/pilgrims it brings. I've walked and talked with so many types of souls, some the same and some so different. Doing so has made me a better person. I hope one day to walk and talk with some of the members from this forum. Until then God Bless and Buen Camino!!

 
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The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
I visited Galicia about 15 years ago and saw pilgrims walking. It stayed in my mind. I took up walking and started thinking of places I would enjoy walking. I heard about the Camino and remembered seeing the pilgrims. The seed grew in my mind. As I approached 60 I thought about it more. I mentioned it to a good friend. We talked about it then started planning. We are walking our first Camino in May with another friend. The Camino has called me for 15 years. That’s the only reason I’m going to walk it.
 
My take is a little simple. To me, if you are going to or on the Camino looking for something, you are on pilgrimage. The "how" you go isn't relevant to me, and the "what" you're looking for, you may not know. I may be frustrated with the people walking and talking loudly, or playing recorded music, or running along, or participating in the "great camino bed race," or taking taxis through the "boring" parts.... but that doesn't mean that they're not on pilgrimage. It just means that I don't like the way they do it. No more, no less.

I happen to be a practicing Roman Catholic. That influences how I look, and what I hope to find. But that doesn't grant me the exclusive right to the term peregrina. In fact, I would like it that more people would come looking with me...

On a related note - as the parent of two, I tend to read some of the frustration expressed in books and memoirs on the Camino as similar to how parents in my country criticize each other's decisions and choices. "Oh, *I* would never do x, y, z...." In my lifetime, I've noted that the criticizer either wants to feel better about their own choices, or has the honest - and mistaken - belief that the choices they made are the best for everybody else. To me, the criticism just wastes a lot of energy.

If we want to make the Camino better - then let's volunteer, if we can. Build, if we can. Send funds, if we can't. Support each other here, if that's all we can spare. But resign from the Camino because it's no longer what you wanted it to be? How does that help?
 
Walking the Camino becomes very meditative. In that it is, that pull we feel is an urging to "listen" to God instead of always asking God for something. I believe this is why I've gone four times, my husband five times, and we will go again in Sept.
 
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The acceptance of being different does not arise out of an emptiness, it develops out of love for oneself. Only if you be able to love yourself, you can meet others in a value-free manner.

This point of view helped me once, to stop judging the "Others "
I hope my English skills brings it to the other side!

can't wait to see/meet more pilgrims again!

Dennis
 
I will admit that I haven't read all of the responses, so likely this has been said before.

The Camino was never exclusively walked by people for religious reasons. Not in the middle ages. Not in the 70s, 80s and 90s of the 20th century when it was being revived. Not now. Some people still do walk for religious reasons. Some people do not. As it ever was.

It is as much a pilgrimage route as it has ever been. And like it has always been, that includes some people who start walking for completely non-religious reasons but who find more in the experience.

Not shooting the messenger, but I am probably missing the point of the question.
 
No idea why the OP asked the question, but having read all the responses (slow morning in Kona... the way I like them), I have been struck by several of the responses that are full of deep insights and provide food for thought as I prep for the next hike (VF from Canterbury to Rome).
Thank you for your insights into the history of those who have walked before us, in some ways similar to the respondent who pointed out that pre-Christian walkers walked to the edge of the earth in this same area (something of which I was unaware). And so, it seems that we are but the most recent beings who have chosen to walk a path for reasons that are hugely varied and for many of us, the motivation is complicated or unclear.
In short, not sure there was a point to be missed, just a query about motivation that elicited a great deal of insight and introspection.
Buen Camino...
 
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So not going to possibly read through all the responses, but you have to define a pilgrimage yourself. I truly, truly believe this word has different context and meaning for everyone differently. For many years convicts were sentenced to walk. Were they pilgrims? I would say yes. They probably suffered the most (sometimes deservingly, but probably often not). But it’s not about suffering. If someone sends packs ahead who is 60 and doesn’t stay in a dorm, still a pilgrim in my mind, NO QUESTION. Cheap 23 year old who eats bread along the way and stays at donativos. Same thing. Everyone is so, so different. But that’s the beauty, if you open yourself up you’ll meet so many people from so many different walks of life. Some annoying, some endearing, both loved. I’ve walked 6 Caminos in different sections doing frances full once, Portugues once. I will walk Porto to fisterra in June. Do I have a calling? Yes, I’m drawn to it. But I’m very very atheist. I don’t think it matters. Could your Camino be bolstered by your faith? Absolutely. The natural beauty, the quietness, the churches, the history. Sure. But as an addict (I plan to go every year for at least two weeks, then when retired multiple times) I’d say it’s the people you meet, the adventure, the country itself, the feeling of hiking and not exactly knowing your final destination (at least for me). Why on earth would I lay on a beach (I know that’s some people’s jam, but not mine)? If you embrace it and love it, you are a pilgrim. You don’t have to be religious. And now in 21st century are there really “true” pilgrimages anyways? Enjoy life, especially the way you like to enjoy it and forget about labels.
 
One of my favorite things about this thread is the acceptance of so many different ways to approach the same goal. I'll be the 100km American lady who gets a limited time off and has 6 days to walk the Way in the best way for me. And I get the knowledge of someone who routinely walks the full length multiple times and is willing to share what they have learned.
 
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The Camino, like any pilgrimage route, like any landscape, like any trail replete with history (good, bad, and ugly), is much bigger than any single person walking it. Questioning the motives of others is tempting (and we have all done it!), but not, to my mind, in keeping with the spirit of a true pilgrim. The Camino welcomes all for whatever reason they walk. You might not change hearts or minds, but the walking will do what it always does - forge the heart of a pilgrim. That is what makes the exercise magical, dramatic, powerful, and compelling enough for us to want to protect it against perceived interlopers.

But remember, if you bemoan the commercialization of a longstanding pilgrim route, you can always go your own way. In the words of the wonderful Antonio Machado, no hay camino/se hace camino al andar.
 
You might have a more nuanced view of "repeat offenders" in time....

B
 
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The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
Thank you for a a great set of insights on this, much appreciated!

B
 
The Camino is peculiar among Western Christian pilgrimages, as it has always been unusually open to non-Catholics.

And tourism has always been a part of it, and it's a mistake to view that as contrary to Christian purposes.

But it remains first and foremost a Catholic Christian pilgrimage Way, or network of them, no matter how much touristification is put into it by local Government and tourist boards.

I've put some deeper thoughts on related matters in another thread : https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/origins-of-pilgrimage.73058/post-995729
 
Ummmm...yeah... I can see how you might feel that way.

B
 
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There is a fair bit of evidence that long before it was a Christian pilgrimage, it was a pagan one. Rituals, which in many ways are important to impressing upon our minds changes in our social and emotional states, or in actively changing our social or emotional states, are readily adapted to support different belief systems. Their importance to us is sturdier than any dogma we hang upon them.
 
andarapie said:
There is a fair bit of evidence that long before it was a Christian pilgrimage, it was a pagan one.
Click to expand...
Not this particular pilgrimage really, albeit that a pre-Christian pilgrimage to Fisterra may have existed following a roughly similar route as the Francès.

But Compostela did not even exist before becoming a pilgrimage destination, so previous pilgrimages can hardly have had it for their own destination !!
Ritual and doctrine are very closely interconnected, each seeking to be a reflection of the other. It is when they are disconnected that they lose meaning, which is I guess just a fancier way of expressing what worried jsalt in the OP.
 
This 100%!

I found the camino due to a combination of unemployment in my late 50s (lots of time, no money and poor fitness). A cheap holiday? Maybe…Not a pilgrimage at all since I don’t have a religious bone in my body. Hiwever, I did need to get out and do something, just about anything in fact other than feel sorry for myself. So I did. Walking the camino (repeatadly) helped me through a difficult few years. That’s it. Why am I going back again? Well this time I suppose I could be accused of being more of a tourist, since it will be a time-limited no expense spared pilgrimage to the path that helped me get some perspective on life, get back on track and get fit. So when I wasn’t looking for a pilgrimage I found one, but now I’m deliberately going on a pilgrimage I‘m a tourist. Funny eh?
 
Let us pick up your suitcase once you arrive in Europe....
...and ship it to Santiago for storage. You pick it up once in Santiago. Service offered by Casa Ivar (we use DHL for transportation).
JabbaPapa said:
Ritual and doctrine are very closely interconnected, each seeking to be a reflection of the other. It is when they are disconnected that they lose meaning
Click to expand...
True. But ritual thus unlinked from old doctrine can easily acquire new meaning. Even today's Catholic Pilgrims to Santiago have different beliefs than Catholic pilgrims 1000 years ago. Not to mention everyone who isn't Catholic. Having a fundamentalist, fixed, idea of what is happening along the Camino denies its evolution.

We may not like what is evolving (which is the crux of this thread), but change is unavoidable.

All of us together have collective agency about what the Camino becomes. Majority rules. Correct me if I'm wrong @jsalt, but I think Jill's original question may be coming from concerns that the commercial voices are drowning out the rest of us.
 
andarapie said:
There is a fair bit of evidence that long before it was a Christian pilgrimage, it was a pagan one.
Click to expand...
There is an enormous amount of speculation that claims that Camino walking was a pagan pilgrimage long before it was a Christian pilgrimage.

This speculation is frequently presented as fact on this forum and in guidebooks.
 
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JabbaPapa said:
The Camino is peculiar among Western Christian pilgrimages, as it has always been unusually open to non-Catholics.
Click to expand...
I agree, provided that "the Camino", as a Western Christian pilgrimage, refers to the last 40+ years or so.

Before that, the pilgrimage to Saint James in Santiago de Compostela was not open to non-Catholics. There were no non-Catholics who were pagans, Jews, heretics and vagabonds who participated in pilgrim masses, and were welcomed to these masses, and received a benediction for the road or who stood, with arms crossed, in front of the priest at the alter together with those who received the Eucharist wafer ('Host'). Nor did they receive a piece of paper from the Cathedral to confirm their journey to Santiago if that's where they had travelled to. This is contemporary and not traditional.

The famous medieval poem, often cited and where the line in italics is taken from refers to Christian hospitality for all travellers on the road to and from any other destination and for any purpose (mainly business, church matters and diplomacy matters) and not to any non-Catholic pilgrims on the way to Santiago. Historic facts about the pilgrimage to Santiago are frequently downplayed or turned upside down in this context.
 
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Actually, the beard thing is a running gag in my peer group out in the woods of northern Sweden. We all occasionally have beards, lumberjack shirts or other items used by instagram outdoor-hipsters. But our beards are not as perfectly trimmed and our gear and clothing shows signs of heavy use and we have it for a purpose, not to show off. So yes, we also have a stereotype here ;-)
But what I wanted to say is that you then have a definition which might not be the same of that of others. And that theses stereotypes should not be used to judge someone as a person when it comes to more serious matters than appearance.
 
Just picking up on that. It is really a shame that most of you Americans do not get longer times off work. I really feel so sorry for all of you
This is one strong reason (but not the only one) why I never ever considered working in the US although I had several chances to do so.
On my last job in Germany the company actually put pressure on its employees to take at least two weeks or better three weeks off in a row at least once a year ... as this was supposed good for mental health and for keeping the workforce capable of high performance in both quality and quantity for many years.
Here in Sweden this is even more extreme.
I really hope that some day in your life you will gain more flexibility.
 
Last year, on the Francés, I became both cynical and inspired, experienced greed, theft, selfishness, xenophobia and unmitigated disrespect for The Way and fellow pilgrims. I also experienced moments of the total opposite - charity, kindness, spiritual inspiration and pure friendship and humanity. It was my most exasperating and uplifting experience of them all, answering as many questions as those it created.
At one point I regarded the Camino as 'The Way of Saint James, Spanish Patron Saint of Tourism'! For me, that's what being on Camino is - I go to be challenged in positive and negative ways, at some time to emerge from the experience in what ever way it has all taught me.
I am now wary of the tourism and technology, but do not doubt that every single person brought to the Camino has been called to it, for what ever reason.
 
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Kathar1na said:
The famous medieval poem, often cited and where the line in italics is taken from
Click to expand...
Don't know about italics, but you know I am of a different opinion as yours on this question.

I have seen a much earlier version of the text than the one usually shared, which seems to have been modernised in the 16th-17th Century (? IIRC ?), the earlier one being a bit longer.
 
I walked the Camino Frances for the third time in 2016 - 14 years after my previous walk. In some ways I was prepared for the vastly increased numbers but I was quite disturbed and disappointed by the scale of commercialism and by the change in behaviour and attitude of many of those walking. This played on my mind for a lot of my walk. When I got home I wrote a short piece just to clarify my thinking and exorcise this distracting train of thought. Not for publication though I did sent it privately to a few friends with an interest in pilgrimage - some of them on this forum. It may be time to give it a public airing. My friends mostly recognised where my tongue was in my cheek. If in doubt I suggest you toss a coin to decide... Just offering this modest proposal now to help continue the debate.

manifesto.pdf

drive.google.com
 
I don't understand this comment. I referred to the poem known as La Preciosa. Usually only one line is quoted on the form. I put the quote in italics because it is a quote. I do this this with quotes, titles and foreign words in English text.

The line in question is usually quoted in English on this forum. It was first made known to a wider public in the 19th century when Fr Fita, a well-known Spanish scholar, published it. He based it on two codices: a copy preserved in the Archive of the Collegiate Church of Roncesvalles and a copy preserved in the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich.

I don't recall that the word pilgrim occurs in the text.

I see that Fr Fita published under the title Carmen in laudem Rosciuallidis.
 
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I see that Fr Fita published under the title Carmen in laudem Rosciuallidis.
Click to expand...
And with the internet of the 21st century being a fabulous tool, one can find Fr Fita's publication of December 1883 in the Biblioteca virtual on www.cervantesvirtual.com.

The line in question starts with Porta patet omnibus. The door of the Roncesvalles Inn & Hospital is open for everybody. Not the Camino as a Christian pilgrimage. I don't see how an issue can even arise out of this poem when read in context. And all this refers to the Middle Ages, not to today.

My point being, but this is the topic of the other current pilgrimage thread, that we can see the past through our eyes or we can try to see it through the eyes of those who lived then. And that the definition of pilgrimage of the past is no longer a commonly accepted definition in our modern global world and age. And that Camino and pilgrimage are not synonyms although often used as synonyms on the forum, including in this thread.
 
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Kanga said:
I love it. And, as a woman and therefore not a member, can I offer to adjudicate in instances of dispute? I have skills with a clipboard and a propensity to sit in judgment.
Click to expand...
Ah “The Sisterhood of the Brethren of the Campaign to Restore an Authentic Pilgrimage” I like it would you be identifiable only by a clipboard bearing the legend “Only God and The Sisterhood can judge me” (I feel a new tattoo calling)
 
There is a general theme throughout the forums and feelings of Camino that everyone should "walk their own walk", yet at the same time there are a lot of "judgy" or "clicky" people that seem to feel only specific demographics can walk for pre-defined reasons or with specific gear. It is great that we are able to share learnings, advice and support from varied opinions but (jovial or not) referring to a group of people as "mere tourists" or "hipsters" etc feels counter to the whole atmosphere of inclusiveness and support that drew me to this experience. Glad to see that in this thread (as with in life) those people do seem to be in the minority.


For myself I am heading to the Camino for several reasons, a number of which have already been mentioned.

I was fortunate in my younger years to travel quite a lot, and experience cultures and peoples from all around the world. What is known and taken for granted is different for everyone and by mixing with different cultures you can learn about them and yourself.

Unfortunately, adult life gets in the way and time off becomes restricted to shorter holidays. The Camino presents me an opportunity to spend time with people from various cultures, learning and sharing on a joint journey.

I am not religious or spiritual so would say I am walking the Camino for the personal challenge, the fitness and the sense of achievement I will get at the end. I also work a highly stressful and very organised job. I am at a point in my life where I approach a crossroads. Decisions around longer term careers, where and when I want to settle and what I want to achieve in my remaining working years, the Camino gives me the break from regular life to consider these.

So, whilst I say I am not religious or spiritual when you break my reasons down, they are very spiritual in nature:
  • Being present in the moment and allowing outside thoughts to pass away.
  • Searching for inner peace / wellness of mind.
  • Build better relationships with myself and with others.
  • A sense of belonging or part of something larger than me.
So whilst I do not expect to find God, or become more religious or spiritual as a person I do see the Camino as my own pilgrimage in that I intend to find myself, to become stronger physically and mentally whilst growing as a person during a difficult time for all of us.

Look forward to meeting some of you on the way whatever your reasons, backgrounds or outlooks.

Buen Camino
 

Yes, sounds pretty perfect. I did once set out a list of my Rules. But they need revision.

I know that for some the Camino is a serious undertaking, founded on tragedy and sorrow, for others an attempt to fill deeply felt needs - to those of you to whom that applies - nothing matters but what is in your heart.

But for the rest of you! Yes - my rules apply. A campaign to return the Camino to Authentic Pilgrimage (but only as I see it).
 
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Bradypus said:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6...drivesdk&resourcekey=0-KUEwTx0dRcozcegw0BxYPw
Click to expand...
Brilliant. Just brilliant. I noticed that it was not disclosed to me until today. I fully understand. I blame the circumstances of my birth. The moment when the midwife said: "It's a girl". Although, if I understand correctly, there is a sliver of hope for a honorary membership.

Kanga said:
And, as a woman and therefore not a member, can I offer to adjudicate in instances of dispute? I have skills with a clipboard and a propensity to sit in judgment.
Click to expand...
Could I become your assistant? My qualification: Have slept under the stars several times. Once when it rained a bit.
 
Appreciate the call out that this is tongue in cheek though a few points ring of irony (intended or not) for example the desire to create a "cult" to seek out Refugio's to move away from the touristic feel of luxuries whilst on the first page admits to taking advantage of many of the changes (and acknowledges that they are positive). Plus a lot of consideration of how things need to change based on the behaviour of one person (as the only example given in the document).

Is this a satirical reflection on the world as it seems to be today?
- only give me the bits I like but take out the bits I don't regardless who else likes or dislikes those elements.
- allow me to judge entire groups of people based on my observations of 1.

Either way makes for an interesting read
 
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My point was that people have been going on long trips, often to the ocean, since before we walked out of Africa, tens of thousands of years before someone found some bones near Compostela. For political, economic, and religious reasons, that impulse was adapted into the Camino.

This ritual, and the impulse for the ritual, existed before someone decided to join that to a doctrine. Just as people were being born a long time before someone came up with baptism; they were being married long before someone came up with the sacrament of marriage; they were dying long before someone came up with last rites and funeral masses; the winter solstice was celebrated long before someone came up with Christmas, etc.

Obviously we differ on this, but my point is that it is the ritual - the activity - which provides the meaning, not the doctrine. The doctrine is someone's ideas that most people rarely or never think about, and which an institution tries to imbed in a ritual so that they are not forgotten. It's the ritual, however, that people respond to, because they enjoy it in itself or because it marks something important to them or provides an expression of emotion that is cathartic.
 
Kathar1na said:
I don't understand this comment. I referred to the poem known as La Preciosa. Usually only one line is quoted on the form. I put the quote in italics because it is a quote. I do this this with quotes, titles and foreign words in English text.
Click to expand...
Not at all the 13th Century text that I've seen.

We seem to be talking at cross-purposes.

But as to "Not the Camino as a Christian pilgrimage" ...

Iacobite Iacobum pie requirentes,
Sua secum Iacobo munera ferentes,
Sepulture machinam circumspicientes,
Laudes deo referunt genua flectentes.

The reference is explicit and overt to Santiago foot pilgrims, walking to the tomb of Saint James in pious request, and bearing their sins to the Apostle.

Verum strenuissimus uir, rex Nauarrorum,
Construxit ecclesiam hic peregrinorum,
Eis decem milium prebens solidorum
Duraturos redditus et quadringentorum.

Built this church for pilgrims ...
 
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Thank you all for your responses. The only reason for the original post was to reopen the discussion on why we feel the “call” to walk the camino in these modern times, mainly for the new people on the forum. That was all. Just to ask one’s self: why am I doing this? I got shot down a few times, but I didn’t mean to offend, sorry if I did.
 
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