Water Reflects a Palm Tree as We Reflect the Divine within Us

Chaucer’s pilgrims gathered and went to Canterbury, burial place of Thomas Becket. They told their stories, some quite bawdy, along the way to the shrine.

Traditionally, pilgrims from all religious backgrounds gather for travel to holy places. Muslims have the Hajj. Christians have Rome and Jerusalem.

Irish pilgrims may be the best known as they sailed forth in their currachs to distant places. An island off the western coast of Ireland served as a monastery for centuries as monks endured austere life on this North Atlantic crag. Skellig Michael is today a place of pilgrimage.

The Way, staring Martin Sheen and directed by his son, Emilio Estavez, presents us with a modern pilgrimage to the Cathedral of Santiago Compostela. It is a 500 hundred mile pilgrimage from southwestern France across northern Spain to the traditional burial site of the Apostle James. I say “traditional” because on our pilgrimage to Jerusalem, the Holy Land and Palestine, I asked our tour guide, “Is this the upper room of the last supper.” He replied, “This is the traditional site.” Continue reading →