Seminarians' Pilgrimage

Today we marched about 30k. We talked among ourselves and with other pilgrims but a good deal of the journey was also spent in silence. Usually a portion of our daily walk is spent in our own thoughts. Currently, we are walking through a portion of Spain referd to as the mensa, since it is just about as flat as a table. With little elevation change, there isn’t a lot to look at besides the path in front of you, the fields to the side, and the far distant mountain outlines if they come into view. Here shade is infrequent and it is very hot.

Among such bleak settings there isn’t much to do besides talking and thinking. Some even come to El Camino to think out some issue in their life or to make some big decision. Neither luke nor myself have come for such a purpose, yet, I find it hard to avoid the expectation of grandiose thoughts and break through moments. The Camino has challenged me to live more simply, to trust in God’s providence, and to just enjoy life, but there have not been any large realizations or great discoveries. What I have learned, I have learned by the little things: the difficulties, conversations, silence, and joys throughout the day. I am reminded of the eloquence of the ordinary things if only we take some time to listen. God speaks to us through our surroundings, whether that is the mensa of Spain or our own houses and work places. I have given up my earlier hope for great ideas and have settled for the beauty of the littler thoughts that present themselves to me.

Sometimes, you just run out of things to think about. In the heat and the tiredness it brings, it can also become difficult to pray. In such cases, i have found it helpful to pray the Jesus prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.” This short prayer originates from the East and some Church Fathers teach that it is a summary of the Gospel. It is meant to be repeated in large numbers to foster meditation and it really does! Even if I am not able to reflect on its meaning or a specific part of it, the simple prayer allows me to call to mind the presence of God, his bountious love, and my need for him. We learned about the prayer in our spirituality class this last semester “Life of the Soul” with Dr. Cimoreli. We had the option to pray it 500 each day for a week to get a feel for it, but both Luke and I chose a different option to fulfill the assignment . We are now catching up on the opportunity and enjoying it.

Lastly, on the eve of the Solemnity of the Nativity of John the Baptist, I woukd like to give a shout out to Dcn. Joseph Baker who will be ordained a priest tomorrow, Friday. We’re sorry that we can’t make it but will be keeping him in our prayers. Please do the same as he prepares for such a special day for him and the local Church of Madison. If you wish to attend the ordination, it will be at St. Maria Goretti Church at 7:30pm on Friday, tomorrow.

-Michael

Looking at the guide book earlier this morning, we saw that the road ahead of us was going to be more psychologically challenging than the past few days. The route followed an ancient Roman road for about 26K. The road was completely flat and strait, with little to no shade. There had been snow capped mountains before, but today there was no scenic views. This provided us with ample time to chat and discuss more about what we study.

In the college seminary we primarily study philosophy. This science may seem to be somewhat unimportant for a Catholic parish priest to know, but it is actually incredible important. It is upon this science that we begin to grasp greater concepts in theology. Michael and I had no real experience with philosophy prior to seminary, but we have enjoyed learning it. It is not uncommon for us to walkout of a lecture and talk about how both of our minds have been blown. You can say that we have had many lightbulb moments over the past three years.

Since we love what we study, it is sometimes hard to not stop thinking about school, even on the Camino. A fellow pilgrim wanted to hear all about what we study. The conversation took many different forms over the next five hours, but it was incredibly fruitful. We were able to discuss not only philosophy, but also some basics of the Catholic Church. It was a tremendous amount of information and new knowledge for this other pilgrim, yet at the end of the conversation they said their outlook on religion and Catholicism had changed for the better.

Our discussion didn’t only make the long walk go much faster, but it reminded me once again of how important it is to further our own knowledge of the faith and help others to discern the truth. Leanring and teaching the faith is not something that takes a few days or even years to become proficient at. Rather, it takes a lifetime. Often this involves meeting people where they are at, and above all conversing with charity.

– Luke

Luke uploaded the picture post that he’s been working at for a few days. I hope it gives a good glimpse our day to day life. I thought that it would still be good to give a bit of a recap from the past two days.

Yesterday, while taking a midday rest inside a small town cafe, we saw a man at the counter with a “Catholic University” shirt on. After a second look, Luke and I immediately placed bets on whether he was diocesean or religious, there was no question that he was a seminarian. Somehow, we can just tell. He turned out to be a sem from Texas, studying at CUA in D.C. named Wade. He was going to stop for the day but joined us for the last 6k of our route.

This morning, I left a little earlier to walk with our friend Robert, Sem for Winona, while Luke walked with the rest of our walking group. Robert and I stopped at a Church for a bite to eat and some prayers 10ks into the morning. There we ran into Wade again, and walked the rest of the day with him, stopping at another beautiful Church, Santa Maria Blanca.

We all met up at the Albergue in Carrion de Los Condes. For dinner I cooked up a bit too much rice and veggies, with some sausage. We had some left over and shared with a biker who came in late.

The evening ended with Mass and some card games. It was really cool to attend Mass in a group of four seminarians from the states. The priest  was celebrating his 13th aniversary of ordination. He offered a beautiful pilgrims blessing service with the local nuns. It was another awesome experience of the Camino Community that is local and foreign and spands throughout the world.

Know of our continued prayers and please keep us in your daily prayers aswell as we travel the pilgrimage of life together.

-Michael

I have wanted to do a picture post for quiet some time now, but it has been fairly difficult to find reliable wifi. The albergue we are staying at today has the best internet connection yet, and with it I want to give you a taste of what has become our life for the past two weeks. Enjoy!

Every night we stay in an Albergue. Albergues are hostiles specifically meant for pilgrims walking the Camino. The people working at these places are mostly volunteers and have been incredibly kind to us. They are also very efficient at what they do. Upon entering an albergue you are almost always requested to take off your boots to keep the place clean. The picture below shows a normal room in which boots and walking sticks are stored.

The Camino is not just about walking from one city to another everyday until you get to Santiago. There are many small attractions and beutiful cities nessetled along the route. One of the more memorable stops was a monestary that made its own wine. They have installed a free flowing fountain to there shop, so pilgrims can enjoy a sip or two of wine before they head on there way.

Micahel and I had been planning this trip for almost a year. In that time, a large portion of my efforts was directed towards packing. Since we have been walking 30K most days, it is extremely important that we only carry what we need. The day before I left I layed everything out for a final evaluation. This picture is the end result.Shells and Socks. These are two of the most common items attached to pilgrims backpacks. People clip their heavy wool hiking socks to their packs to throughly dry them out in the hot sun. Placing shells on the pack is an ancient pilgrim tradition. Not only are shells ancient symbols within the Catholic Church, but they are also used by pilgrims to indicate to others that they are headed to Santiago.

There are many routes to Santiago, the most popular and the one which we are currently on is the French route. It starts it the small beautiful town of St. Jean Pier de Port and continues about 800K to Santiago. Although there are ample guide books and maps, they aren’t really necessary. Everywhere we go there are either shells or yellow arrows pointing us in the right direction. In some of the larger cities the shells are built into the streets and sidewalks.

When we are not walking through small villages, we are trecking across the country side. These sections can be blistering hot, but also scenic.

We have been extremely fortunate to find pilgrim Masses being celebrated almost everyday. The churches have all been architecturally astonishing. Most of the sanctuaries are covered in beautiful ornatments. The picture below was taken after we prayed compline, or night prayer, with other pilgrims from our albergue.

Once on the way to Santiago, the Camino is very inexpensive. One of the best ways to keep costs low is to go the local market with other pilgrims and make a communal meal. These dinners have provided much laughter after the long days walk.

For the most part, the weather has been dry and hot. Only one day so far did we need to break out our rain gear. The rain is not much fun because it turns a lot of the dirt roads and paths into small rivers. After walking in the rain for a few hours, it stopped as soon as we reached our destination. This was slightly upsetting, but it soon revealed this beautiful rainbow.

Pictured below is Hontanas at dusk. The population of the town is around 80 people. The church dominates the small town square and still hosts a daily pilgrims Mass.

Then there is the all very important wifi password. Most albergues have some wifi, but getting a good connection is a whole other story.

• Luke

 

After pushing ahead yesterday, walking a total of 30 kms, we decided to take a rest day. To cover the Sunday oblihation, we went to Mass last night in the tiny town of Hontanas, which is nestled in a deep valley among the rolling hills of the Burgos region. It was hidden from site almost until we were walking into it. A surreal and relieving experience at the end of a 30k hike.

We took our time waking up this morning and enjoyed the short 10ks through the gentle hills and morning chill, passing an old monastic pilgrim hospital on the way to the historic town of Castrojeriz. Our day’s resting spot had plenty of old ruins itself, complete with a castle on the hill and a decaying convent on its outskirts. The town wraps gently upward around the castled hill. Although small, it contains two active churchs and a convent filled with cloistered Sisters just a 10 minute walk into the country.

 

We began our rest with some café and city exploration before checking into our albergue. Afterwards we headed to Mass and met up again with Robert, a fellow pilgrim who will be entering seminary in the Fall for the diocese of Winona, Mn. He spent the rest of the day with our walking group, joining us for a restaurant lunch, siesta, a climb to the hilltop castle, and a city wide search for a supermercado before dinner. The search for a grocery store, during which I recieved multiple directions that I didn’t understand, ended at the only open shop, a tobacco store that sold a few groceries. We made do.

Lastly, before dinner, I stopped by the local convent and joined the community for vespers. They sang beautifully in Spanish and I slowly followed along with my English translation, joining the Spanish when I knew the words. It was awesome to be praying the same prayers although a language and a cloister grill seperated us. Though the nun, who opened and closed the glass window connecting theit choir stalls and the Church, waved joyfully at me twice. But how cool is it that this community in the middle of nowhere Spain is praying the same prayers as myself and the rest of the Church through the Mass and Liturgy of the Hours! Whenever I prayed my breviary In the past, I joined this community in spirit but today I was with them physically too. It was a place permeated with peace, and perfect for a pilgrim’s rest day.

-Michael