Aid to the Church in Need Pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Pilgrims to Santiago de Compostela shelter from the rain en route
5 June 2010 – 12 June 2010
Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Friends and supporters of Aid to the Church in Need recently completed a week-long pilgrimage to the Tomb of Saint James in Spain – and were delighted to be granted last-minute special access to the relics of the saint.
The 22 pilgrims walked up to 18 miles a day, arriving in Santiago de Compostela on 11th June – the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
However, mile-long queues stretching out of the cathedral on that day meant that some members of the group were unable to visit the relics.
On the next morning, the guide from Christian tour operator Pax Travel – in partnership with whom Aid to the Church in Need organised the pilgrimage – asked the cathedral sacristan for a special viewing.
Initially the request was refused until eventually the sacristan changed his mind and Aid to the Church in Need’s pilgrims were granted a private visit to the relics at least an hour before they were opened to the general public.
2010 is a special jubilee year of the Apostle James and pilgrims who visit his shrine in Compostela can obtain a plenary indulgence.
The veneration of Saint James in Santiago Cathedral included climbing up steps behind the altar to embrace a golden statue of the saint.
Pilgrims then descended to the crypt under the altar, where the relics were kept in a silver casket.
During this jubilee year, an indulgence is granted to any pilgrim who prays at the tomb of the Saint James, and fulfils the usual conditions – prayer for the Pope’s intentions, reception of communion and recent confession. The next jubilee will not be until 2021.
Aid to the Church in Need’s pilgrimage coordinator Portia Borrett was delighted that everyone got to see the saint’s relics.
She said: “I felt that every person had brought something special to the pilgrimage and I felt privileged to have travelled with them.”
The pilgrims were accompanied by Aid to the Church in Need’s UK chaplain Father Martin Edwards, who said daily Mass.
Also travelling to Santiago in the same week was Damian Carroll. He walked about 500 miles over six weeks, from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-port in France.
Damian’s efforts were to raise funds for the Aid to the Church in Need-supported Save the Saveable schools project in Sudan. You can still sponsor him either by donating to Aid to the Church in Need or by visiting Damian’s Justgiving page.
The Save the Saveable project has provided Christian education for more than 15,000 children living in displacement camps around Khartoum, the capital of the Sudan.
Pax Travel have kindly made a £20 donation for each pilgrim, with the money going to the Save the Saveable schools.