Being a Holy Land pilgrim

In September, God willing, I’ll be going on my fifth pilgrimage to the Holy Land, this time with Bishop Zithulele Mvemve of Klerksdorp. Five times might sound like a fair bit, but I’ve met people who have gone to the Holy Land as pilgrims dozens of times; some have even notched up undefeated centuries.

For the Christian the Holy Land is a magical place: being in the geographical proximity to the events on which we base our faith is a transforming experience, every time and in different ways.

The Holy Land concentrates the spiritual and emotional juices. Unlike many other sites of pilgrimage, the Holy Land does not require of the believer an ardour for a particular devotion; believers of all strands of Christian piety are equally at home there. The graces come from all manner of sources.

I am exceedingly fortunate to have made repeated pilgrimages to the Holy Land. For most pilgrims, a Holy Land journey is a once-off experience. Especially when they travel in groups, as most do, they will see and hear and smell and experience so much in so short a time, that it is impossible to process it all.

So the two best pieces of advice a Holy Land pilgrim will ever get are to prepare well before setting off and to keep a journal while on tour.

Knowledgeable local guides will explain each site’s religious significance, background and history. Pilgrims may ask questions, and many do. And yet, in a tight itinerary, there will be times when the pilgrim will switch off and miss the point of a site (and all sites are included because they are significant). Even when pilgrims are paying attention to the guide’s commentary, as they should, their focus is directed on learning, not on experiencing.

Pilgrims who are already familiar with a site, if only through reading, can let their attention wander to other details which they might otherwise miss, or engage in prayerful reflection. It is much more difficult to do that as a stranger in a strange place.

Knowing the spiritual significance of sites on a day’s itinerary can help pilgrims plan for their spiritual journey. It really does pay to be prepared, simply to help digest all that one experiences in a day.

This is where the pilgrim’s journal is essential. It’s a good idea to start one well before departure, perhaps while brushing up on the itinerary. A journal can be a spiritual diary or just a record of experiences. A pilgrim sees and senses so much while on the journey, it can all become a blur. A journal provides an inner snapshot of the pilgrim, to go with the snapshots of buildings and people (which a journal also helps to caption).

The former editor of New Zealand’s counterpart of The Southern Cross, the NZ Catholic, has compiled a wonderful website to aid pilgrims in their preparations (www.seetheholyland.net).

Pat McCarthy, who will himself return to the Holy Land in September, describes in some detail every site in the Holy Land (as well as some in Jordan and Egypt) that may appear on an itinerary, with scriptural references and photo galleries. He even features usually overlooked places, such as the church at Naïn, at the foot of Mount Tabor, which is maintained by the Muslim family on whose property it stands. The site also includes helpful tips (what to pack!) and feature articles on topics such as the authenticity of holy sites.

The latter article quotes St Jerome as saying: “We cannot tie down to one small portion of the earth him whom heaven itself is unable to contain.” But when we walk where he walked, we ought to know our way well so that we can more readily encounter him on our journey.

Read Günther Simmemacher’s series on pilgrimages in 2005 and 2006.