Thy statutes have been
My songs in the house
Of my pilgrimage.
Psalm 119:54 (KJV)
Pilgrimage is a journey that is much more than a tour.
Pilgrimage is following the voice of the One who loves us-the voice of God.
Pilgrimage is as much about listening-tuning our ears to the song of the Beloved as it is about moving our feet along well-worn pathways,
Or charting new territory.
The tradition of journeying to a sacred site in order to be elevated in faith and spiritual understanding is an important aspect of most religions.
Christianity has its traditional pilgrimage sites as well, but the art that is pilgrimage began when Adam and Eve left Eden and began the long walk, searching for home.
There is a deep sense of leaving which inspires pilgrimage.
We leave home. We leave the familiar ways. We leave people we are entwined with.
Remember Abram-pilgrim from Ur?
Now the Lord said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you."
This is the call to pilgrimage. The call to leave all we know and go to the place that God is showing us. God's call to us may be a whisper that begins an inkling to move forward and then turns into a compelling journey, as it did for Abraham.
© 2008 The Center for Spiritual Development at Saint James Monkton