For 2024 Pilgrims: €50,- donation = 1 year with no ads on the forum + 90% off any 2024 Guide. More here. (Discount code sent to you by Private Message after your donation) |
---|
hi S. and good evening greetings -I have yet to walk the camino, but want to and actively research this topic. I have friends (husband and wife) who have listened to me talk about my desire to make this pilgrimage. They come just short of making fun of this. The wife tells me the camino is no different than any other hiking trail, the Appalachian Trail, for instance. That it is just as "spiritual" as the camino. (She has done neither, nor has he). The husband tells me I don't have to go as far as France and Spain to turn any walk into something spiritual. I'm not certain why this is some kind of hot topic with them. All of my other friends remain interested and encourage my fascination and preparation. Has anyone else encountered this and what do you tell these people who think the Camino is just another walk?
The Camino is a 1,000 years old pilgrimage route (s). It is listed on the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Anybody who states that the Camino is just another "hiking trail" is only showing that they do not know what they are talking about.The wife tells me the camino is no different than any other hiking trail, the Appalachian Trail, for instance. That it is just as "spiritual" as the camino. Has anyone else encountered this and what do you tell these people who think the Camino is just another walk?
Thanks everyone! You people are the best! I love your answers and I agree with them. I will not defend myself to my friends; I can see that this would be pointless. I believe their minds are made up. For that matter, so is mine! The Camino calls to me, and while it's mysterious as to why, that's the way it is. So be it!I have yet to walk the camino, but want to and actively research this topic. I have friends (husband and wife) who have listened to me talk about my desire to make this pilgrimage. They come just short of making fun of this. The wife tells me the camino is no different than any other hiking trail, the Appalachian Trail, for instance. That it is just as "spiritual" as the camino. (She has done neither, nor has he). The husband tells me I don't have to go as far as France and Spain to turn any walk into something spiritual. I'm not certain why this is some kind of hot topic with them. All of my other friends remain interested and encourage my fascination and preparation. Has anyone else encountered this and what do you tell these people who think the Camino is just another walk?
Quite!Thanks everyone! You people are the best! I love your answers and I agree with them. I will not defend myself to my friends; I can see that this would be pointless. I believe their minds are made up. For that matter, so is mine! The Camino calls to me, and while it's mysterious as to why, that's the way it is. So be it!
I have yet to walk the camino, but want to and actively research this topic. I have friends (husband and wife) who have listened to me talk about my desire to make this pilgrimage. They come just short of making fun of this. The wife tells me the camino is no different than any other hiking trail, the Appalachian Trail, for instance. That it is just as "spiritual" as the camino. (She has done neither, nor has he). The husband tells me I don't have to go as far as France and Spain to turn any walk into something spiritual. I'm not certain why this is some kind of hot topic with them. All of my other friends remain interested and encourage my fascination and preparation. Has anyone else encountered this and what do you tell these people who think the Camino is just another walk?
I have yet to walk the camino, but want to and actively research this topic. I have friends (husband and wife) who have listened to me talk about my desire to make this pilgrimage. They come just short of making fun of this. The wife tells me the camino is no different than any other hiking trail, the Appalachian Trail, for instance. That it is just as "spiritual" as the camino. (She has done neither, nor has he). The husband tells me I don't have to go as far as France and Spain to turn any walk into something spiritual. I'm not certain why this is some kind of hot topic with them. All of my other friends remain interested and encourage my fascination and preparation. Has anyone else encountered this and what do you tell these people who think the Camino is just another walk?
This is, perhaps, a matter of self-identification. Your doubting friends define their own lives in terms that specify what is possible or not, what is valuable or not, what is worthwhile or not -- and neither the Camino nor the AT fit into their box. That's too bad, but it's not your problem. The great value of the Camino is the opportunity for an inward journey -- and isn't that a bit easier to do, if you are immersed in a community of others engaged in a similar pursuit? In fact, "community" may be the operative distinction here.I'm not certain why this is some kind of hot topic with them.
So true. A community of pilgrims . . . I like that.This is, perhaps, a matter of self-identification. Your doubting friends define their own lives in terms that specify what is possible or not, what is valuable or not, what is worthwhile or not -- and neither the Camino nor the AT fit into their box. That's too bad, but it's not your problem. The great value of the Camino is the opportunity for an inward journey -- and isn't that a bit easier to do, if you are immersed in a community of others engaged in a similar pursuit? In fact, "community" may be the operative distinction here.
That paints a very vivid picture. Thank you.You are passing through the debris of a thousand years of Christian pilgrimage. Each day brings crumbling ruins, and also structures still strong and vital today.
I absolutely agree!I need to chip in because I was asked a same question and I felt annoyed. Besides the pilgrimage/history/fantastic people of Spain etc. Camino also has bars every 5 km or so and that is what I like about Europe in general. There is always a place to sit down with coffee or beer
Buen Camino!
Hana
I have yet to walk the camino, but want to and actively research this topic. I have friends (husband and wife) who have listened to me talk about my desire to make this pilgrimage. They come just short of making fun of this. The wife tells me the camino is no different than any other hiking trail, the Appalachian Trail, for instance. That it is just as "spiritual" as the camino. (She has done neither, nor has he). The husband tells me I don't have to go as far as France and Spain to turn any walk into something spiritual. I'm not certain why this is some kind of hot topic with them. All of my other friends remain interested and encourage my fascination and preparation. Has anyone else encountered this and what do you tell these people who think the Camino is just another walk?
OOPS, hit the wrong key.... and just plain folks along the trail. Every town has a catholic church or cathedral and a tavern. There is very little evidence of any other organized religion along the way, it is, after all in a "Catholic" country (invest in Rosetta Stone Spanish before you go, it was worth it to me). It is a personal challenge, as any long distance walk would be, and you are guaranteed a group of marvelous talking/walking companions along the way. It is what you make of it. What of the man we met who was walking from Lisbon to Jeruselem (EASTWARD) because he felt the need to do something to thank God for his life? What of the many folks (not just Catholic) that felt the touch of God up on the Iron Cross Peak? It is a personal thing. I walked it as a way to help the friend I walked with who was questioning his purpose after his wife died. It was definitely spiritual to him. Because of his meeting with others of his faith in so many little and big churches, it was a renewal for him. I am not Catholic, but felt it too. It is walking as meditation . You could certainly see the AT as a place for that too, but not with as much inherent history. I come from a community that traces it's founding to the early 1700s. We walked thru towns that were OLD in 1700. Santiago claims to be the burial placed of James the elder, there was a town then!The Camino is NOT the AT. The AT is wilderness, predominantly, and you must carry a full kit (food, tent, etc.). It is all up and down and thru woods. Towns can be hours away from the trail itself. The Camino was created as a spiritual pilgrimage, but is a plain hiking trail, here in the modern world, and one needs not nearly so much gear to be safe and successful. . It goes thru towns, farms, mountains (one slope is called "The Mule Killer"), rocks, sand, along canals, big cities and all but dead villages. It is supported by the federal government, local government, local clubs, international clubs (confraternities)
I have yet to walk the camino, but want to and actively research this topic. I have friends (husband and wife) who have listened to me talk about my desire to make this pilgrimage. They come just short of making fun of this. The wife tells me the camino is no different than any other hiking trail, the Appalachian Trail, for instance. That it is just as "spiritual" as the camino. (She has done neither, nor has he). The husband tells me I don't have to go as far as France and Spain to turn any walk into something spiritual. I'm not certain why this is some kind of hot topic with them. All of my other friends remain interested and encourage my fascination and preparation. Has anyone else encountered this and what do you tell these people who think the Camino is just another walk?
Given this is a 2014 thread, I wonder how the OP resolved the issue?I have definitely experienced this problem. Still do. I backpack at home, so when I said I was going to walk the Camino, most family and friends were perplexed -- why wasn't I doing the AT? The PCT? Some trails in Austria? Confused, they supported me anyway, even though most of them still didn't seem to get it once I was home and telling them in-depth about it. The ones who did get excited were the ones who either HAD done it or now actually wanted to go; they were far and few between.
I've decided to do a second Camino and I'd like my sister to go with me (it would be her first). Again, confusion. Why am I going AGAIN? Why not go to X country and walk Y trail? ANY trail can be spiritual!
Yes, any walk can be spiritual. I try to feel *something* every time I'm in nature - or just admiring a nice day. I once had an amazing epiphany driving my car on a horrible, rainy day! But none of these things are the Camino: the deep history, the overwhelming sense of support and camaraderie from all kinds of strangers from all backgrounds from all over the world! AND there is nature and it can be beautiful, too. I'm still testing myself - just not *only* physically.
I could go on but ultimately it's yet another lesson that you have to do what enriches YOU - and that won't always be the thing that enriches those around you. For me, it's tough because I want excited support and approval from my family but all they can give is confused support. I have to learn to be good with approval from MYSELF.
Given this is a 2014 thread, I wonder how the OP resolved the issue?
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?