Pilgrimages
Abstract
Reasons, opinion, analyzing and the most important ones; all about pilgrimages.
Pilgrimages have been taking place since the Church was created, begun by those who
wished to see the places where Jesus taught and lived. In the middle Ages, the Church
encouraged people to make pilgrimages to special holy places called shrines, a relatively
easy feat in the fourth century when the Roman Empire still unified the Mediterranean
world. To perform this pilgrimages the people have reasons that are: to improve their
chances of salvation, to gain the healing touch supposedly found in the relics of saints
and to atone for their sins.
The pilgrim´s principal motive for the journey to such centers is to perform a fundamental
religious obligation, to gain religious merit, to make a vow, or to improve their chances
of salvation. This can be seen in the Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India pilgrimage, in their history
say that the Buddha was abandoned by the five men who had been his companions of
earlier austerities. All they saw was an ordinary man; they mocked his well-nourished
appearance. "Here comes the mendicant Gautama," "He is certainly not worth our
respect," they said. Because of that, the disciples of Gautama Siddhartha began to visit
the place during the full moon to have more chances of salvation because they offended
a superior being who said that one can no longer understand the ordinary things of life,
still less the truth that lies beyond the senses. It has given up extremes of either luxury or
asceticism, so people will have the salvation. Jonathan talk about the improvement of
salvation in his book of pilgrimages, spending more than twenty pages.
Sacred architecture complemented the meditations of visitors to the sites of Christ’s
mission on earth. In the 320s and 330s, Constantine, the first Roman emperor, constructed
sumptuous buildings in several locations that had already become popular destinations
for pilgrims. These churches often incorporated a round or centrally planned element, a
form associated with tombs and the shrines of martyrs. For example in Jerusalem,
Constantine built a basilica at the place where Christ was crucified and a rotunda around
the Holy Sepulcher, the site of Jesus’ burial and resurrection. The distinctive features of
these buildings were widely copied in churches, tombs, and baptisteries throughout
Europe, sometimes with specific references to the Holy Land. This can be seen in Route
of Saints, Kraków, Poland pilgrimage because this route includes 16 beautiful churches,
holding the remains of saints, the blessed and other Servants of the Lord, who died in
sanctity. The route begins in the Archicathedral Basilica on Wawel Hill, housing the
remains of Saint Stanislaw from Szczepanow, a bishop and a martyr, the relics of blessed
Wincenty Kadlubek, the remains of Queen Jadwiga and the tomb of Bishop Jan Prandota,
located in the Waza chapel. Jonathan says in his book that many of the pilgrimages
contained sacred objects which made people went to gain the healing touch supposedly
found in the relics of saints.
In the later Middle Ages, pilgrims often traveled in order to win indulgences, that is, the
Church’s promise to intercede with God for the remission of the temporal punishment for
sins confessed and forgiven, a prayer that will be heard because of the holiness of the
Church. It was believed that if you prayed at these shrines you might be forgiven for
your sins and have more chance of going to heaven. Others went to shrines hoping to be
cured of an illness they were suffering from. For example each year, up to three million
pilgrims descend on the Saudi Arabian city of Mecca -- the epicenter of the Muslim world
-- to seek redemption, to forgive and to be forgiven, wrapped in white cloth.
In conclusion, it is said that pilgrimage is created so that humans can be made to good by
different ways and with thoughts or reason almost always different. It is observed that a
more common reason is to be forgiven for their sins which can be observed in most of
the pilgrimages. Jonathan trough his book explains more to the bottom and in detail all
the reasons for it.
References:
- World Travel Guide. (2017). The 10 best pilgrimages for modern travellers -
World Travel Guide. [online] Available at:
https://www.worldtravelguide.net/features/feature/the-10-best-pilgrimages-for-
modern-travellers/ [Accessed 27 Nov. 2017].
- Pilgrimage-poland.eu. (2017). Pilgrim routes in Krakow - Pilgrim Advisor |
Sanctuary of the Divine Mercy - Lagiewniki, Krakow Poland. [online] Available
at: http://www.pilgrimage-poland.eu/en/pilgrim--routes--saints--krakow
[Accessed 27 Nov. 2017].
- Pilgrimage-poland.eu. (2017). Pilgrim routes in Krakow - Pilgrim Advisor |
Sanctuary of the Divine Mercy - Lagiewniki, Krakow Poland. [online] Available
at: http://www.pilgrimage-poland.eu/en/pilgrim--routes--saints--krakow
[Accessed 27 Nov. 2017].
