Summer Series Family Event — Mini Camino de Santiago

Camino de Santiago is Spanish for the Way of Saint James. The Camino is a network of pilgrimage routes leading to the Cathedral of Saint James in Compostela, located in northwestern Spain.  There are the remains of Saint James (the brother of Saint John), one of the first apostles called by Jesus, and the first to be martyred.

The Camino has drawn pilgrims since the 10th century, but gained more attention in 2010 with the movie The Way, starring Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez. 

The Camino features a dozen routes through different countries to reach Compostela, Spain—some beginning in England, but most going through France or Portugal on the way to Spain. The path is marked with the symbol of a clamshell, representing the different paths that lead to the one destination. 

While you can start at any point, the full Camino can take upwards of 35 days by foot.  Those making the pilgrimage represent different nations, various ages, and different interests and motives. Some plan to go in groups, and others go alone or with one other person, but they end up traveling with others.

Along the way, you walk, pray, reflect, think, and talk with others.  You stop for meals along the way, stay in hostels along the path, or even camp outside.   People make the Camino for different reasons.  Some to be part of a historical tradition, some to prove their physical fitness or survival skills, and some even to lose weight.   But at the heart of the Camino is connecting with yourself, and ultimately, God. 

Our mini-Camino on July 25 will give families a taste of what the real Camino is like.  Parishioners who made the Camino in Spain will give families an experience of what it is like, what you wear and see, and what you eat and do on the way.