St James and Compostela

The Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela

Today being the feast of Saint James (Santiago in Spanish,) I want to share a brief reflection on this pilgrimage site which every year sees hundreds of pilgrims going to Santiago de Compostela to celebrate the feast of St James. St James is the brother of St John and along with St Peter, they were frequently close to Jesus whenever he wanted to perform a particular miracle. They were with Him at the Transfiguration, the raising of Lazarus, and the Agony in the Garden, even though they slept, instead of praying with Jesus before His passion. It has become a popular tradition that people from every part of the globe make a traditional walk through the northern part of Spain every year, hiking with friends, sleeping in motels and special resting places, dividing their pilgrimage over a few weeks or months. The Cathedral itself was started in 1075 and finished in 1211 and was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1985. The Cathedral is the reputed burial-place of St James the apostle, and it is the destination of the Way of St James, the historical pilgrimage route since the Early Middle Ages. The building is a Romanesque structure with later Gothic and Baroque additions. According to legend, the apostle Saint James the Greater brought Christianity to the Celts in the Iberian Peninsula. In 44 AD he was beheaded in Jerusalem. His remains were later brought back to Galicia, Spain.