From someone else’s Camino: I love a story, as recounted by Abigail Smith on Brendan Bolton’s “Project Camino Podcast.” She had gotten lost one day while making her way to the ferry across the Bahia de Santander, to the cathedral city of the same name, the capital of Cantabria. The beautiful bay requires pilgrims to choose between a long walk to the south or catching the ferry into the heart of the city, cutting off many kilometers and hours of walking.
Abigail described how she had walked some time without seeing any of the usual yellow arrows pilgrims use to keep themselves on the right path. I, too lost my way at that same place.
Abigail, though, saw someone in the distance ahead of her carrying a backpack with a pilgrim’s shell, walking confidently. He was obviously a pilgrim and seemed to know what he was doing and where he was going. Hoping for the best, she set off after him. After a lengthy walk, she finally caught up to him at the very ferry she had hoped to take. Luck was with her that day.
Shortly after her arrival at the docks, another young woman came up behind her, and thanked her profusely. You see, this other woman had also been lost, and had seen Abigail’s shell on her pack, and observed that she appeared to be walking assuredly, and made the decision to follow her, trusting that Abigail knew where she was going.
It left Abigail wondering who the man she had been tracking was following.
Exod 13:21-22 —21 The Lord preceded them, in the daytime by means of a column of cloud to show them the way, and at night by means of a column of fire to give them light. Thus they could travel both day and night. 22 Neither the column of cloud by day nor the column of fire by night ever left its place in front of the people.
For reflection: We live in a very strident world. The talking heads of news media have taken to angry, loud voices to make their points. Politicians have developed a mean, polarized streak. All too often, some religious leaders have taken a similar path. Recent presidential elections In the United States, and elsewhere, have been particularly bruising. So who’s a person to follow?
We can pretend self-sufficiency, but the world has become too complex for that to be much more than a pretense. Even if we spent our days in the pursuit of truth and understanding, we could hardly get to the root causes and forces that motivate the economy, let alone the truth or falsity of public claims, conservative or liberal, the actual solution to the various health issues that beset so many, or the systems of governance and education that will provide the greatest good. The issues are convoluted, with infinite shades of gray to discern between as we fulfill our public responsibilities to vote in our participatory democracies. It’s not that there is any shortage of “experts” opining on these subjects. It’s that they disagree, vehemently.
What’s a person to do? What direction should one take, and what arrows should one follow in setting a course for one’s own life? Will we let the talking heads and politicians set the course of what matters for us? What is the narrow gate that leads to salvation? What is the broad way that leads to failure and loss (Matt 7:13-14)? Who are you following on your way? Are you all alone, only accidentally following the footsteps of those ahead of you? Or are you determinedly following some column of smoke by day, a pillar of fire by night?
Perhaps, while on pilgrimage, one might set all the great questions aside. It might be enough, for just this time, to limit one’s horizon of contemplation to the sight lines provided by the Spanish countryside. You are located within those sight lines yourself, as are your companions on the way. It might be good, for significant stretches, to ponder deeply the story of your life, the beauty of it, the struggles, probing both the triumphs and the failures and perhaps where profitable, to share your personal story with your fellow pilgrims…maybe not your politics or economic theories, but your story. And maybe it would be a very good thing that you listened to their stories. If they venture too deeply into politics or economics, you might politely demur and move on.
Do you trust Jesus to be your guide as you examine the story of your life? Have you made any effort to deepen your understanding of his teachings? Is there anything for you to do here, perhaps taking the Gospels in small doses each day, reflecting on their relevance to your life?
