St. James’ apostolic courage, zeal makes parish pilgrimage transformative

During my last year as pastor of St. James Church in Basking Ridge, a group of us decided to make a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in celebration of the parish’s 150th anniversary.

From Lisbon, where we celebrated Mass in the church erected over the home where St. Anthony was born, to the Chapel of Apparitions in Cova de Iria, or “Hill of Peace,” in Fatima, where the Blessed Mother appeared to three young shepherds in 1917. We were known as “The Church of St. James on the Camino de Santiago.

From the Monastery of the Jeronimos, which houses a beautiful museum to Batalha, which was once a fortress but now stands as a symbol of Portuguese tenacity, we prayed. From the University of Coimbra, to the canals of Aveiro where fishermen in flat-bottom boats (now used to give tourists rides) would bring salt and fish ashore, to the city of Porto, with its great devotion to John the Baptist, its Port wines and bustling business district and own Soccer team, we saw a country with a rich history.

Yet we also visited a land suffering from an economic crisis forcing over300,000 to leave the country for better opportunities outside of the borders. We visited Braga, “the Rome of Portugal, “where we celebrated the Eucharist in the Church of the Bom Jesus or “Good Je-sus,” the most visited shrine in Northern Portugal; we prayed.

Through the miles we traversed, about the length of the state of Indiana, we came to appreciate just how the Blessed Mother has always had a deep affection for the people of Portugal and Spain, long before Fatima. Legend holds, in fact, that when James first arrived in Iberia, he met with a lot of resistance in his attempts to convert the pagans to Christianity. James was losing heart and tempted to return to Jerusalem, but Mary appeared to him in La Coruña, and told the Apostle to keep on evangelizing be-cause, she said, “the faith of these people will be as hard as the rock on which you are now standing.

He did as Mary instructed, and the faith took root and spread like wildfire. Content that he was ready for another apostolic assignment, James returned to Israel only to be martyred by Herod. His disciples, however, decided to bring his mortal remains back to Spain – and when boat carrying his remains washed ashore in the town of Padrón, conch shells lay upon the shores like a carpet to welcome the Apostle back to his home away from home.

His coffin along with many conch shells, were then carried forty kilometers to Santiago, where it was decided that his mortal remains should be enshrined in the “field of stars” or “Compostela. “There a basilica was built to house the mortal remains of St. James, but the town is actually called Santiago which simply means “St. James.”

Be they walking or riding, pilgrims wear a conch shell bearing the Cross offset. James or they tie it to their backpacks. The red Cross of St. James painted on each shell resembles an upside-downsword, the instrument by which he was martyred and the color “red,” the blood James spilled in witness to his faith.

The conch shell reminds us of how James’ body was returned to Spain in a boat which washed ashore along a rocky and dangerous coast laden with shells.

Even before the construction of the Basilica of St. James, in the sixth century, pilgrims came to Santiago to venerate the tomb of this Apostle. Why? To ask for miracles, to beg for a healing for loved ones, to perform penance for one’s sins, to acquire a plenary indulgence. I do not pretend to know the motivating force of our pilgrims who accompanied me to Santiago; regardless, this pilgrimage was a gift from God.

St. James’ ministry did not end in Spain. His scope is global. In parishes bearing his name, this patron saint in-spires all who call on him to be Church, to make known the saving love of Jesus and the vigilance of his Immaculate Mother. The pilgrimage to Compostela is one which this writer and priest will never forget. I can still see the smoke billowing from the enormous censor which swings across the sanctuary of St. James Basilica in Compostela. I can still see the waves of the ocean not far from that holy land. And I am reminded daily of the courage, acuity and zeal of this great Apostle who continues to draw people to Jesus, Lordan Savior of the world.

Father Comandini is coordinator of the Office for Ongoing Faith Formation.