Come, Come, Whoever you Are

Come, come, whoever you are. Wanderer, worshiper, lover of leaving. It doesn't matter. Ours is not a caravan of despair. come, even if you have broken your vows a thousand times. Come, yet again, come,come. Rumi

I sometimes sing a version of this Rumi poem. For me, it sums up pilgrimage and spiritual and religious life. Our pilgrimage in Spain was a caravan of such great hope! We walked between 8 and 18 miles most days. The journey was not easy, but it was full of tremendous gifts of the spirit. 

Walking across the Camino de Santiago with 10 teenagers and 3 youth leaders was  spiritual,  but it was also pretty religious as well. We read scripture, shared communion in an ancient cathedral, prayed  morning, noon, evening and compline prayers, and shared the experience of a holy pilgrimage with thousands of others from across the globe.

Every year,  pilgrimage offers a “mountain top” religious experience for our teens that grows out of  religion that does not judge them or put  psychological pressure on them. Already marked as “Christ’s own forever” through the waters of baptism, they simply get even more confirmation for who they already are as beloved children of God. 

We were allowed to celebrate Holy Eucharist
 in a chapel of the Cathedral in Amenal. 

The same could be said about their time spent at All Saints’ and being a part of a community centered with common prayer and the Holy Eucharist and ministry to the world.

No matter where we are in our lives, our emotional state, or even our faith, we pray- together. We learned while taking thousands of steps  on the Camino that common prayer embodies for us all a life facing towards God at whatever pace we are able to move.

In youth ministry (and all ministry, for that matter) we can see anew  and joyously embrace the beautiful life of faith we are offered in the Episcopal Church. On the Camino, and here at home, we experience a life changed by a self-giving, risen Lord through our common prayer.

What a singular blessing it is  to be together in the life-giving, joyful work of prayer and pilgrimage and the Church! The work that we do here as “common pray-ers” changes the lives of these teens, and radiates out to change, repair, and restore God’s kingdom. 

Shalom,

Tim