Bridget Bryan

Wine is part of the Camino. This Camino, the Camino de Santiago, and other European pilgrimages I’ve been on. “Numbs the pain in your legs and feet,” one person said as they encouraged me to buy a bottle in France on the 65 mile Chartres pilgrimage. “Makes you more cheerfully disposed to keep going,” I realized after imbibing and sharing with friends.

As promised, here are the four Camino points to share with you on our journey today (chatting and sharing things is a huge part of any jolly pilgrimage.)

Keep Reading to read and see the four highlights as promised!

One Highlight from the Camino: “Do whatever he tells you.”

Day 16: January 16, 2022

These words Our Lady spoke to the steward who’s employers had run out of wine at their own wedding feast. It was to us, mere humans, that she surrendered Her Son, that he might do his work. Our Lord then told the steward to do something so ordinary -and probably ridiculous. He said to re-filling the water jars. Can you imagine how filling these jars, normally used for purifying rituals seemed so silly to the poor, stressed-out steward and his minions: “Fill the jars with water.” “With water????”

But they did it any way, and in doing that ordinary, almost ridiculous action, Christ breathed a new life into the water, making it mirthful wine. As the water was turned into wine, so our ordinary duty of states can be turned into a wonderful, celebratory action.

And now at Mass, Calvary again, it is wine-turned-into-blood that flows over and cleanses man from his sins. “The wine of the world brims over,” as Chesterton said in The House of Christmas.

“Do whatever He tells you.” Her words, like a good mother, turns us to Him.

One Highlight of the Physical Building of the Church.

The bell towers are being clothed, steadily but surely. All the different garments: the outrageous green waterproofing paper and insulataion (I think that’s what it is!), grey mortar cement, and the variated brick with the ornamental stonework. Already the bells wait, ready for shipping in France. The bells are the giant earrings of the Church: “She shall make music wherever she goes.“(Mother Goose)

One Invisible Gem from Mass:

Fallen Man: The Preparatory Prayers at the Foot of the Altar

In the Garden

Man doubted God

Ate the apple to be like God.

And then each was full of shame,

Knew that they had broken

The only commandment 

Given by God.

And so Adam and his wife 

Were cast out of Paradise,

To earn what could’ve happened so easily,

By the sweat of their brow, 

And yet they were filled with hope

Of the Redeemer one day to come.

“I will go unto the altar of God, to God who giveth joy to my youth.”

Thanks so much for reading!

I hope you had some lovely highlights on your earthly pilgrimage this week!

When you click the picture-link above, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you. Click and you’re the best! This Tim Ferris-recommended book assured me I wasn’t crazy when I first started hatching this idea. Here’s a quote from this book that I use all of the time:

“Make travel part of your system.” ~Rolf Potts