THE IDEA OF PILGRIMAGE occupied an important place in the life and thought of Ignatius of Loyola. In the autobiography he dictated to Gonçalves da Câmara late in his life, he refers to himself as “the pilgrim”. He went on a pilgrimage from Loyola to Jerusalem, and he describes in detail his long and difficult journey.

The term pilgrimage can be used in different senses. The literal meaning — a journey to a shrine or sacred place as an act of religious devotion — describes a very old and common religious practice, one which has been part of Christian devotion since early times.  The term can also have an allegorical meaning. Life can be viewed as a pilgrimage, that is, as a journey fraught with obstacles and difficulties through this world to the world beyond.

In addition to these meanings of the term, there is another understanding of pilgrimage: the spiritual sense of the term. A pilgrimage can be an interior journey toward some goal or ideal. It can involve finding the meaning of, or mission for, one’s life, and it may bring about inner growth or transformation. An external pilgrimage may symbolize or in some way facilitate a person’s inner search. These various understandings of pilgrimage tend to merge at a deeper level. The reason perhaps is that they are all rooted in the concept of the person as traveler, en route toward some destination, towards some end.

The geographical pilgrimage is the symbolic acting out of an inner journey. The inner journey is the interpolation of the meanings and signs of the outer pilgrimage. One can have one without the other. It is best to have both.”

Thomas Merton

Judging from his autobiography, Ignatius of Loyola was acutely aware of his condition as a traveler. This awareness had its origins in his conversion and in the pilgrimage he made to the Holy Land. But Ignatius’ continuing reference to himself as “the pilgrim” throughout his story and his use of the term itself after so many years had gone by suggest a meaning beyond the purely literal one.

Ignatius’ conversion from the very start was linked to the idea of a Jerusalem pilgrimage. He set out from Loyola on his pilgrim journey in early 1522 and went first to the shrine of Our Lady of Montserrat in Catalonia, as we will, then to the nearby town of Manresa where he remained for a year. Though an interruption of the Jerusalem trip, his experiences at Manresa were of important in his spiritual development. He informs us that God instructed him like a schoolmaster, that his mind was enlightened, and his understanding deepened. Here Inigo began to compose the Spiritual Exercises.

[1] These notes are taken from John C. Olin’s article “The Idea of Pilgrimage in the Experience of Ignatius Loyola.” Church History, 1979, Vol. 48, No. 4.

In September-October 2023 a group of 15 pilgrims will walk the route taken by Íñigo López de Loyola (who later became Saint Ignatius of Loyola) in 1522 from his home in Spain’s Basque country to Montserrat and Manresa. The “Camino Ignaciano,” or the “Ignatian way” begins at the birthplace of Ignatius Loyola in Spain’s Basque country, in a village near the small town of Azpeitia. From there, the route proceeds through picturesque mountains, deserts, and plains, before ending in the town of Manresa near Barcelona. Ignatius rested in this town for some months after his journey from Loyola. Manresa was a place of profound spiritual enlightenment for him. Here he composed his masterpiece, the Spiritual Exercises. Pilgrims will walk virtually the same route that Ignatius did, pass through many towns he did, pray at churches where he did, and marvel at the natural wonders that he saw.

Pilgrims will be on a 20-day outer journey and an inner journey. The outer journey will be reasonably well-marked. The inner journey less so. For some, it will be about forgiveness or reconciliation, for others a new direction or course in life, a confirmation of a major life choice, or a renewed or rediscovered sense of personal identity. Each day pilgrims will have the opportunity for daily Mass, either said by the guide Fr Josep Lluís Iriberri SJ, or the spiritual director Fr Michael Smith SJ. Each day, there will be periods of silence, prayer, personal reflection, spiritual conversation, and sharing in small groups.

Spiritual director

Michael Smith, SJ, is a Jesuit priest in the Australian Province who is originally from New Zealand. A spiritual director, executive coach, and pastoral counselor, Michael teaches in the online Master of Spiritual Direction program at Australian Catholic University and is priest-in-residence at Saint Ignatius Parish in Richmond, Victoria.

Guide

Josep Lluís Iriberri SJ is the Director of the Office of the Ignatian Camino. In 2011, he was commissioned to design and promote the Ignatian Camino and continues to focus on this task. We are very pleased to have the Jesuit who designed the route of the Ignatian Camino be our guide in 2023.

On the way to Manresa

There will be two opportunities for you to walk the Ignatian Camino in 2018.

• May (16 Days, 246km) 
• September (30 days, 495km).

Dates and costs to be confirmed.

To find out more information see the Campion CIS website and the Camino Ignaciano website.

This “film trailer” gives a quick impression of what the Ignatian Camino is about.