This blog is named after the symbol for pilgrimage that had its beginnings with the great pilgrimage to the cathedral of Santiago de Compestela in Galicia in Northwest Spain: The scallop shell. The connection of this shell with pilgrimage is rooted in both use and legend.
The legend surrounds Saint James the Greater, whose feast we celebrate today. Along with his brother John, James identified in Scripture as one of the sons of Zebedee. Jesus called them “Boanerges,” or “sons of thunder,” giving us some idea of their temperament! (Mk 3, 17). The mother of James and John, most likely Salome, asked Jesus to guarantee her sons places at his right and left hand when he came into his kingdom. After receiving their assurance that they could drink of the same cup that Jesus would drink, he promised them not places of honor but a share in his suffering.
James was beheaded in 44CE by Herod Agrippa I, who was trying his best to appease the Jewish population that was upset by the increasing number of followers of the Way, of Jesus. Legends abound about the remains of St. James. One claims that his body was miraculously transported to Northwest Spain and finally resting in Compestela. Here begins the legend that connects James with the scallop shell. Some stories have his body transported in a boat without a crew, or even a sarcarpchogas, arriving covered with scallops. Another claims that the arrival of this mysterious boat coincided with a wedding on shore. When the boat appeared, the grooms horse was spooked and plunged into the sea only to return with its rider, both covered with the shells.
Whatever happened, the scallop shell became the symbol of the pilgrimage to the place believed to hold the remains of the saint.This became the most famous place of pilgrimage during the Middle Ages, with people following paths from all over Europe, Britain, and other parts of the world to pay homage to St. James. Along with a walking stick and gourd, the scallop shell was standard pilgrim equipment used for identification of the traveller as a pilgrim, used as a scoop for food and a cup for drinking.
Today, thousands of pilgrims continue to travel the well-worn paths, and the scallop shell has become the universal symbol of pilgrims.
As I ponder Saint James and modern pilgrims, I am reminded of a poem by Deborah Chandra, “Grandpa’s Shoes.” It is the first in her collection of poems titled “Rich Lizard and Other Poems.” I loved it the moment I read it and used it often when working with children. It hints at the life journey of the man who wore them, who was softened and gentled by the paths he trod.
St. James was witness to both the glory of the Transfiguration and the agony in the Garden. He knew heady moments of joy and hope as well as paralyzing times of sorrow and fear. His journey brought him to a violent death, but one, I imagine, that was embraced with hope and acceptance.
I think of my father, grandfather to my children. I think of his shoes. I remember heavy boots he wore into coal mines when he inspected equipment he helped design and spoke with the men who used it. I remember his “regular” shoes, black with laces, worn to the office day after day. I remember his slippers that gave his tired feet a rest, and his canvas shoes he wore when he took us fishing or walking along a creek.
Dad’s shoes were part of his pilgrim equipment as he made his way through life, walking with his life partner, Geneva, and their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.
We are all pilgrims. We know joys and sorrows, hope and fear. We find God walking the path with us. We experience the Holy One in special ways that remain in our hearts and minds: birth of children, times with special friends, suffering, illness, return to health. A special place along the beach or in the mountains, or in our backyard.
Today, pilgrims all, we remember St. James and the scallop shell, and ponder the reality it reveals: Many paths, one destination: The embrace of the Holy One.
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