Medieval pilgrimages: religious practice and cultural significance

Medieval Pilgrimages

Pilgrimages were central to Medieval Christianity and remain central to many devout Christians today. Such pilgrimages were not only central to these Christians, but to the Holy Land as well. Over the years, pilgrimages have influenced the West's foreign relations with those residing in the area from times as early as the crusades. In viewing these pilgrimages, and in understanding the trials and tribulations that these pilgrims faced throughout their journeys, one can better understand the motivations for Medieval Europeans to journey to the Middle East in pilgrimages that were not only lengthy, but riddled with difficulties.

The pilgrims were motivated in their travels to the Middle East by the concept of paying "penance" to their God, which they believed was best achieved by traveling to a place that was considered the most sacred. In traveling to such sacred lands, i.e. Jerusalem, the pilgrims believed that God would find their respective penance more effective, therefore showing God that these pilgrims were, in fact, the most devout of servants. Despite the long distances from the West to the Middle East, the pilgrims who partook in such journeys believed that the dangers of the travel and the hardships they endured along the way were not only an integral part of paying penance to the lord, but would again prove their devotion.

Some of the difficulties faced by the pilgrims included long journeys that began often with treacherously long boat rides that included illness and scarcity of food. Dying en route was not at all unusual during these pilgrimages, from the aforementioned reasons, storms, bad luck, poor judgment, etc. Many captains noted that the sick were not considered worth wasting time over, as it was rare that the voyage did not have fatalities. Additionally, upon finishing the sea portion of the pilgrimage, travelers were left to deal with the harsh terrain of the Middle East and foreign people to which these pilgrims were unaccustomed. Being now under the authority of Muslim leaders, pilgrims were forced to place their journeys into the hands of others, often facing additional time delays, hardships and mistreatments. Even upon reaching the pilgrims' ultimate goal of the Holy Sepulchre, the place where Jesus was crucified and buried, these pilgrims were often forced to undergo more scrutiny and delay as they waited to receive appropriate documentation and authority to let them pass into this area. Miscommunication and language barriers often brought about additional delays, making even the trip's ultimate goal a difficulty.