Becoming A “Camino Catholic”

There is a great moment in the recent World War 2 movie Monument Men where Hugh Bonneville (of Downton Abbey fame) attempts to protect a group of Catholic priests and the art in their monastery from advancing Nazis. Seeing the peril he is putting himself in one priest asks, “Are you Catholic”?
“Tonight I am” Bonneville responds.

My eyes welled up.

Solidarity is perhaps the most powerful act which binds people together. When someone’s says, “Yes, I stand with you” it can change literally everything. Whether in marriage, family, friendship or even enmity, the act of solidarity breaks down the walls that previously divide.

When humanity found itself under siege with violence, disease, pain, and death it’s as if we collectively call out to God and say, “What, are you human?”
And God responds in Christ, “I AM now”

In the most powerful act of solidarity in human history God says,”I stand with you”

Camino Catholic

Although I have not been raised a Catholic, those that know me know I have a soft spot in my heart for my Catholic brothers and sisters. When I lived in Colorado I was known to sneak out for the occasional Sat. night Mass at our local Catholic Church. Here on the Camino de Santiago there is a strong catholic feel as the pilgrimage is historically a Roman Catholic pilgrimage.

So I’ve made a bold decision that probably won’t sit well with some people but it is this:

On the Camino de Santiago I’m Roman Catholic!

Yep, I made the decision to attend Mass and take the Eucharist with my Catholic brothers and sisters while on the pilgrimage. When I made the announcement to some of my fellow pilgrims, most supported the decision except my new Aussie friend who thought otherwise.

“Steve, I work in a Catholic school but I’m not Catholic. You aren’t supposed to take communion if you are not Catholic.”

“But I am a Catholic” I responded.

Our little group was enjoying the discussion outside on the lawn as we shared wine, olives, cheese, and chorizo sausage.

“No, you are only pretending to be Catholic” she countered.

“I’m not pretending. I am a Christian and I want to enjoy the Lord’s Supper on a regular basis while I am on this Christian pilgrimage. So on the Camino, I’m a Catholic…”

This discussion carried on for a few minutes with different thoughts from the group. One of the Dutch pilgrims also announced that for the Camino, she too was going to be Catholic. Suddenly we were approached by an elderly local Spanish woman walking her dog. She motioned to us she would like a piece of the chorizo sausage. On the Camino de Santiago a spirit of sharing prevails so without hesitation one of my fellow peregrinos cut a generous slice and offered it to the woman.

She promptly tossed it to her dog…

I looked at my Aussie friend and said, “If our good Chorizo can be fed to dogs, I think I should be able to take Catholic communion.”
Looking at the dog licking it’s chops she replied, “Yeah, I have no more objections”