Image and Pilgrimage in Christian Culture (2)


All cultures look for signs. They want to believe that they are being guided. Symbols and signs are the founding basis for most myths and important stories. In pilgrimages, they are what leads the traveler onward into the wilderness. Both simple things like just seeing a flag on the trail, or a bigger thing like encountering a place or being that indicates a larger issue. This kind of responsibility in the catholic church was the virgin Mary, whom they believed God spoke through as a saint. They used her as a placeholder in conjunction to Christ. In a way, the Virgin Mary was the sign herself. Examples like this are what prove the importance of symbolism in the travelers quest.

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