(Santiago de Compostela)

Revelation 21:1-8, 22-27
v. 6 He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life.”

It is done. The Camino that danced in my mind for decades, that we planned for more than a year, that we started on the wet cobblestones of St. Jean Pied de Port and that seemed to stretch out to infinity under steep and dragging kilometers, has been accomplished. Maurice and I walked all the way across Spain, five hundred miles on our own two feet. We finished. It is done and I am amazed. It wasn’t just us, though, nor us and hundreds of companion pilgrims. Jesus, the Alpha and Omega of all life and creation, was with us from beginning to end, giving us what we needed from the spring of the water of life. Thank you, Jesus, that you walked with us. Thank you for your great faithfulness to us.

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After completing their own pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago, Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand decided to improve infrastructure for pilgrims along the Way. About 1492 they founded a hospice in Santiago where pilgrims arriving at the end of their journey could stay free of charge for a few days. Their building, the beautiful Hostal de los Reyes Catolicos, provides hospitality to travelers today as a five-star parador, but we had heard a rumor that it still gives free meals to pilgrims. Keep reading