A Mid-way Camino reflection

Tomorrow is my final day of the Meseta alone. Tomorrow evening I’ll be joined by my three brothers who are already together in Madrid (so jealous!)

I thought I’d take this final evening alone to reflect on what the Camino has meant to me so far. It’s meant so many things (as you can see from this blog) but I hope the following summarizes what I am feeling so far. P.S. - I think this may appear in an upcoming bulletin for Mt. Carmel. It’s a bit long, sorry.

In Sapiens: A brief history of humankind Yuval Noah Harari takes the reader through humanity’s evolution. I found it intriguing to learn that before the agricultural revolution, when humans were still hunters and gatherers, their minds were only capable of focusing on the present moment. This was due to them never needing to plan ahead and always being on the move. They did not have a home and did not know where their next meal would come from. They lived in the moment.

As humans discovered the capacity to grow stable food sources, our species evolved and learned to plan and anticipate cycles of time. Our ancestors needed to know the length of seasons for growing and harvesting. How much water was too much or not enough for their crops? How long would it take a domesticated animal to produce offspring? However with this development came the consequence of not living as often in the present. Humans began to either think more about the future or the past. Interestingly, when humans were living in the moment as hunter/gatherers they also were able to live with less fear and anxiety. If you only live in the now you are only attentive to the current moment. Fear and anxiety increased in the human experience. Incidentally, in a later chapter in the book titled “The Luxury Myth”, the author outlines humanity’s efforts to develop new technologies to create less work and more free time. The author details how, on the contrary, our technologies have not created less work but just created more efficient ways to do more with the same amount of time. We work far more than our hunter/gatherer ancestors.

I share this because this Camino pilgrimage, this journey, for me has been largely about trying to reclaim more of the present moment. For a brief time I hope to let go of my future schedules and commitments and perhaps let go of things I may be holding onto that are keeping me from being more present to those I love and whom I have commitments. Why may living in the present be so important to us as Christians? It’s in the present where we experience Christ.

Those of you who have studied scripture know that more than any other phrase uttered by Jesus in the Bible are the words, “Do not be afraid”. Jesus was encouraging his followers to live in God’s time, Kairos, or meaningful time, rather than Chronos - time which preoccupies us with future anxieties and past hurts and grudges. Those who had such difficulty with seeing Jesus for who he was could not get beyond what they were holding onto rather than be present to the one who was in front of them. Those who were fully present to Jesus’ were able to see who he truly was. They gave Jesus their full attention.

The Camino has afforded me the opportunity to be free from my “fears” propelled by schedules and responsibilities so I can be more present to what God is saying to me. In the past three weeks I’ve been reminded that God is always speaking to me. I just need to be fully present in order to hear what God is saying. I have found that God speaks to me mainly in two ways: in silence and in my relationship with others. The Meseta has given me the opportunity to encounter God’s voice in the many hours of walking with nothing but God’s created earth all around me. And God has spoken to me in small ways in the encounters I have had with those whom I have met on this pilgrimage. Often God has spoken to me through a combination of an encounter on the Camino followed by silence. I’ve had conversations with God about my family, my vocation, my friendships, and much more. It’s been a period of grace for me and a reminder to work into my life the capacity to be more fully present to the relationships in my life and create more time for silence so I can hear what God is trying to say to me.Read more