A common purpose for someone of the Chrisitian faith to go
on a pilgrimage is as a sign of penance. In the past, when someone had
seriously sinned, the priest would tell them to go on a pilgrimage of where
Jesus traveled during his ministry. Throughout this trip the pilgrim would pray
and meditate on what Jesus went through in relation to his or her own lives and
actions. Hopefully this would help to further the person’s understanding of
their faith and reinforce not repeating the same offence as before. Of course,
a person could go on this pilgrimage and just treat it as a vacation. If they
don’t take it seriously and go through with it for the right purpose, they just
become a tourist instead of a pilgrim. It isn’t usually done today, and if it
is it isn’t because a priest suggested it. Some might take it as a penance, but
other Christians go out of their way for to further their faith from the get
go. Then there are those who only want to sight see for the sake of it, and of
course this wouldn’t really make it a pilgrimage.
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