In this article from A Friendly Word, Friar Willmer Moyetones reminds us that the Christian life is not a meaningless wandering, but a pilgrimage towards the definitive homeland. It is a journey that requires self-emptying, trust and the certainty that God is always at our side.
Pilgrims of hope
We are living a jubilee year with the motto: “pilgrims of hope”. We are pilgrims because we know where we are going and what our final destination is. On the other hand, the nomad wanders aimlessly, without a clear purpose.
However, our Christian life is often more like that of a nomad. Not in the sense of moving around, but in that we go round and round in the same places, stuck in routine and the familiar, which gives us a false sense of security. This prevents us from projecting ourselves towards a full life with God.
Sometimes we find it hard to take our vocation as pilgrims seriously, because we are afraid of the new, of change and of God’s surprises. But along the way, God’s surprise will always be present. That is why we must allow ourselves to be surprised by Him, just as the patriarchs did on their way to the Promised Land.
Dispossession and trust
We cannot lose sight of the Kingdom that is to come. For this, we must live a simpler and freer life, without worrying about the securities of this world, so that our journey towards the promised homeland may be fully free.
Today’s society motivates us to fill ourselves with things through consumerism, which paralyzes us and makes us ecstatic with material goods. This makes us lose sight of the horizon of the Kingdom of God. We cannot fall into the same trap as the people of Israel who, on their pilgrimage to the Promised Land, wanted to return to the familiar, to the “pots of Egypt”.
We love conformism and find it hard to break away from structures that give us security, but in reality make us lose the essence of our pilgrim life.
“Sell all that you have, give it to the poor, and then follow me.”
The pilgrim experience requires this stripping off in order to be able to go lightly and walk towards the fullness of life, always trusting in this Jesus who walks with us. We cannot lose hope because of our lack of faith or because we allow ourselves to be seduced by the things of this world that make us lose sight of the Kingdom of God.
Living as true pilgrims
We are definitely pilgrims, not nomads. But many times we tend to be nomads in our own circle, because we cling to the false security that everything is fine, and that does not allow us to risk our lives as walkers.
It is easier to go around on the roads already traveled and safe, but it is much more difficult to travel new roads that cause us fear and uncertainty. The reason for living this way is the lack of hope in God.
Therefore, we must walk in hope, without losing confidence in the One who has called us to follow Him, leaving everything and trusting in Him alone.
Finally, in this consumerist and materialistic society, the world expects us believers to live as pilgrims towards God, without anchoring ourselves in material things. We must live as pilgrims who put our trust in God and make the Kingdom a reality.
The world demands that we give it, with our lives, signs of hope and reasons to go forward in the face of all difficulties.