Last month my wife and myself were invited by a friend to a Sunday walk organized by an association related to the famous walking trail "the Way of Saint James." For those who are not familiar with "the Way," it consists of various walking routes through towns and countryside from various cities in Portugal, France and Spain to the historical city of Santiago de Compostelo. Santiago is a famous city near Vigo in north-western Spain. The supposed remains of Saint James the Apostle are said to be buried there. A great cathedral was built to celebrate the discovery of the supposed remains. Since that time Santiago has been a place of pilgrimage for those looking for answers to prayers, like other famous locations, such as Fatima in Portugal and Lourdes in France,
We had been invited to meet up in the Portuguese town of Felgueiras in the early morning to start the 15 kilometer walk. But the night before was cold, rainy and windy with hail, so we were in no mood for an early morning pre-dawn departure. Besides, because of the weather, I had been unable to make deliveries of food-stuffs on Saturday, Therefore, Sunday morning we made our deliveries and met up with our friend in the afternoon.
When we arrived the walk was finished as was the lunch and the group was waiting to have fellowship in the local town hall. Most of the 40 to 50 people were from the ages of 35 to 60. We sat in the back of the room as the different entities gave their speeches. The vice-president of the association gave his testimony of how the Way of Saint James had changed him, had healed him and had deepened his life spiritually.
Finally he got some alcohol called Aguardente, a clear alcohol similar to Brandy and made a mixture with red wine, sugar, lemon juice, and coffee beans. After lighting the concoction, he let it burn for some time occasionally stirring it as it burned. Then with a help of an assistant, they recited an old Celtic prayer to cast out evil influences and protect everyone that drank from it from any evil spells.Supposedly the evil is being burnt inside the cauldron in the flames while the prayer is being recited. Some say it is a spoof, but it was recited with all seriousness. Afterward, the vice-president asked if anyone had a prayer request to pray over the burning cauldron. Our friend's 11 year-old daughter was the first to pray and ask for the healing of her brother who has cancer. Another child also approached the cauldron and prayed.
My wife and I were in shock. We did not know if he had been praying against the evil entities he mentioned or to them. He did not mention God or Jesus throughout the prayer. We sat wondering what in the world this Celtic prayer had to do with the supposedly Christian "Way of Saint James."The vice-president had explained that the "Way of Saint James" was actually routes made by early Celtic worshipers who would travel to Santiago at certain times of the year for Celtic ceremonies worshiping the sun. In any case, the crowd seemed to be happy with the concoction judging by their happy smiles and conversation. But I was wondering what the Apostle James who had lost his head and life for preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ would have been thinking had he seen the ceremony.
The vice-president had mentioned that the Catholic Church had refused to recognize them as a legitimate representative of the Way of Saint James. After watching the ceremony, I could understand why.
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