SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA 25th July 2010

 HISTORY AND LEGENDS

James, son of Zebedee (died 44) or Yaakov Ben-Zebdi/Bar-Zebdi, was one of the
Twelve Apostles of Jesus. James was one of only three apostles whom Jesus selected to
bear witness to his Transfiguration.

The name Santiago goes back to the Apostle James (Saint James = Santiago) who went
to this most north-western part of Spain, called by the Romans "Finis Terrae", "end of
the world", to preach and convert people to Christianity.

His remains are said to be in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia (Spain). Saint James
is the Patron Saint of Spain. The city where his remains are held, Santiago de
Compostela, is considered the third most holy town within Roman Catholicism (after
Jerusalem and Rome). The traditional pilgrimage to the grave of the saint, known as the
"Way of St. James", has become the most popular pilgrimage for Western European
Catholics from the early Middle Ages onwards.

When 25 July falls on a Sunday, it is a ″Jubilee″ year, and a special east door is opened
for entrance into the Santiago Cathedral.
2010 is a Jubilee year. The feast day of St James is celebrated on 25 July on the
liturgical calendars of the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran and certain Protestant
churches.

After returning to Palestine in 44 a.C., he was taken prisoner by Herodes Agrippa and
tortured to death. The king forbid to bury him, but in the night Jacob's disciples stole the
body and brought him, in a sarcophagus of marble, on board of a small boat. The
current of the sea drove the boat to the Spanish coast, into the port of the Roman
province's capital, Iria Flavia. Here the Apostle was buried at a secret place in a wood.
Centuries later, in 813, the hermit Pelayo listened music in that wood and saw a shining.
For this shining the place was called, in Latin, "Campus Stellae", field of the star, name
that was lateron turned into Compostela.

Bishop Teodomiro, who received notice of that event, instituted an investigation, and so
the tomb of the Apostle was discovered. King Alphonse II declared Saint James the
patron of his empire and had built a chapel at that place. It is reported that from then on
Saint James did several miracles, even that he fought side to side with King Ramiro I in
the decisive battle against the Moors.

More and more pilgrims followed the way of Santiago, the "Way of Saint James", and
the original chapel soon became the cathedral of the new settlement, Santiago de
Compostela..

In 12th and 13th century the town had its greatest importance, and Pope Alexander III
declared it a Holy Town, like Rome and Jerusalem. Pope Calixto II declared that the
pilgrims who went to Santiago in a Holy Year should be free of all their sins. El Año
Santo (Holy Year) is celebrated each time when the Apostol's day (July, 25) is a
Sunday.

 SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA: "Town of the Apostle"

Santiago de Compostela is the final destination of the legendary medieval way of

pilgrimship Camino de Santiago (Way of Saint James), now considered by Unesco a
World Heritage Site. Until today it attracts visitors from all over the world thanks to its
fantastic monuments. The town is named after the Apostle Saint James ("Santiago"),
who is buried here.
Santiago is certainly one of Spain's most monumental towns, with a particular
architectonical style all of its own. But it is as well a town plenty of life, with one of the
most famous Universities and a large number of students who guarantee youthful
ambience inbetween the historical walls. Also the region's cuisine is of great reputation,
and it is said that nowhere you can eat better sea-food than in Galicia.
So this is a place with a really varied offer, and one of the great cultural centers of the
continent.

If you are in Santiago at the end of July, don't miss the Festival of the Apostle. On
July, 24th takes place the "Fuego del Apostol", great fire-works in front of the
Obradoiro-door of the cathedral. The next day, during mass, a huge incense font that is
fixed to the ceiling of the cathedral with a rope is swung through all the nave.
  THE WAY OF SAINT JAMES

The Way of St James has existed for over a thousand years. It was one of the most
important Christian pilgrimages during medieval times, and a pilgrimage route on
which a plenary indulgence could be earned; other major pilgrimage routes include the
Via Francigena to Rome and the pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
The Way of St. James, which was declared a historical-artistic site in 1962 by Spain has
achieved widespread international recognition. In addition to its spiritual value, the Way
plays a major part in disseminating languages, customs, schools of thought, and artistic
styles.
Pilgrimages to Santiago de Compostela began in the 9th century from the time of the
discovery, history or legend, of the tomb of the Apostle Santiago.
During the eight subsequent centuries a continual flow of pilgrims from all over Europe
traced the routes that converge in Spain and lead, via the Camino del Norte (North
Way) or the Camino Francés (French Way), to Santiago de Compostela, the final point
of all the Jacobean routes.

From the start, the Camino de Santiago (Way of St. James) produced a close and fruitful
link between the pilgrims and the inhabitants of the towns through which it passes.
Therefore, in addition to its spiritual value, the Camino became the backbone for the
dissemination of languages, customs, currents of thought, artistic styles, etc.

The Way of St. James has received a number of international acknowledgements. The
Council of Europe distinguished it as the First European Cultural Itinerary in 1987, and
in July 2004 it was awarded the category of Great European Cultural Itinerary. In 1993
it was included in Unesco's list of cultural assets declared to be World Heritage Sites. In
2004, the Way of St. James received the Príncipe de Asturias Award to Union for being
a "place of pilgrimage and of meeting between people and cultures which, through the
centuries, has become a symbol of fraternity and the backbone of European
conscience".
The Jacobean Route attracts visitors with the wealth of its multiple facets. Whether
travelling the route by foot, bicycle, horse or any other means, its spiritual, artistic and
cultural vitality, the friendly nature and hospitality of its people, and the beauty and
variety of the landscapes it crosses, guarantee a range of sensations that will endure in
the traveller's mind

The 2010 Holy Year of St. James holds great significance, as it marks the end of a
particularly important cycle, because of the number of people that have made the
pilgrimage along the Way of St. James in this period. Due to the leap year effect, the
patron saint's day of the Apostle James (25 July) falls on a Sunday every 11, 6, 5, 6 and
11 years. This means that there will not be another Holy Year of St. James until 2021.
This Holy Year in a unique occasion to celebrate the fact that the Way is, more than
ever, and to quote the words of the 2004 Prince of Asturias Concordia Award winner, a
place of pilgrimage and a meeting point for people and civilisations that has become,
over the centuries, a symbol of fraternity and a cohesive element for European
awareness.