Christianity: Pilgrimage & Celebrations (WJEC Eduqas GCSE Religious Studies): Revision Note

The importance of pilgrimage in Christianity

What is pilgrimage?

• A pilgrimage is a journey by a believer to a holy site for religious reasons

• Pilgrimage is an act of worship and devotion

• In Christianity, pilgrimage is not compulsory; however, there are special places for Christians, and these can help build individuals’ spirituality

• The importance and significance of pilgrimage depends on the individual Christians and the denomination that they follow

Why do Christians go on a pilgrimage?

• There are many reasons why a pilgrimage might be important for Christians

  • The Bible tells the story of Jesus and his parents making the pilgrimage to Jerusalem, and Christians may want to follow in their footsteps

  • Some Christians believe that some pilgrimage sites will help them heal (physically or spiritually)

  • The person may want to ask God for forgiveness

  • They may also desire to  deepen their faith or concentrate more on their religion

  • Christians may also want to strengthen their community by meeting others with the same beliefs

  • Some Christians (Catholics) make pilgrimages to shrines where they believe the Virgin Mary has appeared, for example, Lourdes

  • Other Christians (Protestants) may visit places where they can find peace to be able to study the Bible and pray, for example, Iona

What happens at Lourdes?

• Lourdes is an example of a pilgrimage site where Roman Catholics go to seek healing

  • Lourdes is a town in southwestern France, in the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains

  • Catholics believe that at Lourdes in 1850, a 14-year-old girl named Bernadette Soubirous had 18 visions of the Virgin Mary

  • A bishop carried out an enquiry into the reliability of her claims and found that some people were healed by the water, and her explanations of the visions meant that it must be true

  • A spring of water appeared, and miraculous healings are said to have taken place

  • About 2 million people visit Lourdes each year, and many of them are sick or have disabilities

  • Even though only a small number are thought to have been physically healed, most people return from their visit to Lourdes with a deep sense of God’s love and peace

  • Not all Catholics go to Lourdes to experience healing or miraculous cures. Others go to:

    • Be cleansed from sin

    • Bathe in the water to symbolise baptism

    • Pray at a holy site

    • Feel the religious atmosphere

    • Praise God

    • Have a vision or religious experience

What happens at Iona?

• Iona is a tiny island off the southwest coast of Mull in the Inner Hebrides

  • In 563 AD, Columba arrived in Iona with 12 followers, built his first Celtic church and established a monastic community

  • Iona has since become a place of pilgrimage and retreat for many Christians of numerous denominations

  • Iona is a symbol of Christian unity, and it shows that different Christian groups can live, work and worship together

  • The community must follow the “rules” of the group wherever they are

  • There is a time for silence, reflection or meditation, reading the Bible or holy books and enjoying the area’s natural beauty

  • Christians who visit Iona hope to grow spiritually and strengthen their faith

Other places of pilgrimage

• There are many other places identified as significant Christian pilgrimage sites 

  • Some Christians might visit Jerusalem because there are places related to the life and death of Jesus

  • Roman Catholics might visit Rome because it is where the pope (the head of the Catholic Church) lives

  • Some Christians visit Taize in central France to join the monastic order or to experience and share in the community’s way of life

  • In Walsingham, Norfolk, there is a replica of the Virgin Mary in an area where a woman received a vision in 1061; today, it is a popular place for Christians to visit and pray to Jesus

Christian celebration of Christmas

What is the importance of Christmas to Christians?

• The origin of the name “Christmas” is found in an old English term, “Christ’s Mass”, which is a celebration of the Eucharist

• Christmas Day marks the birth of Jesus for many Christians and is celebrated on the 25th of December 

• Aside from celebrating Jesus’s birth, it also:

  • Celebrates the Incarnation, the representation of God in human form

  • Is a time of thanksgiving because Christians believe that through Jesus, God gave himself to the world to make things better

• Many secular activities, such as having a family meal and sending Christmas cards, have developed around the religious festival

• Jesus was God’s gift to the world, from which the tradition of giving presents came

• The Gospels give an account of Jesus’s birth, but the actual date is not known; the date of the 25th was fixed during the 4th century, and there are some theories as to why this was chosen 

  • It was close to the existing pagan festival Saturnalia, which fell after the winter solstice 

  • It is also the time of year when Jews celebrate Hanukkah, the festival of lights

Christian celebration of Easter

What is the importance of Easter to Christians?

• Christians celebrate Easter every year in either March or April

  • The date will vary according to the date of the Jewish festival Passover

• There is a strong connection between these two festivals, as Passover is thought to have taken place between the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus

• The Gospels also suggest that the Last Supper was the Passover meal

• Easter is celebrated by Christians throughout the world 

  • The name comes from “Eostre”, an old Anglo-Saxon goddess of the dawn 

  • However, Easter is recognised as having its origins in the resurrection of Jesus

• Easter celebrates the Christian belief in Jesus’s resurrection, which is central to the faith

• In the early Church, Easter and Pentecost (Jesus’s ascension) were the only two days observed, but as Christianity grew, more events associated with Jesus became part of the liturgical calendar

• Another important event is that of Lent, a time of spiritual preparation that begins on Ash Wednesday, which is a day of repentance

  • Lent is a solemn occasion for the Christian Church, as it recalls that Jesus was tested by the devil before he started his ministry

  • Many Christians will give up something that they enjoy for Lent, and others may do fundraising or voluntary work

What happens during the festival of Easter?

• The festival of Easter takes place at the end of Holy Week, which consists of a series of events commemorating the last days of Jesus’s life

Palm Sunday

• Palm Sunday (the Sunday before Easter) marks the beginning of Holy Week 

  • The day remembers Jesus’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem

  • Churches often give out palm branches to recreate the celebration

Maundy Thursday

• Maundy Thursday commemorates the Last Supper (the night before Jesus died)

• Jesus washed his disciples’ feet and gave a new commandment

• This is observed at Communion services and foot-washing ceremonies

• It helps Christians reflect on Jesus’s sacrifice and his call to love and serve others

Good Friday

• Good Friday remembers the crucifixion of Jesus

  • It is a day when special services are held, especially in the afternoon

  • Some services last three hours, marking the time Jesus hung on the cross

  • It is a day of grief and reflection on which some recount Jesus’s suffering in detail, while others fast as a sign of sorrow

  • Catholic churches strip altars bare and muffle bells to show mourning

Easter Sunday

• Easter Sunday is a time to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus

  • Special services are held on Saturday night and Sunday morning

  • Churches are decorated with flowers and resurrection hymns

  • Orthodox Christians may have a midnight procession in which they enter a darkened church with candles (symbolising the empty tomb) and the priest declares: “Christ is risen!”

  • Catholic and Anglican Christians may hold a Saturday night vigil, which begins in darkness with the lighting of the Paschal candle (to symbolise Christ) and ends with Holy Communion