Numbers

[Rosina Lila]

Hi Frank,
I reported the figures given by the almanac. (The monthly figures which I
have reported from time to time reflect only those pilgrims who have received
the Compostela, which are relatively few.)  In the case of Santiago it is not
 specified whether the 10 million include only those who have gone to the
Cathedral or pilgrims to the various religious sites in the city and its
environs.  I do know that many people in Spain who cannot make it to Assisi
in Italy  make pilgrimages to the church of St. Francis in Santiago, and that
high schools, (or their equivalent), from all over  Spain routinely take
their students to Santiago.  After all, Santiago is the patron saint of Spain.
Given the horrific population explosion throughout the world, the almanac
figures do not seem to me out of line, nor do I see any reason why someone
would inflate the figures. Pilgrimages are not, after all, political events,
and huge numbers of visitors put a strain on the sites visited.
I have noticed that in my parish it has been emphasized, of late, that
would-be pilgrims go to confession before starting out. It would appear,
then, that some efforts are being made to regulate and streamline religious
pilgrimages.
Personally, I think that the numbers given for the Nossa Senhora Aparecida in
Brasil are understated; I have never seen such crowds anywhere, anytime, and
I was told that the huge Basilica  is always like that.
The physical effort, from what I understand, need not mean just walking.
Pilgrims to Medjugorge or Fatima  or other religious sites routinely fast, or
limit their intake to bread and tea, etc., or undergo some other type of
unaccustomed physical endeavor, such as staying in convents or other places
bereft of wordly comforts where one must get up at dawn.
In my yearly visits to Seville for Holy Week I stay in a tiny room with a cot
and a night table, period. Yet, it doesn't seem like a physical effort at all.
Regards,
Rosina