Among the pilgrims who arrived yesterday morning at the basilica, there were no more than a hundred, there were families from different autonomous communities, groups of retirees and some foreigners who reside in the coastal cities and who decided to take advantage of “these first days thinking that “There would not be much influx of pilgrims,” Catalina, a Brazilian married to a man from Madrid, revealed her strategy. They were also among the faithful who attended the first pilgrim mass of the Jubilee Year yesterday.
For this first week, after the celebration of the solemn opening that took place on Sunday, groups from various agencies, such as Iberobus and Avoris, are expected. Next Sunday, the first festive groups will be the ones who will win the Jubilee. The groups of Knights of the Sovereign Order of the Temple and the Ladies Templar, the two kabylas of Abul Khatar, men and women, and the members of the Historical Horse group have already reserved that day to make a pilgrimage to the basilica. A group of fifty people who come from a senior center in San Ginés and another group of pilgrims from Ecuador who travel with the Europamundos agency have also confirmed their attendance.
In previous jubilee years, Caravaca's festive groups join the pilgrimages in the first weeks to avoid coinciding with other groups that arrive from outside the city. From the Celebrations Commission and the three groups that make it up, Moors, Christians and Horsemen, they have prepared a quadrant with the dates reserved for these groups, who usually take advantage of the day to celebrate the jubilee season, participate in the pilgrim mass, perform a meal of brotherhood and spending a few hours together that serve as preparation for the upcoming Festivities of the Cross and, especially, the 'pre-party'.
At the pilgrim service point, located on the walls of the Caravaca castle, the first pilgrim diplomas and the first 'caravacensis' have also been issued, which certify having completed a stretch of 50 kilometers on foot or 100 by bicycle. some of the different pilgrimage routes of the Way of the Cross. The two documents present new designs, which have been prepared by Pedro Antonio López with details alluding to the city and religious figures and events such as Saint John of the Cross and Saint Teresa of Jesús.
A priest from the diocese of Toledo, Abel López-Cortés, officiated at the Eucharist. The priest has taken advantage of these days to travel to Caravaca accompanied by his mother and prepare the pilgrimage of the three parishes that he serves in the towns of Carrascalejo, Navatrasierra and Villar del Pedroso, in Cáceres. “We want to come at the end of October and we have gone ahead to get to know the place well, reserve accommodation for about 60 people and prepare the program for those days,” he said while rereading the triptychs about the Jubilee.
#International #accent #priest #Cáceres #Caravaca #pilgrim #mass
