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Definition: pilgrimage from Philip's Encyclopedia

Religiously motivated journey to a shrine or other holy place in order to gain spiritual help or guidance, or for the purpose of thanksgiving. Pilgrimages are common to many religions, particularly in the East. A Muslim should make the pilgrimage to Mecca, where devotions last two weeks, at least once in his life. This pilgrimage is known as the Hajj. Since the 2nd century ad Christians have made pilgrimages to Palestine, to the tomb of the Apostles Peter and Paul in Rome, and to that of James in Santiago de Compostela, NW Spain.


pilgrimage

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide
Journey to sacred places inspired by religious devotion. For Hindus, the holy places include Varanasi and the purifying River Ganges ; for Buddhists, the places connected with the crises of Buddha 's career; for the ancient Greeks, shrines such as those at Delphi and Ephesus; for Jews, the Western Wall or Wailing Wall in Jerusalem; for Muslims, Mecca and Medina ; and for Roman Catholics, Lourdes in France, among others. Pilgrimages are usually undertaken as opportunities to reflect upon and deepen one's religious faith, or to earn religious merit. Among Christians, pilgrimages were common by the 2nd century and, as a direct result of the growing frequency and numbers of pilgrimages, there arose numerous hospices catering for pilgrims, the religious orders of knighthood, and the Crusades. The great centres of Christian medieval pilgrimages were Jerusalem, Rome, the tomb of St James of Compostela in Spain, and the shrine of St Thomas à Becket in Canterbury, England. Pilgrimage often…
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Full text Article Pilgrimage

From Cambridge Dictionary of Christian Theology
The practice of pilgrimage, understood as a departure from daily life on a journey in search of spiritual blessing , has never been obligatory for Christians (as it is for, e.g., Muslims), but it has long been a significant aspect of Christian life and devotion. Early Christians journeyed to the…
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Full text Article Pilgrimages

From Encyclopedia of World Trade: From Ancient Times to the Present Full text Article A-Z Entries
Tens of thousands of Muslims join in prayer...
Journeys for religious worship that have historically transported ideas, beliefs, merchandise, and commodities to other areas. Pilgrimages are almost universal, as pilgrimage places and the need to identify with the founding elements of the religion are universal. Their effect on the economy is…
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Full text Article pilgrimage

From Encyclopedia of Social and Cultural Anthropology
Pilgrimage in all religions is pre-eminently a journey of the religious imagination. It obviously constitutes physical movement from one place to another, but at the same time involves spiritual or temporal movement. Pilgrimage may project the believer across lines of gender , ethnicity , language , …
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Full text Article pilgrimage

From Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
Journey to a shrine or other sacred place undertaken to gain divine aid, as an act of thanksgiving or penance, or to demonstrate devotion. Medieval Christian pilgrims stayed at hospices set up specifically for pilgrims, and on their return trip they wore on their hats the badge of the shrine…
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Full text Article pilgrimage

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide
Journey to sacred places inspired by religious devotion. For Hindus, the holy places include Varanasi and the purifying River Ganges ; for Buddhists, the places connected with the crises of Buddha 's career; for the ancient Greeks, shrines such as those at Delphi and Ephesus; for Jews, the Western…
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Full text Article PILGRIMAGE

From The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales
In ad 326, Helena, mother of Constantine, the first Christian Emperor, went to Jerusalem to discover the holy places connected with the life of Jesus. Many pilgrims, including some from Wales, followed in her footsteps. An old tradition tells of a visit to Jerusalem by the three saints : David , …
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Full text Article Pilgrimage

From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
A journey to a sacred place undertaken as an act of religious devotion, either as an act of veneration or penance, or to ask for the fulfilment of some prayer. In the middle ages the chief venues in the West were Walsingham and Canterbury (England), Fourvière, Le Puy and St denys (France), Rome, …
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Full text Article pilgrimages,

From The Oxford Companion to British History
visits to shrines or holy places, were undertaken for a variety of reasons—from piety, as thanksgiving or penance, in hope of a cure, or as a form of holiday. The great and mighty could visit Rome, Jerusalem, or Compostella: *Ine of Wessex went to Rome to die c. 726; the real *Macbeth visited Rome…
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Full text Article Pilgrimage

From Irish History: People, Places and Events that Built Ireland
Pilgrimage
The silvery peak of Croagh Patrick rises to 764 metres, and overlooks the island-flecked expanse of Clew Bay in west County Mayo. The mountain is nicknamed the ‘Reek’, and it has long been a significant place of pilgrimage in Ireland. On Reek Sunday - the last Sunday in July each year - thousands of…
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Full text Article PILGRIMAGES (Peregrinatio)

From Encyclopedia of Ancient Christianity
The first known Christian pilgrim was a Cappadocian bishop named * Alexander , who shortly after 200 traveled to * Jerusalem “to pray and visit the sites there” (Eus., HE 6,11,2). * Clement of Alexandria went there as well a few years later (Jerome: PL 33, 687). Around a hundred years later, * …
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