Rev. Emelia Attridge

I witnessed hundreds of other pilgrims in the city of Assisi this fall. It was powerful (and surreal after the pandemic) to walk shoulder-to-shoulder with other Christians visiting the same sites. Christians have been visiting these same churches and walking the same streets for hundreds of years compelled by the promise of their faith and the lives lived by saints who came before us. The crowds in the streets each day looked like a murmuration of starlings moving in the sky. 

The prophet in today's reading is speaking about the diaspora of people who left Jerusalem in exile, driven out by the Babylonian armies, and imagines that the mountains themselves may be leveled to make their return home easier. Today, a pilgrimage doesn't look like it would have hundreds of years ago. Planes, trains, and automobiles, AirBnB's, hotels, and hostels with modern comforts and showers make the experience a lot easier and more pleasant. 

Most people only visit Assisi for an afternoon as a quick stop on a larger pilgrimage. But some are fortunate to stay longer. We were blessed to stay for a whole week with the "Suore Svedese" or "Swedish Sisters," as the locals in Assisi call them. The Brigittine Sisters of Assisi live with the sole vocation of hospitality. These sisters from all over the world welcome pilgrims into their hostel in Assisi, clean the rooms, cook the meals, and set the tables. We watched how other travelers would join for a meal, and be gone the next day on their journey: families, backpackers, and our own crew of clergywomen. Their work makes it possible for pilgrims to visit the city, and to discover their own encounters with God (whether in a medieval church or at a table set by a kind woman).