Il est bon, il est bon, qu’il est bon, le bon Dieu.

This was a phrase  I had picked up from Gerry W Hughes S.J. who used it on his walks to Rome and Jerusalem.  Walking long distances is only possible if we listen to the rhythm of our bodies which, if we let them,  settle into a pattern, changing from time to time, like gears, depending on our energy, the terrain and our spiritual state.  This rhythm lends itself to repetitive prayer which serves as an entry into more contemplative prayer.

One of the great spiritual classics of the Orthodox Christians is “The Way of the Pilgrim”. This pilgrim uses only one phrase and uses it incessantly.  For me, the first phrase I used came from a priest who served the parishes of Almaden de la Plata and El Real de la Jara. These are the last villages in the Province of Seville on the Via de La Plata.

Above Almadén de La Plata

This photo has a signpost which says, “The End of the Way –  Calvary”.  It stands on a ridge in the Sierra North of Almadén de La Plata, a village which is blessed with a good albergue in which I stayed a night.  In the evening I went to Mass and the priest seemed to be miserable.  Fortunately he had two cheery nuns who helped breathe life into the singing and welcome everyone.  The next day I arrived early in Jara de la Real which is only a few very pleasant kilometres from Almadén. Passing the church, the same nuns spotted and greeted me so I went into the church and to my horror it was also the same priest saying Mass again.  I really considered leaving and going on my way but it began to rain, so I stayed.

The Church in Real de La Jara, Seville, Sierra del Norte

The priest had changed.  This man had had a conversion overnight.  18 hours earlier he seemed suicidal, totally miserable.  Yet here he was warmly inviting all to come and share this common meal, to eat and drink and become one body together in God’s love, through Jesus Christ.  He was inspiring in his sermon and at the end of it he suggested we say, “Jesus en ti confio” regularly during the week.  I was obviously struck by this and it became for me, over my Caminos, one of my mantras.

I find that one or other of these little phrases come into my head suddenly and on the Camino de Levante (from Valencia) I noticed I was using “Jesús en tí confio” when I was in pain, which was often.  Somehow it fitted my pace and on more than one occasion my pain eased.  I don’t select these phrases consciously, they just seem to pop up.  The Gerry Hughes one, “Il est bon, il est bon, qu’il est bon, le bon Dieu” seems to fit climbing hills very well which is fitting since I first met Gerry when he was taking students up mountains in Scotland.

Another one I use a lot is a prayer for Faith, Humility and Trust, but I just repeat the three words “faith, humility and trust”.  These phrases can be repeated for only a few minutes or for hours.  It doesn’t matter. I always need to ask for Faith since although I don’t associate Faith with beliefs ( cf miracles) I am always strongly tempted to feel that all my spirituality is a set of psychological quirks, hormonal imbalances and a blindness to Darwinism. Humility, for me, is a foundation stone.  Without it I don’t see people.  And Trust?  Well, I have wanted to be in control in my life and didn’t manage it, so I like to remember the times when I have cried out for help and to remember that it works.

There is also the rosary.  This I use when I’m out of prayer, out of inner silence and when I’m distracted.  It’s a formula for staying with my intention to pray at times when I can’t . I also have found it helpful when I am absorbed in the beauty of the scenery. Then I like to shout out loud at the end, “Glory be to the Father” and, inexplicably, less loudly, “and to the Son”, trailing off in volume with  “and to the Holy Spirit.”   On mountains I can be very loud.  I imagine most people are the same.

Above Ponferrada; a good spot for shouting, “Glory be..”