Pilgrimage

Abstract

In the ancient world there was a widespread belief that the presence of the sacred was more powerful in some places than at others, or that there were other SANCTUARIES in which a god might be more present than in one's own area and their power more efficacious. So while every urban area and many rural communities had its TEMPLE, SYNAGOGUE, CHURCH and/or MOSQUE, religious individuals in the ancient world often engaged in pilgrimage activities, defined as travel to a specific location for a religious purpose. For example, Asklepios, the healing god, had his main shrine at Epidauros, and even though he had healing shrines in most Greek cities, pilgrims came to Epidauros from all over the Greek world. JERUSALEM was the location of both the FIRST and SECOND TEMPLE and the site of various pilgrimages because this was YHWH's central place of worship. Throughout ancient Egypt, particular gods were associated with certain cities, to which people travelled in great numbers, while the rise of Christianity saw Jerusalem accorded special status. All pilgrimage activity was predicated on either the special needs of the worshipper or the deity in question, or a mixture of both.