{"id":83972,"date":"2014-04-21T08:29:25","date_gmt":"2014-04-21T15:29:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/one-year-ago-feeling-monkish-in-rabanal\/"},"modified":"2015-06-11T10:59:53","modified_gmt":"2015-06-11T17:59:53","slug":"one-year-ago-feeling-monkish-in-rabanal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/one-year-ago-feeling-monkish-in-rabanal\/","title":{"rendered":"One Year Ago: Feeling Monkish in Rabanal"},"content":{"rendered":"

(from my journal)<\/p>\n

Rabanal del Camino
\n2<\/span>1 April – Sunday!<\/p>\n

\"Bishop's<\/a><\/p>\n

Bishop’s Palace in Astorga, by Gaudi. The Bishop never moved in, and it’s a Museum now.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"Cathedral<\/a><\/p>\n

Cathedral in Astorga – Apparently Closed on Sunday Mornings.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"Cathedral<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Cathedral<\/a><\/p>\n

\"What<\/a><\/p>\n

What is this?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Francine’s second day, and the Benedictine connection continues. It was a rough day, and we only reached El Ganso – our intended lunch target – at 2PM.<\/p>\n

\"Walking<\/a><\/p>\n

Walking from Astorga to El Ganso<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"Walking<\/a><\/p>\n

\"A<\/a><\/p>\n

A Hobbit Door?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"Walking<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Walking<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Memorial.<\/a><\/p>\n

Memorial. We saw many, many of these on the Camino.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"El<\/a><\/p>\n

\"El<\/a><\/p>\n

\"El<\/a><\/p>\n

Broad path between road and horse path gave way to walking beside the highway.<\/p>\n

The views were spectacular – the mountains got larger and larger as we approached. Francine had th esame sorts of pains, adjustments, and stops I had in my own early going, and I did my best to help her and encourage her.<\/p>\n

As we gained altitude, it was easy to run out of breath, and I had to make sure that I regulated by own pace, difficult for me in the best of times.<\/p>\n

We arrived in Rabanal about 4PM, sore but triumphant. Francine is starting to build confidence and stamina, which she will need in the days ahead. Not sure how we will handly the descent form Cruz de Ferro, but I hope we can make it to Molinesca tomorrow. Will stop in Riego de Ambr\u00f3s if required.<\/p>\n

We’re staying at the fantastic albergue of the Confraternity of Saint James in the UK, with a Benedictine monastery (just three monks) next door. <\/p>\n

\"Francine<\/a><\/p>\n

Francine enters Rabanal<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"Rabanal<\/a><\/p>\n

\"The<\/a><\/p>\n

The view from our albergue<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"Washing<\/a><\/p>\n

Washing Clothes in Rabanal, from top to bottom: Smith, Tara, Francine, Stella<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"Benedictine<\/a><\/p>\n

Benedictine Monastery in Rabanal del Camino<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

We had hoped to find a Sunday Mass here, after not finding an early morning Mass in Astorga – despite the schedule posted by the diocese – and just missing the one in Santa Catalina de Somoza. We did stop in the church there with the intention (at least) to pray awhile and venerate the relics of Saint Blaise there, but after only a moment we were shooed out by an officious church lady.<\/p>\n

In retrospect, I believe she was deliberately trying to insult us, but of course I was too oblivious at the time, which I’m sure frustrated her to no end.<\/p>\n

Met so many people today!<\/p>\n

As I said, we’d hoped to find a Mass at Rabanal, as we had been told of a 7PM Mass, but in the event it proved to be Vespers by the monks – chanted in Latin, with the reading done in Spanish, English, and German. The monks, at least two-thirds of them, are from Bavaria. One of the German monks (Brother Marcus perhaps?) stopped by the albergue about an hour before Vespers looking for readers. So of course, Francine volunteered me.<\/p>\n

There were three of us there, given no instruction, but sitting in choir with the monks.<\/p>\n

It felt eerily familiar, and it felt right<\/em>, if that makes sense.<\/p>\n

Vespers was beautiful, and it was followed by exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and Benediction. This, we had no fore-warning of, so there I was in the monks’ choir with two other pilgrims who had read the reading from Hebrews, each in their own language, none of us having any idea what to do.<\/p>\n

We improvised by just standing amazed and singing what bits of O Salutaris Hostia<\/em> we remembered, which as it turns out wasn’t much.<\/p>\n

Even so, a sublime experience.<\/p>\n

Afterwards, dinner with Smith and Tara, plus a new Irish friend, Mark Kilmartin. Then Compline. Now sleep.<\/p>\n

All them thar photos – day 20<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(from my journal) Rabanal del Camino 21 April – Sunday! Bishop’s Palace in Astorga, by Gaudi. The Bishop never moved in, and it’s a Museum now. Cathedral in Astorga – Apparently Closed on Sunday Mornings. What is this? Francine’s second day, and the Benedictine connection continues. It was a rough day, and we only reached El Ganso – our intended […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[40,55,18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-83972","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-camino","category-divine-office","category-vocation"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1aGBK-lQo","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":83991,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/one-year-ago-cruz-de-ferro\/","url_meta":{"origin":83972,"position":0},"title":"One Year Ago: Cruz de Ferro","author":"Thom","date":"22 April 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"(from my journal) Molinaseca 22 April 2013 Saying Goodbye to our Hospitaleros at Refugio Gaucelmo in Rabanal Too tired to think properly. Spectacular climb to Cruz de Ferro, Francine, Mark, and I. Saw some peregrinos there we had prviously met in Rabanal. 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We have been walking with a young Dutchman named Stijn, and we ran into our old friend Rebecca again a couple of times\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":83382,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/facing-the-lord\/","url_meta":{"origin":83972,"position":2},"title":"Facing the Lord","author":"Thom","date":"03 November 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday, the second Mass I attended had five people. Oh, the regularly-scheduled morning Mass for All Souls was packed to the rafters, but this was later. The rubrics in the Missal for All Souls specifically allow priests to celebrate up to three Masses that day - indeed the Missal has\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Holy Rosary High Altar","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/11\/candle1-240x319.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":83415,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/our-pilgrimages-of-faith\/","url_meta":{"origin":83972,"position":3},"title":"Our Pilgrimages of Faith","author":"Thom","date":"25 November 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday, on the great feast of Christ the King, the Year of Faith drew to a close. Pope Benedict XVI established it as a time to re-dedicate ourselves to professing the faith, celebrating the faith, and witnessing to the faith. 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