Explore every episode of the podcast These Holy Bones: Walking the Camino de Santiago

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This episode is a wonderful tale of Kamal's call to walk the Camino Frances and to feed the fellow pilgrims he met at the albergues he stayed. Kamal is from the UK and had never heard of the pilgrimage. He tells of how it began to haunt his dreams and how he finally capitulated to the call. His forty day journey is filled with profound insights into the Camino and listeners will come away from this episode edified and inspired. Have a listen.

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I met Marie and Giselle on the road to Santiago. It was a hot day on the Camino, and everyone was feeling the drain. We were only a few days away from the cathedral, and they agreed to be guests on the podcast once the pilgrimage was complete. Our conversation covers a lot of ground about the Camino and about life in general. Have a listen--I think you'll enjoy this episode.

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I took a chance asking Juan Pablo to be a guest on the podcast. He was sitting in a park in the town of Portomarin writing in his journal, and I didn't want to bother him. I'm glad I did. He is originally from Argentina, but moved to Spain to study for an advanced degree. While in Spain, people encourage him to walk the Camino--if your Spanish, it's almost a mandate to travel to Santiago on foot. I enjoyed my conversation with Juan Pablo--John Paul--and think you will, too. Brew a pot of coffee, get comfortable in your favorite chair, and have a listen. Buen Camino. 

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This episode of These Holy Bones is a conversation with two young men from Belgium, Yelle and Laurens, who are childhood friends. I met them in a crowded restaurant the night before this interview. They graciously invited me to sit with them for dinner. In the spirit of the Camino, we shared food, conversation and laughter. Although this interview is relatively short, it conveys the heart of the Camino--a simple walk of faith and friendship.

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In this episode, Simon, a young Italian, speaks about his desire to encounter himself on the Camino Frances. Simon suggests walking without distractions--no music, no conversations--just the sound of your feet on the path and the thoughts in your head. I enjoyed speaking with Simon, and I think you will enjoy his youthful enthusiasm and idealism. Buen Camino!

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In this fourth episode of season two, I interview Claude from Paris, France. She explains how she was told that her Camino family would consist of the people with whom she began her journey--she would see them all along the way: in albergues, in bars, in restaurants and on the road as she traveled toward Santiago. This is exactly how Claude experienced the coming together of her Camino family. Have a listen and meet Claude on her way across Spain--she has insights to share not only about the Camino, but about life. 

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This past August, I spent the first night of my tenth pilgrimage in Hornillos del Camino. I met Julie, a twenty-three-year-old pilgrim from Denmark, who was on her second Camino traveling from Burgos to Santiago. Two years previous, she had walked the first part of the Camino Frances from St. Jean Pied de Port to Burgos. Have a listen as she tells me why she was walking The Way of Saint James. Buen Camino!

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In this episode, Father John Baptist and Father Jerome, two Dominican Friars from the Province of Saint Joseph in the United States, share their expectations of the road before we actually begin our trek across the Meseta. The interview was conducted in an albergue in Burgos on August 5th. Our conversation is filled with the excitement and the uncertainties commonly faced by most pilgrims venturing out on their first Camino. Have a listen and enjoy!

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This is the first episode of volume two of the podcast. In this episode, my wife, Karen, helps me to debrief after my tenth Camino, a walk of two hundred miles that included the Meseta-my favorite section of the Camino Frances. This was by far the most intense pilgrimage of the ten that I've walked--probably because I'm getting older and the joints are a bit more worn than in the past. My wife asks some good questions that help me reflect on another Camino. I hope you enjoy listening. Buen Camino!

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Jack Hitt's 1991 account of his Camino journey is a tale filled with quirky yet unforgettable characters. Hitt leaves a New York editing career to venture across Spain for a second time; his first pilgrimage was in 1981 after graduating from college. The book was later used by actor/writer/director Emilio Estevez for the movie The Way -- one of my all time favorites. I recommend Off The Road, especially coupled with the film, The Way for all Camino enthusiasts. 

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In this episode, a fellow Rhode Island pilgrim, James O'Connor, shares insights from his pilgrimage on the Frances in 2012 and his travels on the Portuguese Camino in 2024. His passion for the outdoors and his enthusiasm for his fellow pilgrim is at the heart of this interview. Have a listen. 

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In this episode, my wife Karen and I work through a packing list identifying what we deem necessary for the pilgrimage. Are most of these items essential? If I had to listen to only one podcast before leaving for the Camino, it would be "The Packing List."

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In this episode, my wife Karen and I discuss a daily approach to walking the Camino along with an approach to spending money on the road. Your pace is a very important aspect of the pilgrimage and should be considered before you take your first step. And of course you should consider a basic budget that can act as a guide for your spending on your walk to Santiago. 

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In this episode, my pastor, Father Stephen Battey, speaks about the Jubilee Year, and how we are to make sense of it. He touches on the essence of pilgrimage and how a pilgrim can approach the trek. His insights are invaluable. Have a listen, and God bless you!

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  Hello, and welcome to another episode of These Holy Bones, a podcast about the ancient pilgrimage to the Cathedral of Santiago, where the bones of St. James are interred beneath the high altar. I'm your host, Robert Nerny, and on today's episode, I would like to do a book review  on Kevin Codd's book entitled To the Field of Stars.

A Pilgrim's Journey to Santiago de Compostela. This was written in 2008, published by Erdmann's. It's about 270 pages. And it's a brill I think it's a brilliant book. I think it's it really is brilliant. I think it captures so many qualities of the Camino. I want to start with the quote.  It is on the cover of the book, and it's a quote from Martin Sheen, who is the famous actor,  and who stars in the movie The Way, which is about the Camino Francés, actually. 

He says, in this wonderful book, Father Cod brilliantly captures for us the essence of pilgrimage.  Through his spiritual and emotional trek, pilgrims are confronted with their own broken humanity and come face to face with the God they seek.  I love that quote. It sounds like Martin Sheen has walked the Camino for most of his life.

I read before I go on the Camino and I think this is my perspective that if you have time, part of your preparation should be reading. A lot, I know that a lot of times you spend your preparation in REI or  some sporting goods store, but, and that's part of it.  But this will give you a sense, a deeper experience, I think, and it definitely gives you a sense of what's about to happen.

But this book, you can read before the Camino, while you're on the Camino, and after the Camino. I think it just, it'll speak to you. At different points of your of your pilgrimage. And let me get right into it. In the introduction I love this introduction he is a very good writer. He's very very clear and super descriptive,  but not cumbersome.

It's not prose that you have to like, muddle your way through. It's very clear, very easy to read, and it brings you places,  but he says in the second paragraph of the introduction, he says, I'm about to share here a story about stars at dance. May I advise you to exercise a modicum of caution in attending to what follows for the story of stars dancing over a field in a faraway land may so draw you away from the ordinary business of daily life.

That you find yourself quite to your surprise in a new world of unexpected adventures and remarkable people and some very profound mysteries. Now that's definitely a Tolkien Tolkien esque type of passage. Bilbo Baggins says, it's a dangerous business photo going out of your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no no knowing where you'll be swept off to.

So when I read that, I was like, Whoa,  he definitely has read the Lord of the Rings and it comes, actually, he does reference the Lord of the Rings in the book. I do this second page here of the introduction. I do the fact that he does reference Define a pilgrim. So  in my experience, there's no, it's hard to Categorize, the pilgrims that are on the Camino.

It's impossible you don't categorize humanity you experience humanity, but I am going to read  from this, Introduction. He says a pilgrim is a believer Who travels to a holy place a place where god seems especially close To ask for pardon, to beg a favor, or to give thanks for blessings received. 

And so that's his definition of a pilgrim. I've met many pilgrims on the on the way on the road, and they probably wouldn't agree with this. They would maybe say that I'm here not as a believer, per se, definitely not as a Catholic, but I'm here because it appeals to me. It appeals to my sense of adventure, or it appeals to my interest in history, in culture, in language, in cuisine, but I'm definitely not here because I'm

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This episode is devoted to the pack on your back. My wife, Karen, speaks about her packing experiences with specific recommendations on what to take and what to leave home. What you carry in your pack while on the Camino is an essential part of the pilgrimage. Don't underestimate this aspect of your preparation. 

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In this episode, I go into some detail about how my wife and I ended up on the Camino de Santiago back during the summer of 2015 and how our pilgrimage was affirmed by a sign from God--no kidding! Well, at least that's my interpretation of the events. Like Jack Stanton in the movie The Way, I truly believe that no one does the Camino by accident--no one. 

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In this episode I interview Adam and Gareth from New Zealand who talk about their night hike on the Meseta. The hike was illuminated by the grandeur of a blood-red moon. The two pilgrims completed the hike but not before dealing with the  early morning cold without tents or blankets. Adam and Gareth are a delight to listen to as they share their adventures on the Camino de Santiago. 

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In this episode, Erik, a pilgrim from Kalamazoo, Michigan, speaks about the unexpected physical challenges of the pilgrimage. He also qualifies the trek as more of an interior journey rather than an exterior jaunt across northern Spain. Finally, he shares his love of the Spanish countryside with details about the flora and fauna encountered along the road. 

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In this episode, I take some time to answer questions that my wife, Karen, has sent to me. It is the morning of July 23rd, and I am sitting in front of the majestic Leon Cathedral having my second Cappuccino of the day (I should really stick to one-a-day). It's the third week of the pilgrimage--the perfect time to stop and reflect on the journey thus far.

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In this third episode of These Holy Bones, Julio, a pilgrim from Mexico, explains his reasons for walking the Camino Frances. He also tells of his encounter with Diego, a Spanish pilgrim, who has walked the Camino several times but never for himself--always as a sacrifice for others. Diego's generous actions have a profound impact on how Julio understands the Camino as he continues his pilgrimage to Santiago. 

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In this episode of These Holy Bones, I speak with Joseph, the owner of the albergue Beilari. He talks in his gentle manner about how he came to purchase the albergue and what hospitality means to him. 

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