The XXI Days "Mar por Medio", organized by the Xacobea Academy, brought together academics, journalists and representatives of Jacobean associations from Galicia, Asturias and Cantabria in Ribadeo to reflect on the present of the Camino de Santiago, its cultural dimension and the role of those who work every day to preserve its values.
Ribadeo once again became a meeting point for the Jacobean world this weekend with the celebration of the XXI Day “Sea in the Middle”, a quote that focused on something that often remains in the background compared to the numbers of pilgrims: what values we want to preserve on the Camino and how they should be transmitted to the next generations.
The program brought together communication professionals, academics and representatives of associations linked to different Jacobean routes on Saturday, October 10 and Sunday, October 11, with participants from Galicia, Asturias and Cantabria.
One of the central moments came on Saturday afternoon with a round table dedicated specifically to the values of the Camino de Santiago and the vision of the associations.
Associations take the floor
The table began at 4:30 p.m. and included the participation of Rafael Sánchez Bargiela, from AGACS; Luis Fernández Ansedes, by Abrindo Camiño de Mondoñedo; Laureano García Díez, from the Association of Friends of the Camino de Santiago Astur-Galaico del Interior; Valeriano Teja Oruña, from the Association of Friends of the Caminos de Santiago through Cantabria, and Manuel Vicente González, from the Friends of Camiño do Mar Association.
The session was moderated by Mª Josefa Sanz Fuentes, second vice president of the Xacobea Academy.
The meeting allowed us to incorporate into the debate the experience of entities that have been working on the ground for years, accompanying pilgrims, disseminating the routes, recovering heritage and defending a way of understanding the Camino that goes far beyond tourism promotion.
In the case of Cantabria, the presence of Valeriano Teja made it possible to provide the perspective of the associations linked to the Caminos del Norte and the work carried out over the years to preserve and transmit the Jacobean heritage.
Much more than attracting pilgrims
The conference left an increasingly important question on the table: the success of the Camino should not be measured solely by the number of people who arrive in Santiago.
The international growth of the routes also forces us to talk about identity, hospitality, heritage, culture, spirituality and relationship with the territories crossed by pilgrims.
In this context, associations continue to play a fundamental role.
They are the ones who often keep a route alive when the lights disappear.
They organize activities.
They recover old routes.
They serve pilgrims.
They promote research.
And they preserve the memory of small towns and roads that would hardly have the same visibility without that work.
Communication: from local to international
Saturday morning had begun precisely with another reflection closely linked to the future of the Camino.
The table «Os Camiños de Santiago, communication routes: from local to international» It brought together people from different media outlets to discuss the way in which the Jacobean phenomenon is currently reported.
Representatives from El Progreso, La Voz de Galicia, COPE, Cadena SER, Onda Cero and the Corporación de Servizos Audiovisuais de Galicia participated.
The debate addressed the importance of communication in the projection of the routes and in the way in which the Camino currently reaches very different audiences inside and outside of Spain.
Because today the Camino is told practically in real time.
In press.
Radio.
Television.
Social networks.
Videos.
Blogs.
And mobile phones.
Communication can help enormously to publicize less traveled routes and small territories, but it also forces us to consider how to promote without turning the Camino solely into a product.
Heritage and culture in the program
The days were not limited to the debate tables.
The program also included a visit to the Santuario da Nosa Señora das Virtues, in A Ponte de Arante, thus incorporating the religious and cultural heritage of the territory into the meeting itself.
Subsequently, the conference of Dario Villanueva, professor emeritus of the University of Santiago de Compostela and former director of the Royal Spanish Academy, under the title «Academic hybrid confessions. Dámaso Alonso in Mar por Medio».
Saturday's day concluded with a concert by the Ribadeo Polyphonic Choir.
The Xacobea Academy closes the days
The program continued on Sunday at the Ribadeo Auditorium with one of the most notable institutional events of this edition.
At 12:00 the solemn session of entry of John Rutherford as an honorary academician and Manuel Valin Valdes as corresponding academic of the Xacobea Academy.
The closing of the meeting also included a performance by the soprano Hope Mara.
The XXI Days "Mar por Medio" have had the collaboration of the Xunta de Galicia, the University of Santiago de Compostela, the University of Oviedo and the City Council of Ribadeo.
The Camino also needs spaces to think
Beyond the specific program, meetings such as the one held in Ribadeo allow us to remember that the Camino de Santiago needs something more than infrastructure and promotion.
Needs conversation.
You need to listen to those who work on the roads daily.
And you need to ask yourself from time to time where you are walking.
The increase in pilgrims, internationalization and enormous media exposure represent an opportunity, but also a challenge.
Preserving the essence of the Camino while it grows will probably be one of the big issues of the coming years.
And there the associations, researchers, media and institutions will have a lot to say.
Because the Camino is traveled on foot.
But it is also preserved by talking about it, thinking about it and deciding together what is worth protecting.
