Just a few weeks ago, I visited Israel, a holy land full of history and religious sites for those of the Judaic, Christian and Muslim faiths. Whether I toured Akko, a city that once housed the Knights Templars, or visited holy sites in Jerusalem, I was surrounded by travelers who had visited Israel with the sole intent to explore a place that played a pivotal role in the history of their religion.
While I'm not very religious myself (I like to say, "I'm spiritual"), I can't deny that I didn't witness the power of religious travel while in Israel. At the Wailing Wall, I prayed among many Jewish women on Shabbat and witnessed their fervent prayers and tears of faith.
In the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, I watched as women and men waited for hours to see the site where Jesus was said to be buried and resurrected and even met the doorkeeper of the church, a man whose is a descendant of the Prophet Mohammed. Even during breakfast at the Sea of Galilee, I listened to religious travelers on group tours discuss the sites they'd seen or were going to see over the course of their journey.
It was clear to me that religious travel is still going strong. However, too often, religious travel is firmly wedged into something that is only for religious travelers intent on going to see a place of faith that they recognize, and the truth is, religious travel can go far beyond that.
A few years ago, I had my first experience with religious travel, when I visited Seville during Semana Santa, or Holy Week, the week that precedes Easter. While I was briefly Catholic as a child, I'd never experienced this traditional Catholic Spanish Easter holiday in the U.S. and was amazed by the processions of the cloaked men who carried large, ostentatious floats throughout the city to their respective churches, in preparation for the holy holiday that commemorates Jesus' resurrection.
What I quickly learned then was that people would travel all around the world - those who were Catholic, and those who were not - to witness Semana Santa. See, religious travel does not have to be limited to people of a certain faith. By that, I mean that Muslim travelers may be just as intrigued to visit the Vatican as Christians are to visit Angkor Wat in Cambodia or Besakih Temple in Bali.
Why? Because traveling to religious sites of different faiths offer people of all backgrounds the opportunity to learn about another faith, culture and people, thus fostering a world and travel community that is more informed, accepting and open-minded.
In a world where religions have clashed violently over the past due to a lack of understanding or acceptance of different faiths, travel offers people of any background the chance to become more informed and explore a different culture through the eyes of that culture's faith. Ultimately, I believe that so-called "religious travel" can reduce ignorance and stereotyping of other religions.
So, if you're a travel agent with clients interested in visiting India, perhaps encourage them to visit the local temples and learn more about the Hindu faith, just as you would encourage anyone visiting Israel to visit Holy Sites. And if you're a traveler, take it upon yourself to do the same, and find local guides that can answer your questions about the local religion and its practices.
I can tell you this: in my many years of travel to religious sites all across the world, I've learned that when you visit holy sites, learn more about that religion and the beliefs of the people and witness the power of their faith and history, you quickly realize that no matter the faith or area of the world, we are all more alike than different.
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