Ponferrada to Villafranca del Bierzo

 One of the best parts of the experience along the Camino are the people that you meet. After leaving Ponferrada we stopped at the Iglesia de San Esteban in Columbrianos. There we renewed our acquaintance is Celia (below in dark green) who we met last year. She is a lovely woman who dedicates a great deal of time preparing the interior of the church for important celebrations. In 2025 we found her decorating the church for Palm Sunday...

We spent time talking to her and reminiscing about the previous year. She then introduced us to her friend Conchi. Moments like these are the ones that last the longest and produce the sweetest memories.

A little farther down the Camino we came to the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción.

The ceiling of a chapel in the interior has a representation of the Last Supper, painted in 1742. It isn't a great work of art, but it does have an interesting history.

When I asked her about the representation of Judas with glasses, she told us a story. She said that the priest who commissioned the work and spearheaded the funding of the painting had insisted that he be included in the work. It was a common practice to include patrons in Biblical scenes to honor their contributions to the church. Sadly, this priest was not well-liked and was seen as a miserly guy. So, the painter decided that the best way to honor him was to show him as a Judas who would sell himself and others for his own recognition. The glasses were a subtle (or not so subtle) way of mocking the priest. It is also notable that the figure is posed in a rather unseemly way with his thigh and leg exposed.

The walk into Villafranca del Bierzo was beautiful. We traveled over rolling hills and through grape vineyards...

As we descended into Villafranca del Bierzo we passed the Iglesia de Santiago. I have long loved this church for its Puerta del Perdón (Door of Forgiveness). The door was consecrated as a place where pilgrims from the Middle Ages who could not complete their journey to Santiago could receive the blessings of forgiveness. I find the story told on the capitals above the jambs to the left of the doors intriguing. 

Not seen from the angle above is a representation of the three Magi and their encounter with King Herod...

Now you move around to where you facing the doors. The capital closest to the doors represents the Epiphany, or the visit of the Magi to Mary and the Christ Child...

After the visit, the Magi are visited in a dream by an angel who warns them not to return to Herod but to return to their own lands. Notice the three Magi in a row, as if asleep, with an angel hovering over them.

Being obedient to the angel, the three Magi mount their horses and flee from Herod.

The next capital seems to be removed from the narration on the capitals to this point. However, this is the Door of Forgiveness and redemption is through Christ. To this end, we see the Crucifixion with the three Mary's to the left of the cross and Saint John to the right.

I have interpreted this sequence this way: We know from scriptures that once Herod found out that the Magi had not returned to bring him notice of the Christ child that he ordered that all the children in his realm age two and younger were to be killed. The warning to the Magi allowed them to protect the Child and gave them time to escape to Egypt. If they had not obeyed, the work of salvation would have been thwarted. Herein is the lesson: No detail, no commandment, no revelation can be taken as insignificant. The Magis's actions guaranteed that Christ would grow to atone for all. This is a reminder that salvation comes because of obedience to the Word of God.