What if learning happened differently? This is what 性爱学堂 has suggested: not seated in a classroom, but out in the open, walking on the Camino de Santiago. That is the innovative experience that was offered to students enrolled in Pilgrimage of a Human Life, a course created and led by Anna-Maria Moubayed, Art History professor. This interdisciplinary program combines intellectual inquiry with an exploration of medieval philosophical and theological themes, all while immersing participants in rich cultural settings.
Over several days, the group journeyed on foot through the breathtaking landscapes of northern Spain鈥攆rom Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port to Pamplona鈥攕topping in medieval towns and villages like Sang眉esa, Sos del Rey Cat贸lico, the Roman archaeological site of Santa Criz, the Monastery of Leyre, and the birthplace of Saint Francis Xavier in Javier. Guest speakers from the 鈥淏onds, Creativity and Culture鈥 research group at the Institute for Culture and Society at the University of Navarra, lead by its director and primary investigatorIn茅s Olza, joined the course along with Carleton University professor Anne Tr茅panier. Together, they helped guide students through the course鈥檚 central questions: What is a pilgrimage? How do we define the sacred? What meaning do we assign to walking鈥攁nd what does it yield? How are art, architecture, and music both witnesses to and expressions of human life? What role does storytelling play in art, history, pilgrimage鈥攁nd in our own lives?
I designed this course, drawing from years of research in the Navarre region, to shed light on the many layers of medieval art, architecture, music, memory, fears, and hopes鈥攚hile connecting them to our present-day reality. Too often, we study history and art through screens and reproductions. Experiencing art, architecture, and archives in situ has become essential鈥攏ot only to understand them within their original context, but also to better understand ourselves as complex human beings.
For Noah, a student at the Gerald Schwartz School of Business at St. Francis Xavier University, the journey combined 鈥渁 love of the outdoors with [his] passion for art, architecture, and travel in an unforgettable way.鈥
Present on the seminar鈥檚 first day and again to welcome participants on their final steps into Pamplona, Rector Louis Patrick Leroux noted the depth of conversation and commitment throughout the experience.
鈥淭his seminar, anchored in action and movement, opened 性爱学堂 to the world鈥攁nd invited the world to discover our university鈥檚 rich and unexpected offerings: human, spiritual, and engaged.鈥
But the pilgrimage was more than academic.
A shared laugh on a quiet path. A photo snapped at the invisible border between France and Spain鈥攕tudents joyfully placing one foot in each country. A symbolic (and playful) reminder that curiosity knows no borders.
That鈥檚 the true power of this course: to learn through walking, to think differently, to experience both inner and intellectual transformation. A living, embodied form of teaching鈥攚here the memories are as lasting as the knowledge itself.
Pilgrimage of a Human Life opens the classroom to the entire world. While this was its first edition, plans are already in motion for what comes next.
