The changing roman catholic pilgrimage centres in Europe in the context of contemporary socio-cultural changes

Abstract

ABSTRACT The socio-cultural changes in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, i.e. the development of mass tourism and transport, the secularization, the commercialization and globalization of societies and life as well as the blurring of the boundaries between tourism-pilgrimages in many aspects have influenced on pilgrimage centres. Previously, sanctuaries were only sacred buildings visited mainly by people with religious motivations (pilgrims). Nowadays, pilgrimage centres are developed with multiple buildings (called sacred complexes or religious-recreational parks), offering additional cultural and tourist facilities for visitors with diverse motivations (pilgrims, religious tourists, and tourists in the traditional meaning). Here, we present the changes of Roman Catholic pilgrimage centres in Europe and discuss them in the context of contemporary socio-cultural changes. Particular attention is paid to the sanctuaries’ spatial development as a factor reflecting changes in tourism in time, i.e. ‘new’ visitors’ needs, motivations, experiences, and other socio-cultural changes – i.e. the secularization and the commercialization. Based on the results from 28 most popular European pilgrimage centres we proposed two conceptual models. The first describes the stages of pilgrimage centres’ development, and the second is a model of a contemporary pilgrimage centre.