Rev. Dr. Yakubu Pam, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), has cautioned Christian pilgrims who plan to travel to the Holy Land not to view their journey as a vacation but rather as a holy spiritual activity.
Pam made this claim at the orientation session held for the eighth batch of intending pilgrims to Israel and Jordan at the Pilgrims Terminal, Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
He asserts that pilgrimage demands a lot of endurance and sacrifice.
As pilgrims, you must suffer everything you go through during your pilgrimage journey, he implied.
He also noted that the Pilgrimage is not a luxury, stating that ” it is a journey to an expected end, is not a journey that is very easy in all ramifications because you must have patience and must experience delaying”.
The NCPC helmsman also admonished the intending pilgrims to behave as good citizens of Nigeria while at the airport in Israel and Amman, Jordan.
Pam urged intending Pilgrims to cooperate with the airport officials as well as the Commission’s staff by obeying instructions.
He intimated to the intending pilgrims that the Commission through the Ground Handlers in Israel and Jordan had made all the necessary arrangements that would make their Pilgrimage exercise a hitch-free one.
According to him, the current cost of Christian Pilgrimage is meant to encourage Christians to participate actively in Pilgrimage as the cost is comparatively cheap and affordable, considering many variables.
In his words,” the cost of Pilgrimage is very cheap because we want to encourage Christians to go on Pilgrimage”.
Rev Pam reiterated the importance of Pilgrimages such as serving as a veritable platform for enduring fellowship amongst the pilgrims and more importantly Pilgrimage is for spiritual impartation and transformation.
He congratulated all the intending pilgrims for scaling through the Commission’s screening exercise which qualified them to embark on the spiritual journey.
The 8th batch of intending pilgrims was made up of Yobe and Borno contingents as well as Consulars.