Brothers and sisters: We hold this treasure in earthen vessels, that the surpassing power may be of God and not from us. (2 Cor 4:7)

Treasure in earthen vessels . . . a good reminder of the riches we bear. But the treasure comes from God, not from us. Today we celebrate Saint James, who with his brother, had the nerve to ask for the seats of honor in the Kingdom. The other disciples, of course, get angry, not because of the chutzpah of the two brothers, but because they didn’t think to ask first. So the Lord has to talk to them like the squabbling children they are and to remind them that the Son of Man came "not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom." Saint James is famous because of the pilgrimage to his shrine in Santiago de Compostela, EL CAMINO. The picture today is from the Portico de Gloria from the shrine where pilgrims place their hand in the hand print on the column as a sign that they have completed their journey.