Judaism, in its own words
The Torah asks for three pilgrimages in the year, at Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot:
Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord GOD.
Exodus 23:17 · JPS 1917
The same call is repeated in Deuteronomy 16:16, quoted on the site's page about pilgrimage and thanks, which also explains how the Hebrew word ḥag and the Arabic word ḥajj share a root. The Psalms remember the joy of the road:
I rejoiced when they said unto me: 'Let us go unto the house of the LORD.'
Psalm 122:1 · JPS 1917
Since the Temple fell, the pilgrim festivals have been kept at home and in the synagogue, and Jerusalem remains the direction Jews face in prayer. See Jewish festivals.
Christianity, in its own words
The Gospels place Jesus and his family on the road:
His parents went every year to Jerusalem at the feast of the Passover.
Luke 2:41 · WEB (British Edition)
Christianity does not require pilgrimage. The Catholic Church calls pilgrimages "very special occasions for renewal in prayer" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2691), and Orthodox, Anglican and many other Christians make them too.
Christians have walked to Jerusalem, to Rome and to Santiago de Compostela, in Spain, where 530,919 pilgrim certificates were issued in 2025. In England there is Walsingham, in Norfolk. Tradition says that a noblewoman named Richeldis de Faverches was shown the house at Nazareth in 1061 and built a copy of it. Kings came to the shrine, which was destroyed in 1538. Catholic pilgrims returned in 1897, and Anglican pilgrimage was revived from 1921 and 1922.
The Catechism says that pilgrimages "evoke our earthly journey toward heaven". Many Christians speak of the road as a picture of life itself.
Islam, in its own words
Hajj is the pilgrimage to Makkah (Mecca) in the month of Dhu al-Hijjah. It is required once in a lifetime of every Muslim who is able to make the journey:
And pilgrimage to the House is a duty unto Allah for mankind, for him who can find a way thither.
Qur'an 3:97 · Pickthall
The Qur'an tells of Abraham (peace be upon him) being told to call people to it:
They will come unto thee on foot and on every lean camel
Qur'an 22:27 · Pickthall
In 2025 there were 1,673,230 hajj pilgrims, from across the world. Pilgrims enter a state of consecration called ihram: men wear two unsewn white cloths, and women wear simple, modest dress. They circle the Kaaba seven times, walk between Safa and Marwa, spend the ninth day on the plain of Arafat in prayer, and complete the rites over the following days.
Umrah is the shorter visit, which can be made at any time of year: the ihram, the circling of the Kaaba and the walk between Safa and Marwa. Read more on the hajj page.
What they share
A journey to a particular place, at a particular time of year or of life, made with others. A call to travel at set times, with gifts and with thanks: the Torah says that the pilgrim does not appear "empty" (Deuteronomy 16:16), and the Qur'an has Abraham's call reach every ravine. All three also speak of the road as a picture of life itself.
Honest differences
- For Muslims, hajj is a duty once in a lifetime, for those who are able.
- For Jews, the three pilgrim festivals were a duty while the Temple stood. Today they are kept as celebrations at home and in the synagogue.
- For Christians, pilgrimage is a gift and not a requirement.
If you visit
- Pilgrim places are working places of prayer. Keep your voice low and ask before taking photographs.
- Dress modestly, and follow the guidance of the place you are visiting.
- Many pilgrim places welcome visitors of other faiths, and some do not. Check before you travel, and be led by the people who keep the place.
Keep reading
Next: three sacred places.