Written By: Nicola Brennan

“Where I come from, the Church has a lot to answer for...temples of tears, Tom. I don’t go in them anymore.” -Jack Emerson Stanton (pictured below on right)

 

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

 

 

 

Photo: IMDb

 

Introduction of Jack

​

Jack Emerson Stanton, an Irish travel writer and aspiring novelist, is the last to join the group, and showcases his characteristics from the start, making a dramatic entrance to the plot. 

 

When Tom and the two others meet Jack, they are taking a rest near a few haystacks seemingly nowhere in the middle of the pilgrimage. They spot Jack, a stranger to them, a bit in the distance, pacing around frustratedly and mumbling to himself. After a moment, Jack hurls his trekking stick through the air, while the others duck for cover and avoid being in the path of the flying weapon.

​

Jack immediately realizes with horror that he was not “all alone out here” as he thought he had been, and runs towards them apologizing profusely.  He quickly introduces himself to them all as “Jack from Ireland” and begins a passionate monologue about the metaphor of “roads”, before enlightening them all as to the reason why he was on the walk in the first place. 

 

He tells them that he writes for travel magazines and has been “walking” or rather “studying” the Camino for three months, ignoring calls and messages from his editors who, as he says, “probably think [he’s] drinking again”. He reveals he’s been struggling with writer’s block, and been taking a poll along the way of people’s reasons for walking the Camino. After hesitantly asking to join them, Jack embarks on his journey with the others. 

 

The four go through several different trails together, and the audience learns very slowly the implicit pain and struggles of each character, especially those of Jack, revealed in a very beautiful, subtle way. 

 

Jack’s Struggles

​

Getting towards the end of the pilgrimage, the four arrive at a small church. The three go in but Jack stays outside. 

 

“It’s a beautiful church Jack, have a look” Tom says, walking out of the church with the others. 

 

Jack shakes his head with a slightly pained, apathetic look on his face, sitting outside. He responds, “Where I come from, the Church has a lot to answer for...temples of tears, Tom. I don’t go in them anymore,” and walks away. 

 

Ireland’s Struggles

​

When Jack told Tom that where he came from the Church had “a lot to answer for”, Jack was likely referring to the abuse scandals in the Irish Catholic Church in the 1990s and early 2000s.

 

With this knowledge, the entirety of Jack’s character and transformation becomes increasingly impactful. In a sense, his character represents Irish Catholics. Particularly, he represents the hurt, betrayal, confusion, and fear they felt towards the Church after these scandals. 

 

Arrival to Santiago de Compostela

​

As they go up the steps of the Cathedral, before stepping in, the other three turn to Jack, who is standing behind them staring up at the church, obviously masking an internal struggle whether to go in. They look at him, and Tom slightly beckons with his head, inviting Jack inside with them. Jack hesitates and then says, “Well, I’m here now” and steps forward to enter the doorway with them. 

 

They stand in the doorway of the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral, Jack is leaning on the doorway with an unbothered, yet guarded expression. Occasionally, he gives a slight smirk when their Dutch companion—Joost—reads about pilgrims approaching the statue of St. James on their knees or crying with gratitude. 

 

He watches the others reverently approach and touch the statue and go into the church. Jack stands from where he was slightly leaning on the door, strolls over to the statue of St. James, looks it up and down, with an expression of slight resentment, gazes ahead into the church and stiffly walks inside. 

 

Jack’s Conversion

​

All four of the sojourners are clearly deeply impacted by the church, but surprisingly, the most visibly impacted is Jack. We see a shot of him staring up at the art and architecture of the church, his face a mix of wonder and masked pain. The other three are shown ending up together at the body of St. James in the church, Jack not with them. 

 

From here, the scene changes to Jack sitting in a pew near the middle to back of the church. He’s staring straight ahead, blinking furiously and lip trembling as tears fall down his face, causing his entire upper body to shake. One can see in this moment all the resentment, repressing, pain, and hurt being brought to light as he is faced with the mercy and glory of God in the church at the end of his three-month long pilgrimage. 

 

Even more beautifully, viewers then see the four attending mass in the Cathedral, at the point where the incense cauldron, called the "Botafumeiro", is swung throughout the entire church.

 

Message

​

As an Irish American Catholic, with Irish Catholic parents, the character of Jack Stanton serves as a beautiful reminder that these scandals that depleted the Irish church in the 90s, causing many to fall away from the faith, do not have to be the final word. They do not have to be the defeat. Humanity does not serve as an accurate or perfect representation of who a perfect, good, merciful, and loving God is. 

 

We can takeaway that there is always a good and loving God waiting for us with open arms, to heal and console us from the horrors we have encountered in and outside of the Church, ready to shower us with blessings in and outside the Church instead, if we only take the step inside.