Man can live without prayer, but not without the possibility to pray. | Emil Cioran
I love watching the pathetic cardigans, kerchiefs, ungainly house frocks, permed hair and mini skirts of Zoltán’s East-European pilgrims; their resolve to reach their destination. I see them as oppressed transcendental insect-collectors who are ready to walk any distance to at least have a tired glance at the painted likeness of an angel or the face of a wretched old priest.| Lajos Parti Nagy
Since childhood, I’ve been observing, baffled, the zealous believers of different religions, who are willing to worship their Lord by traveling many hundreds or maybe thousands of kilometers, sacrificing many-a long day, driven by a force (yet) unknown to me. I think the most surprising part for me about this is that most often worship entails physical suffering, ascetism, through which – according to their faith – absolution can be won. In my opinion this is completely alien to what Jesus spoke of; in spite of this I feel a certain form of respect for the dedication of the pilgrims.
It is thought provoking to consider why enormous discount stores are being built in Fatima where figurines of the Virgin Mary are available in inestimable types and sizes. What is the motivation behind putting the complete Holy Family on a rug? Isn’t it a terrifying sight to see bar-coded price tags hanging from several hundreds of Jesus Christs per square meter?
I do not wish to judge with my pictures; I aim to show the peculiar world of pilgrims with the help of an objective tool, photography. | Zoltán Vancsó
You can check the rest of the pictures from the Pilgrims series on Zoltán’s website, here.