Can You Take Religion Out of the Camino?

Last year, almost half a million pilgrims arrived in Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain. Their destination: the medieval cathedral where, legend has it, the bones of St. James the Apostle are entombed. About 47 percent of those who made the journey did so for purely religious reasons, according to statistics released by the Pilgrim’s Reception Office. But why did the rest choose the Camino?