The shocking pilgrimage of Scouts of Europe in Vézelay
In November 2025, some 3,500 members (males, young or not so young adults) of Scouts of Europe from different countries made a pilgrimage to the basilica of Vézelay, France, on its 50th annual pilgrimage.
The temple was built in the 11th century, and achieved great growth in the 13th century. It was considered the place that kept the relics of Santa María Magdalena and is one of the beginnings of the French Way to Santiago de Compostela. (It suffered destruction by the Huguenots of the sixteenth century and the anticlerical revolutionaries of the eighteenth century).
After two days of hiking, the scouts arrived at the basilica of Vézelay. In front of her they sang the "Kyrie des gueux" ("Kyrie of the beggars") and fulfilled the rite of knocking on the church door with their canes. The evening continued with a vigil of worship, where numerous priests were available for confession.