Pilgrimage and the sick in the

medieval period
 

Medieval life was beset by constant threats to health and it is clear that pilgrimage with its potential for proximity to holy relics was a particularly appealing route to take for those in search of cures or remediation.
In contrast, the apparent risks and inadequacies of earthly medicine and the threat to life that might come from physicians, because clinical science was very limited, meant that medical intervention was not popular with the sick seeking relief. 
This presentation examines to what extent people in the Middle Ages believed that, "Heavenly medicine is Christ, who could heal the sick with a command and raise the dead from the grave".