"A purse is a narrow little bag, made from the hide of a dead animal, with its mouth always open and not bound with ties. That the purse is a narrow sack signifies that the pilgrim, trusting in the Lord, must carry along with him a small and moderate provision. That it is made from the skin of a dead animal signifies that the pilgrim himself must mortify his flesh with its vice and concupiscence, through hunger and thirst, through many fasts, through cold and nakedness, and through many insults and hardships. That it is not bound with ties but that the mouth is always open signifies that one must expend one's own things on the needy, and consequently one must be prepared for receiving and prepared for giving."
"The staff, which the pilgrim prayerfully accepts almost as a third foot for his support, implies faith in the Holy Trinity in which one must persevere. The staff is the defense for man against wolf and dog. The habit of the dog is to bark against man, and the wolf to devour sheep. The dog and wolf signify the waylayer of the human race, the devil. The demon barks against man when he incites men's minds toward sinning by the bark of his suggestions. He bites like the wolf when he drags men's limbs toward sinning and through the habit of guilt swallows the soul in his greedy jaws. For that reason we must admonish the pilgrim when we give him the staff that he remove his guilt through confession and frequently protect his breast and limbs with the banner of the Holy Trinity against diabolical illusions and apparitions."
"There are some fish in the sea of Blessed James, which the people call
veras, having two shields, one on either side, between which the fist is covered as if between two shells in the likeness of an oyster. These shells...are shaped like the fingers of a hand...and the pilgrims returning from the threshold of Blessed James sew them on their capes, and they wear them back to their own country with great exultation in honor of the apostle and in his memory and as a sign of such a great journey. Therefore, the two shields with which the fish is protected, one on either side, represent the two laws of charity with which the bearer must truly protect his life: that is, to love God above all things and to love one's neighbor as oneself. A person who loves God is one who keeps His commandments. A person who loves one's neighbor as one loves oneself is one who does not do to anyone else what he does not want done to himself and who does to others what he would justly want done for himself. The shields, however, which are modified in the shape of fingers, signify good works in which the bearer of this sign must persevere; and good works are beautifully signified by fingers, since we work through them when we do something" ("The 'Veneranda dies' Sermon,"
The Miracles of St. James. Translations from the Liber Sancti Jacobi, edited and translated by Thomas F. Coffey, Linda Kay Davidson & Maryjane Dunn).
