Some of the great leaders of the Church, Jerome himself with varying note, were wise enough to point out the evils of these pilgrimages, and to remind the faithful that the Christ might be honored by good deeds at home. Gregory of Nyssa wrote: "The Lord has not said, 'Go to the Orient and seek justice.' Travel even to the west and you shall receive pardon." St. Augustine said in the first sermon on the words of the Apostle Peter: "I am unwilling to consider a long journey. Where you believe, there you arrive."[3] Jerome from Bethlehem itself writes, "Heaven is equally open to Britain and Jerusalem." He could not have advised against pilgrimages more strenuously if he had wished to keep Bethlehem for himself and for the Roman ladies drawn thither by his example. [Sidenote: _Good Roads and Travelers' Homes_] For several centuries the passion for the pilgrimage increased steadily. Roads were indicated, resting places pointed out, and wealth sought to buy salvation by building hospitals and providing for doles of bread and wine to those who made the sacred journey. Charlemagne made their case a tax on his subjects through whose bounds they passed. "Even in our entire kingdom neither rich nor poor shall dare to deny hospitality to the pilgrims.... On account of the love of God and the salvation of our souls, no one shall deny them shelter, fire, or water." [Sidenote: _Shelters in Jerusalem_] In Jerusalem vast caravanseries were built for them, Gregory the Great building there one of the largest of all shelters. [Sidenote: _Washing Sins Away_] The signs of the pilgrim--the staff, the wallet, and the scallop-shell--were blessed by priest or bishop before departure, and took on added sanctity, and even miracle-working power, if they had reached actual use in the Holy Land. It was not long before an indulgent Church guaranteed that bathing in Jordan should wash away all sin. And, as the Holy Land must be rich in the bones of martyrs and in the relics of Christ and His apostles, it was within the ambition of the pilgrims to possess a hair of the Virgin, a thread from the seamless coat, a nail which had pierced His hand, a splinter from the cross, or a thorn which had torn His brow. All these were believed to possess powers of healing, and their possession permanently increased the dignity of families and the wealth of Churches. [Sidenote: _Relics and Miracles_] The demand for such relics from the Christian world was great and the supply was greater. Traffic in these was enriched by the purchase of the silks, spices, and other treasures of the East, and commercial greed came to move men under the cover of the cross. [Sidenote: _Chosroes Conquers Syria_]