ROMEA STRATA: OLD PILGRIM ROUTE REVIVED

The Catholic Church's Holy Year 2025 is officially due to begin in December 2024, but many commemorative initiatives have already taken off. Hikers are already walking the traditional old pilgrims' routes to the Eternal City, with several tracks added to the well trodden classics like the Via Francigena.

The Romea Strata, the Route of Faith, which once linked Germany and the Baltic states with Rome, has now been officially recognized and has its own website and 20 official Miliarium stages marked where walkers and cyclists can have certificates stamped to prove they have undertaken the pilgrimage. On obtaining their third Miliarium stamp participants can claim at St. Peter's basilica the final official document - the testimonium, that certifies their participation in the Route of Faith.

Completing the entire trek requires dedication. Within the Italian peninsula alone the route coves 1,400 kilometres and passes through 7 Italian regions, starting from Friuli Venezia Giulia in the north and continuing through 19 provinces, touching on a total 235 major and minor municipalities. It includes many little known country paths through unspoiled countryside and mountain passes, taking in 40 UNESCO world heritage sites and 20 significant Miliarium destinations.

The total Romea Strata of Europe stretches a total 4,000 Kilometers, linking seven European countries.

M.Stenhouse

Info: Fondazione Homo Viator – San Teobaldo, Vicenza

Tel. 0039.0444 327146 www.romeastrata.org