Via Mater Dei connects Bologna to the most important Marian shrines of the Bolognese Apennines. The Cammino is about 160 km in length and can be travelled in seven stages. A path of about 157 km which develops in seven stages on mid-mountain ridges and which connects the city of Bologna to nine municipalities of the Bolognese Apennines: Pianoro, Monterenzio, Loiano, Monghidoro, San Benedetto Val di Sambro, Castiglione dei Pepoli , Camugnano, Grizzana Morandi, Vergato and the Municipality of Firenzuola, in the Tuscan territory.
From Bologna, with its renowned Mediaeval walls and monuments, in a strenuous walk, you will recover a connection with the earth, the wind, the sun, the rain: seasonal and essential, real and metaphorical elementsof every true Cammino. Step by step everything will take on new contours,because your outlook will also be new.
Bologna - Rastignano
This stage is divided between the city and the hills, starting in the center of Bologna, in the picturesque area of the
Rastignano - Zena Pianoro
This leg leads definitively out of the city, to dive into a very sparsely inhabited reality, the
Zena Pianoro - Loiano
The 3rd leg is characterized by a great abundancy of points of interest and beautiful views. From Zena the path climbs up to the Shrine of Santa Maria di Zena. Along the way it is possible to stare at the ancient Castle of Zena.
Loiano - Madonna dei Fornelli
A really wealthy leg for shrines and points of interest, where it is possible to start truly to appreciate the Apennine landscape, among
Madonna dei Fornelli - Bruscoli
A very fascinating leg, where small villages alternate with forests and points with beautiful views of the Apennine mountains, in particular Monte Cimone and Corno alle Scale. The village of Bruscoli is the intermediate stop, only stopover point located in Tuscany.
Bruscoli - Baragazza
A very fascinating leg, where small villages alternate with forests and points with beautiful views of the Apennine mountains, in particular Monte Cimone and Corno alle Scale. The village of Bruscoli is the intermediate stop, only stopover point located in Tuscany.
Baragazza - Ripoli
Another extremely rich leg, full of points of interest, with exceptional views that accompany throughout the first part and historical and cultural suggestions during the second one.
Ripoli - Riola
Grand finale, with an extremely pleasant and rewarding stage, with the beautiful views towards
Christianity inherited the concept of the pilgrimage from the people of Israel. Every good Israelite was required to stand before the Lord in His Sanctuary three times a year. “was glad because they said to me: ‘We will go to the house of the Lord’” (Sal 122,1). Quale gioia mi dissero: andremo alla casa del Signore? (Sal 122,1).
Christian pilgrimages reached their peak in the Middle Ages as an expression of the same extraordinary religious fervour that generated striking cathedrals, masterpieces of art and faith. Jerusalem, Rome and Santiago de Compostela are the main destinations for Christians, but there is also flourishing interest in pilgrimages to Marian shrines or to sites that preserve the relics of saints. For many, the pilgrimage represented a kind of path assisting in the expiation of sins or the effort needed to be reborn a changed person.
The pilgrimage was and is a highly expressive practice in a Christian’s way of life. The dynamic of the journey begins by interrupting everyday life, leaving behind the past and turning to a destination that is one of “true” life. The Lord said to Abraham: “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land that I will show you” (Gn 12,1).
The person is conceived as a homo viator, a wayfarer who leaves a place and goes towards the attainment of a goal to which they turn their physical and spiritual strength, certain that God precedes them and lights the way. However, pilgrims do not leave the worries of life, the anxieties of the present and concern for the future in order to escape from themselves, but to seek and find something greater and truer than themselves.
In this perspective, the pilgrimage is a metaphor for life: a journey from time to eternity, from Earth to Heaven, from the ephemeral to the absolute. The underlying reason for the decision to set off is not so much a need to escape, but mainly to find the meaning of life, the desire for infinity, the face of God!
“We took sweet counsel together, in the house of God we walked with the throng” (Sal 55,15). Even those who do not make the journey with a strictly religious intention will find themselves making a great journey into the depths of their hearts. When they reach a shrine, it is not so much the body as the soul that has finally arrived in the desired destination.
As you organize your journey, remember to request the credential, the Pilgrim's passport where the stages will be recorded.
At the end of the journey, send us a copy of the stamped credential to receive the official scroll of the Via Mater Dei, free of charge!
La Via Mater Dei, come tutti i percorsi sul versante emiliano romagnolo dell'Appennino, presenta diversi tratti con criticità che ne rendono difficile la percorrenza a seguito dei recenti eventi meteorologici.
In particolare le zone della Val di Zena, Monte delle Formiche, Monte Bibele, Scanello e Madonna dei Boschi sono state colpite da frane e allagamenti. In questi giorni si stanno effettuando sopralluoghi su tutto il territorio. Al momento è ASSOLUTAMENTE SCONSIGLIATO mettersi per sentieri nelle zone citate.
La seconda parte del cammino, da Madonna dei Boschi in poi, presenta meno criticità, ma presenta anch?essa alcune problematiche, piccoli smottamenti, alcune strade chiuse al traffico ecc. C'è molto fango e i guadi sono assolutamente NON transitabili. Si raccomanda, prima di mettersi in cammino in qualunque area, di informarsi presso i punti informazione ufficiali.
Ci vorrà un po? di pazienza, ma siamo assolutamente certi che in brevissimo tempo il percorso sarà nuovamente totalmente agibile!
VIA MATER DEI The Camino of the Marian Sanctuaries of the Bolognese Apennines
Foiatonda Cooperativa di comunità
Via della Libertà, 2 - Madonna dei Fornelli
40048 San Benedetto Val di Sambro (BO)
