A 176-kilometer path separates the pilgrims who set out this Saturday, August 8, from Seville to their destination: the sanctuary of the Virgen de la Sierra, patroness of Cabra (Córdoba). For one week they will advance mainly at night through various Andalusian towns until reaching, on August 15, the 1,223 meters of altitude of the sanctuary, where they will take part in the traditional pilgrimage of Vows and Promises coinciding with the solemnity of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.
The initiative, which reaches its seventh edition this year, is organized by the Filial Brotherhood of Seville of the Virgen de la Sierra. The route will be carried out mainly at night to avoid the high temperatures of the Andalusian summer and will be marked by visits to different churches and Marian devotions before arriving in Cabra.
From Seville to Cabra under the protection of the Virgin
The pilgrimage begins at the parish of San Roque, in Seville, from where the participants set out this Saturday on the first stage to the hermitage of San Sebastián, in Mairena del Alcor.
From there, the route will continue through various towns in Seville. The next destinations will be the church of Santo Domingo, in Marchena; the parish of the Purísima Concepción, in Lantejuela; and the parish of Nuestra Señora del Rosario, in El Rubio.
Already in the province of Córdoba, the pilgrims will arrive at the sanctuary of the Concepción, in Puente Genil, before continuing to the Main Parish of the Asunción y Ángeles, in Cabra. From there, the last stage remains: the ascent to the sanctuary of María Santísima de la Sierra.
It is not only about covering the distance that separates Seville from Cabra. In each town, the pilgrims will visit their patroness, so that the successive stages will form a Marian itinerary whose ultimate destination will be the sanctuary of the Virgen de la Sierra.
A pilgrimage marked by sacrifice
The characteristics of the route require adapting the path to the conditions of the Andalusian summer. A large part of the 176 kilometers will be covered at night to avoid the highest temperatures of these dates.
The effort will conclude at one of the highest points of the itinerary. The sanctuary of the Virgen de la Sierra is located at 1,223 meters of altitude, on the Picacho of the Sierra de Cabra, within the area considered the geographical center of Andalusia.
The arrival is scheduled for August 15, a date of special significance as it coincides with the solemnity of the Assumption. That day, after a week of walking, the pilgrims will join the traditional pilgrimage of Vows and Promises in honor of the patroness of Cabra.
The route thus acquires a clear religious orientation: it begins in a parish, passes through churches and hermitages, and culminates before the Virgin in one of the great Marian solemnities of the liturgical calendar.
A work of charity linked to the journey
The pilgrimage also incorporates a charitable purpose. The funds raised during this edition will go to the project «Your kilometers give us life», an initiative born in Seville in 2013 in collaboration with pediatric oncology professionals at the Hospital Virgen del Rocío.
The funds will help boost research into childhood cancer, turning the effort made during the journey into a concrete work of help for sick children.
The charitable dimension thus accompanies a pilgrimage whose center remains in Marian devotion. After 176 kilometers covered during the nights of August, the goal will be the sanctuary of the Virgen de la Sierra, where the pilgrims will end the journey on the day of the Assumption by participating in the Vows and Promises before the patroness of Cabra.