The path of the Spirit
It's the land of Celestine; the hermit of the "Great Refusal", who led his ascetic and solitary life right in the heart of the Majella until he was appointed Pope. Set in the valleys and among the beech woods we find three of the most spectacular cave hermitages where the Benedictine took refuge until the age of 85.
It was 1294 when the old hermit, on the back of a donkey, reached the city of L'Aquila to be crowned Pope. The hermitages and paths that unravel in this area are called the path of the Spirit, due to the religious vocation of those who he faced and decided to live there for several years.
HERMITAGE OF SAINT SPIRIT
Founded by Fra Pietro del Morrone, the hermitage of S. Spirito della Maiella becomes the "motherhouse" of the Order of S. Spirito della Maiella (later Order of the Celestines). Below the church stands the oldest nucleus, the hermitage, consisting of the Crucifix room, where, according to tradition, Fra Pietro used to pray, and the hermit's bed. On 29 August, the feast of the beheading of St. John the Baptist, the rite of "Forgiveness" is celebrated: whoever confesses and communicates himself gains the plenary indulgence.
