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'Extreme Way of the Cross' as Poles prepare for Easter: audio report

07.04.2023 17:00
Every year, volunteers across Poland are eager to walk what they call the Extreme Way of the Cross to deepen their experience of Lent, a 40-day period of self-denial and penitence in the run-up to Easter.
Audio
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Pixabay LicenseImage by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

They usually set off late on a Friday evening to combine an extreme hiking challenge with a religious experience.

They hike for kilometres at night and in silence, stopping at the Stations of the Cross to say a short prayer.

“Why do I do this? Well, I wanted to test myself both on the physical level - where it actually is a challenge – and, more importantly, on the mental level," says Sebastian Bartnik, a pilgrim from the southern city of Częstochowa, who took the challenge this year.

"It surely is a good test," he adds. "You walk in order to leave your comfort zone as only then can you determine what you are really worth."

Radio Poland's Michał Owczarek has the story.

Click on the audio player above to listen.