On September 8, on the occasion of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, in the Church of Santa Maria under the Duomo with the crypt, many faithful found themselves for mass; More than half a century had passed since the last celebration. An exciting moment that has sealed the beauty of that place returned to shine after years of darkness, on a day of important historical memory for Messina. The festive sound of the bells of the cathedral at 13 recalled – as handed down by the local tradition – the arrival in the city of the sacred letter, on 8 September 42 after Christ.
It was Msgr. Roberto Romeo to preside over the mass, participated by a large representation of the diocesan confraternities relating to the diocesan interconfratern center chaired by Carmelo Bertolami, the councilor Enzo Caruso and the animation of the vocal ensemble “Gloria Messanensis”, who performed songs from the liturgy, including a verse at the Gospel composed of Ms. Giuseppe Liberto, emeritus director of the Pontifical Music Chapel Sistine. The procession started from the cathedral arrived in the crypt, where an altar was set up for the occasion.
“We bless you and the city itself, of which we want to be perpetual protector”, in the Sacred Letter: “The Messina tradition, associating the memory of his own with his own, memory of the special protection ensured by the Virgin with the city: honoring the Nativity of Mary means renewing our branching devotion to Colei who first, with his yes he is made of the disciple of his son”, said Msgr. Romeo.
The Santa Maria church under the Duomo with the crypt has been crowded with visitors throughout the summer; In particular during the two nights of 13 and 23 August, during which the masters Don Giovanni Lombardo performed in concert on the piano with the artists Maria Pagano and Giusy De Luca and Luciano Troja. Thanks to the laborious work of conservative restoration shared by the Archdiocese owner of the property, the Cathedral Basilica Basilica entity to which the management and use is entrusted, with the Superintendence for Cultural and Environmental Heritage of Messina which took care of the works masterfully coordinated by the architect Mirella Vinci and the Municipality, the site has been returned to the Messina who hold an important piece of religious history of the city in it.