As in many Italian cities, also in Messina, on the occasion of the Epiphany celebration, “The Cavalcade of the Magi” with the procession of the three Kings on horseback and the shepherds, pages, grooms and bagpipes which left from Piazza Unione Europea following Via Consolato del Mare, Garibaldi, Largo San Giacomo, San Giacomo, Piazza Duomo, where it stopped for the ringing of the Ave Mary. The procession then continued in Piazza Immacolata di Marmo with the homage to the Nativity scene of the INPS Gallery, made up of the statues of the Curia and the displays of the students of the Seguenza high school, with the Nativity group placed for the occasion outside the gate of the Gallery, to whom the Magi bring the gifts and, in conclusion, the blessing of the Epiphany with a moment of reflection and prayer. The municipal administration promoted the initiative, managed by the associations “Tercio Viejo” of Sicily, “Gruppo Rievocazione Storica” of Mili S. Pietro and “Cocchieri e Groom of Messina”, in collaboration with Father Roberto Romeo, rector of the Cathedral Basilica , as part of the calendar of Christmas events of the Municipality of Messina. The first edition of this event dates back to the 1980s, when the Three Kings landed at the Masotto Battery and continued in procession along the streets of the city.
Re-proposed by the De Luca Administration in January 2020, the initiative was then suspended due to the pandemic, to return renewed this year in order to celebrate the solemnity of the Epiphany and of the arrival from the East to Bethlehem of the Magi, the three legendary characters Melchior (Semitic), Gaspar (Hamitic), Belshazzar (Iapetic). The wise men of different races, who the Gospel of Saint Matthew shows us guided in Judea by a star, a star that illuminates the prodigy, the God made child, to whom the Magi bring gold as a gift (for his kingship), frankincense (for his divinity) and myrrh (for his humanity).
