Two and a half hours of dialogue between the Pope and the bishops of Sicily. From half past nine in the morning to noon. «The Pontiff asked us questions and answered ours. And he expressed his thoughts to us on many issues: from Christian initiation to legality, from migrants to the role of godmothers and godfathers, from young people and families to the training of the clergy”, says the bishop of Acireale, Antonino Raspanti, president of the Conference episcopal of the island. It was the first (and central) moment of the Visit ad limina of the Sicilian episcopate who returned to meet the Pope and the Roman Curia, gathering in prayer on the tombs of the apostles Peter and Paul, more than ten years after the last visit to the city: the previous one was the day after election of Jorge Mario Bergoglio to the papal throne in 2013. The prelates of the 18 dioceses remained in Rome from Monday 29 April to Friday 3 May. «We have brought the face of a Church that alongside seeds of hope shows all its concern for the situation that our territory is experiencing and for the contradictions that mark current Sicily – explains Raspanti -. Starting with the plague of depopulation, another theme at the center of the conversation with the Pope. The balance between births and “escapes” is now highly negative. We have inland towns that are in very serious difficulty: I am thinking of those where the inhabitants have dropped from 10 thousand to 4 thousand. People emigrate to study and because one of the ancestral problems remains that of work that doesn’t exist. The migrants who land along our coasts are also well aware of this: they too are looking for places that guarantee well-being and employment; so they leave Sicily.”
Your Excellency, a summary of the meeting with Francis that opened the Visit ad limina.
We found the Pope attentive and happy to discuss the challenges and critical issues of the island. The appointment took place in a very cordial and familiar atmosphere.
The commitment to legality is a theme dear to Francis who came to Palermo in 2018 for the 25th anniversary of the killing of Blessed Pino Puglisi, a mafia martyr.
The Pope asked us to take stock. According to our knowledge, we have described the mutation of the mafia approach: we have gone from what was called the “massacre phase” which many consider concluded with the arrest of Matteo Messina Denaro to a new phase which is much more hidden but which nevertheless translates still in a permanent presence of organized crime in different forms in our lands. As a Church we have developed a more farsighted attention to excluding any possible connection between the Gospel and the mafia. Because a clear break between the criminal organization and the Christian community must be reiterated and ensured. It is necessary to be particularly vigilant about possible infiltrations within popular religiosity or brotherhoods. Then we are encouraging collaboration with law enforcement and schools to educate a new mentality. All without abandoning the announcement of the Risen One even to the mafiosi with the request for a radical change of life and a profound conversion.
Migration flows. In 2013, Pope Francis’ first trip was to Sicily, to Lampedusa, a landing point for those fleeing wars, poverty, violence and injustice.
The Pope thanked us explicitly for what we do to welcome people but also asked us if integration is progressing. We replied that the majority of migrants consider Sicily only a transit corridor towards the rest of Europe. Few of us remain here also due to the poverty of the economic-social fabric.
You also described depopulation. A phenomenon that affects the life of the Church?
Hugely. Today communities are increasingly made up of elderly people who, among other things, are often alone. We have a shortage of pastoral collaborators in the educational field: from catechists to oratory leaders. They were women and men aged 25 to 40 who left Sicily for study or work reasons. Then the number of families who are generally among the “engines” of the parishes is decreasing. We know that this also happens in other regions of Italy. But here, for example, the migration of graduates is a deadweight loss that accentuates the lack of business culture, the scarcity of employment, the difficulties of planning. Factors that do not help Sicily to get out of the last places in the rankings in which we find ourselves.
What is the “good news” that the Churches of Sicily offer?
First of all, the one about seminarians. The number has decreased compared to the previous visit ad limina but it didn’t collapse. In some dioceses, like mine, the average age has also dropped. This means that we will have, yes, fewer but younger priests. Then our Churches have a strong link with mission lands, especially with Africa and Latin America, and have created bridges of charity and assistance involving priests and lay people sent to the nations of the southern hemisphere. This was greatly appreciated by the Vatican Dicasteries. And again popular piety: it not only holds but involves young people, as many brotherhoods say. This is not folklore but a “school” of life capable of combining faith and local culture.
After the talks with the Pontiff and with the bodies of the Roman Curia, how do you return to the diocese?
A restitution is necessary which will involve both a process of reflection and rethinking. The priority remains the announcement of the message of salvation. We struggle to propose it. Languages change and we are not always able to intercept the new ones that young people speak. But we also struggle to approach adults. This is why there is a need for renewed missionary impetus.
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