If Americans are obsessed with sports and the French with all things fashionable, then the Sicilians are obsessed with the dead. Just down the road from the camp where we stayed and worked this summer, there was a large cimitero (cemetary). I’ve been to cemetaries in the United States. Rarely, unless a funeral is in progress, are there many visitors. Not so at a Sicilian cemetary. This cemetary had a constant stream of visitors. And on the weekends, you would be hard pressed to find a parking place, though parking was plentiful. Widows dressed in black stood out to me. I asked our missionary Vincenzo what the length of time was that these women wore black. Sometimes for a year. Often for many years. Every day spent in a constant memorial of death. Everywhere, women dressed in black.
And in Sicily, you don’t just bury your loved one in the ground. That is only for the poorest of the poor to do. No. Every family has a family crypt. And families will do without, and scrimp, and save, in order to have the best crypt that they can possibly afford. And these crypts are not like your average American crypts either. They really try to outdo the Joneses. You need to spend at least 50,000 Euros to get a respectable crypt. The exchange rate of USD to Euros was just about 1.4:1 when we were there. In USD, a respectable crypt would cost you right around $70,000. That’s not even for a really nice crypt. That is just for one that you don’t have to be completely embarrassed about. Before I left I put this picture in a post:
I had initially believed it to be a view of the city, Ispica, from our campground. Now that I am home, I recognize it as a view of the cemetary taken from the road from Ispica down to the campground! It looks very much like a city with a cathedral, but it isn’t. Each of those buildings is a crypt! I was so fascinated by this cemetary. And each town had a similar one. The road signs even included signs pointing down the road you’d take to get to the “cimitero”.
Though all very different, each of the crypts had things in common. You could enter them as they were chapels. There was an eternal light on inside and pictures of the loved ones that were entombed there. There was an altar, a place to pray. Some had large quantities of fresh flowers, others had permanent plastic or silk flowers. Very few of these crypts looked like no one had visited in some time. I had to resist the urge to enter the ones that were unlocked.
Between the poorest famlies and those families who could afford crypts were the families who could only afford a place in these large banks of community crypts. Each of these crypts also had a picture, two vases for flowers and an eternally burning light.
Not speaking Italian, I initially wasn’t sure what all these papers plastered up all over the place were significant of. After learning a little Italian, and having my overgrown curiosity get the better of me, I finally set out to find out what they were.
They are paper memorials to the dead. Placed by the family of the loved one for years and years to come after their death. They could be found everywhere, even pasted to the fronts of people’s homes.
I am not sure why the Sicilians are so preoccupied with their dead. I have a theory, but had no method with which to test the theory. Sicily is a mostly catholic nation. The type of catholicism practiced there is quite different from the catholicism practiced elsewhere. It more resembles polytheistic religions when it comes to the number of individuals that are on the receiving end of worship. The worship of saints is pervasive. In most of the cathedrals I visited, in the most prominent spot hanging over the altar was not Jesus, as you would expect…there were statues of Mary, as though she was the most important element of their worship. Nearly every weekend there were festivals celebrating Mary of This and Mary of That. There were statues of many and varied saints in every town. People were often seen to stop by and pray to these saints. Sicilians, it seems, have lost their belief in Jesus. Perhaps having a cultural memory of the truth of Jesus plays out in their anxiety over having lost that truth and now, not having the hope of Jesus, are left with the fear of eternal loss. They fear that their loved ones are not going to heaven, but they don’t know why their fear is so great. They have ancient memory of having known the truth, but they no longer do. They try to remember and pray their loved ones into heaven instead of being able rest assured in the knowledge of the saving grace of Jesus Christ. It’s worse to have known the truth and lost it than it is to never have known the truth (2 Peter 2:20-22). And, if they are so anxious over the fate of their loved ones, how much more so are they anxious over what their own fate will be when they, too, die?
The small church that we went to work with was the only evangelical christian church in the three towns in the area. The only evangelical church for a population of nearly 100,000 people.
Sicily is a very beautiful, and very sad place with the dead present everywhere. The island where the early Chrisitan Church once flourished, and where the Apostle Paul once walked and taught, has forgotten Jesus.
Pray for Sicily.
…
Given to me by Larry of the blog "Hallelujahs"
A little harsh with this post… It is just a cultural thing. It is a different approach to death. A different kind of respect. It is also a way to remember in life that you will die some day: we are all humans and not immortal. It might be due to the ancient Greek tradition. Also, I do not know where you got your numbers ($$$), but my granparents were buried in respectable crypts, but not for that amount of money. It looks like you only visited cemeteries while in Sicily! This is really sad.
Thanks for your thoughts, Maria. I don’t think I was being harsh, just making an observation, that’s all. And I’m a firm believer of “just because it’s cultural, it doesn’t mean it’s good or healthy”.
I got my numbers about how much the crypts cost from Sicilians in the Ispican area. Perhaps they are much cheaper elsewhere, like where your grandparents lived, I don’t know.
I’ve only begun to write about what we did and where we went and what we saw in Sicily. I’m not sure where you got the idea that all I did was visit cemetaries (which would be okay if I did, I think that there are tours that specialize in touring graveyards and cemetaries)! I think you saw what you wanted to see in my post and missed the entire point, which was to show what not having Jesus does to people.
Perhaps you’ll drop back by in the coming weeks and read more about my Sicilian experience.
Hmmm…
Very interesting post..
Nice pics too…
Had no idea that Sicilians were so fixated on this.
I agree that this article has an air of ‘negativity’ about it. Once again, the judgemental foreigner arrives in Sicily with something ‘unfair’ to say. As a guest of the island, would it not be more considerate to appreciate the differences? If I cared to delve into your personal life, I’d ask you “so how do your mourn?” But it’s none of my concern, just as it’s none of my concern how one prays or mourns in Saudi Arabia, on the steppes of Russia, in the jungles of Indigenous Brasil, in the backwoods of Mississippi, or in the streets of Amsterdam. Every culture is different, and thefore, unique. This should be respected and appreciated by visitors. As someone who visits Sicily regularly, I can tell you that there are many reasons Sicilians are the way they are. Unfortunately, you’re confusing two different issues here, Christianity in Sicily, and cemetary visitations in Sicily, and then you’re making a single, unfair generalization about the two. Without getting into history and the fact that Sicilians have been an oppressed people since Before Christ, I will share with you this.
Sicily is still oppressed and under foreign domination. The annexation of Sicily to Italy in 1860 has brought civil unrest and the Mafia phenomenon. Sicily has suffered from this cancer ever since, and it only compounds the original problem of it always being governed from afar as some type of substandard colony.
I do not believe Sicilians have lost their faith in Christ. The Crucifix can be found almost everwyhere, from behind the counter of your favorite local shop, to the walls of Sicilian classrooms, police stations, and other municipal buildings. It is the teaching of Christ that has died in Sicily. Also with the annexation of Sicily to Italy came the secularization of Sicily. Along with the banishment of The Royal and Holy Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, all of the orphanages, monasteries and other religious and faith-based organizations were shuttered, and the properties were turned over to the Italian state. I would kindly ask you to read “The Leopard” by Tomasi di Lampedusa, in which the narrator gives a wonderful description of the anguish and sadness that came with the demise of Sicily and its annexation to Italy. If this was to happen today, world leaders would call Giuseppe Garibaldi a war-criminal, and the killings of innocent Sicilians trying to remain free would be referred to as ethnic cleansing and genocide. Sicilians have lived through a nasty history and some of its worst treatment is at the hands of the Italian nation itself (the bombings of Palermo by Italian naval ships, etc.).
The annexation of Sicily to Italy was the work of the European Circle of Power. Call them the Masons or the Illuminati if you will. With Sicily part of Italy, and Italy a new and enlarged Piemontese secular-state seated at Torino, the secularization of Europe could continue forward into the most secluded of corners and islands. Royal and Holy Sicily has slowly become secular ever since. It’s even worst today seeing how the majority of national music, media, culture, and news originates from Milan, in the region with the lowest number of regular Churchgoers, the lowest number of practicing Catholics, the lowest number of residents Baptised, etc. etc. The ultimate goal is for Sicily, and the rest of Italy to become a modern Britain or France, totally secular. Remember, prior to 1860, Sicily was a Holy and Royal Kingdom, and religion was part of public life.
With Jesus Christ now out of official public life and his teachings missing from Sicilian public education, Sicilians turn to their local Saints as a way to demonstrate their faith publically. Some prefer to call this folklore because it evoids bringing religion or Christianity into the picture. But this is out of survival. What other way could you get a secular state to close down public roads, pay for increased officers, paint the town with decorations, and allow an entourage of Roman Catholic Church officials to march in front of Sicilian men (“believers”) carrying the statue of a Saint through town? This could never happen here, not in New York, not in San Francisco, not in Nashville or Elk Falls, Kansas. We have the separation of Church & State.
The only way for religion to survive in Sicily and Southern Italy is to base it on Sainthood. As long as Sicily is dominated by Rome as its political capital, and Milan as its economic, media and all-things-sinful capital, Sicily will have no other choice. Part of the strategy to make Sicily part of Italy in 1860 was the “time factor.” With time, the Italian government will fill the heads of Sicilians with nonsense, first in the form of a secular education. Later it came in the form of secular radio, and then television. Slowly time will erase the differences. It will erase the Sicilian language, culture, and identity. It will rid them of religion, Catholicism, Christianity. Only with time can Sicily become more secularly European in its mind and in its heart. This is not make-believe, you can read about these things, they’re all well-documented.
So when you see Sicilians at the local cemetary, they’re there because they hope their loved-ones are in a better place. A place free of all the caos, crime, illegality, gluttony, indecency, Mafia, and sin that defines Sicily (and its colonizer Italy) today. They’re also praying that they’ll too be in a better place one day. They bring their children and grandchildren to the “camposanto” (or ‘holy field’ – the bland term ‘cimitero’ is another way of taking religion away) in hopes that they too will be remembered one day, as they are remembering those who have gone before them. As is apparent in the adoration of the Saints, and the respect for the deceased and all things family, Sicilians are a very ritualistic people. I do not, however, agree with you that they’re obsessed with death. It is merely part of their ancient traditions, and we should be fortunate that at least these have survived the test of time.
But please, let’s not try to compare different religions or cultures. I do not know how visiting the cemetary means Sicilians have forgotton Jesus Christ. It just makes no sense. I visit my ancestors’ graves here in America. Will you say to me that I have forgotten Christ, when I pray every day, go to Church, and live the life of the best Christian that I can be? Your blatant reference to Evangelicalism in Sicily leads me to believe that this blog is really about something more… I think I know what it is – I’m Sicilian and I’ve heard it many times over. But I will give you the benefit of the doubt of not assuming I know what you’re really thinking. I’m not going to judge you, so please do not judge Sicily or Sicilians. I’ve already explained to you how they’ve suffered enough for thousands of years.
Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. For with the judgement you make, you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get (Matthew 7:1-3).
Since you’re concerned about Christianity in Sicily, I will challenge you to the following. If only the Word of Jesus Christ was brought back into the lives of Sicilian children in the classroom, would Sicilians be more open to Jesus Christ and participate in Church activities more regularly. If you really want to pray for the Sicilian soul, please pray for their political, cultural, and religious freedom. Only an independent Sicily can bring back life and hope to the Sicilian people. The new leader of La Regione Siciliana, President Raffaele Lombardo (of the Movement for Autonomy), is a devout Christian, and working hard for the rebirth of Sicily and Sicilian society. Perhaps your Church could contact his office. Sicily is semi-independent, and therefore has power over most of its public services, including public education. It would be a miracle if something could be worked out allowing the daily teachings of Catholicism (or any form of Christianity) in the classrooms of Sicily.
P.S. your comment:
- “They are paper memorials to the dead. Placed by the family of the loved one for years and years to come after their death.” -
For years to come? These paper memorials usually disintegrate and wash away after just a few weeks. If not, they’re usually ripped off and replaced with a new, fresh memorial to the most recent person to pass away. Aboveall, this is the Sicilian form of submitting an obituary to the local newspaper. This practice in Sicily predates the modern printing press. It was a way to let locals from the same neighborhood know when someone had passed on. There was no other form of public communications – no newspaper, no telephone, no radio, no TV, no internet. That’s how one received the local news, from the corner ‘bulletin board’, from which it spread throughout the neighborhoods by word-of-mouth. This is another ancient Sicilian tradition that has lived on to this day. It has nothing to do with being obsessed with death.
I do not know why a “wiking” smiley icon appeared in my comment. I shall try again.
I agree that this article has an air of ‘negativity’ about it. Once again, the judgemental foreigner arrives in Sicily with something ‘unfair’ to say. As a guest of the island, would it not be more considerate to appreciate the differences? If I cared to delve into your personal life, I’d ask you “so how do your mourn?” But it’s none of my concern, just as it’s none of my concern how one prays or mourns in Saudi Arabia, on the steppes of Russia, in the jungles of Indigenous Brasil, in the backwoods of Mississippi, or in the streets of Amsterdam. Every culture is different, and thefore, unique. This should be respected and appreciated by visitors. As someone who visits Sicily regularly, I can tell you that there are many reasons Sicilians are the way they are. Unfortunately, you’re confusing two different issues here, Christianity in Sicily, and cemetary visitations in Sicily, and then you’re making a single, unfair generalization about the two. Without getting into history and the fact that Sicilians have been an oppressed people since Before Christ, I will share with you this.
Sicily is still oppressed and under foreign domination. The annexation of Sicily to Italy in 1860 has brought civil unrest and the Mafia phenomenon. Sicily has suffered from this cancer ever since, and it only compounds the original problem of it always being governed from afar as some type of substandard colony.
I do not believe Sicilians have lost their faith in Christ. The Crucifix can be found almost everwyhere, from behind the counter of your favorite local shop, to the walls of Sicilian classrooms, police stations, and other municipal buildings. It is the teaching of Christ that has died in Sicily. Also with the annexation of Sicily to Italy came the secularization of Sicily. Along with the banishment of The Royal and Holy Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, all of the orphanages, monasteries and other religious and faith-based organizations were shuttered, and the properties were turned over to the Italian state. I would kindly ask you to read “The Leopard” by Tomasi di Lampedusa, in which the narrator gives a wonderful description of the anguish and sadness that came with the demise of Sicily and its annexation to Italy. If this was to happen today, world leaders would call Giuseppe Garibaldi a war-criminal, and the killings of innocent Sicilians trying to remain free would be referred to as ethnic cleansing and genocide. Sicilians have lived through a nasty history and some of its worst treatment is at the hands of the Italian nation itself (the bombings of Palermo by Italian naval ships, etc.).
The annexation of Sicily to Italy was the work of the European Circle of Power. Call them the Masons or the Illuminati if you will. With Sicily part of Italy, and Italy a new and enlarged Piemontese secular-state seated at Torino, the secularization of Europe could continue forward into the most secluded of corners and islands. Royal and Holy Sicily has slowly become secular ever since. It’s even worst today seeing how the majority of national music, media, culture, and news originates from Milan, in the region with the lowest number of regular Churchgoers, the lowest number of practicing Catholics, the lowest number of residents Baptised, etc. etc. The ultimate goal is for Sicily, and the rest of Italy to become a modern Britain or France, totally secular. Remember, prior to 1860, Sicily was a Holy and Royal Kingdom, and religion was part of public life.
With Jesus Christ now out of official public life and his teachings missing from Sicilian public education, Sicilians turn to their local Saints as a way to demonstrate their faith publically. Some prefer to call this folklore because it evoids bringing religion or Christianity into the picture. But this is out of survival. What other way could you get a secular state to close down public roads, pay for increased officers, paint the town with decorations, and allow an entourage of Roman Catholic Church officials to march in front of Sicilian men ( “believers” ) carrying the statue of a Saint through town? This could never happen here, not in New York, not in San Francisco, not in Nashville or Elk Falls, Kansas. We have the separation of Church & State.
The only way for religion to survive in Sicily and Southern Italy is to base it on Sainthood. As long as Sicily is dominated by Rome as its political capital, and Milan as its economic, media and all-things-sinful capital, Sicily will have no other choice. Part of the strategy to make Sicily part of Italy in 1860 was the “time factor.” With time, the Italian government will fill the heads of Sicilians with nonsense, first in the form of a secular education. Later it came in the form of secular radio, and then television. Slowly time will erase the differences. It will erase the Sicilian language, culture, and identity. It will rid them of religion, Catholicism, Christianity. Only with time can Sicily become more secularly European in its mind and in its heart. This is not make-believe, you can read about these things, they’re all well-documented.
So when you see Sicilians at the local cemetary, they’re there because they hope their loved-ones are in a better place. A place free of all the caos, crime, illegality, gluttony, indecency, Mafia, and sin that defines Sicily (and its colonizer Italy) today. They’re also praying that they’ll too be in a better place one day. They bring their children and grandchildren to the “camposanto” (or ‘holy field’ – the bland term ‘cimitero’ is another way of taking religion away) in hopes that they too will be remembered one day, as they are remembering those who have gone before them. As is apparent in the adoration of the Saints, and the respect for the deceased and all things family, Sicilians are a very ritualistic people. I do not, however, agree with you that they’re obsessed with death. It is merely part of their ancient traditions, and we should be fortunate that at least these have survived the test of time.
But please, let’s not try to compare different religions or cultures. I do not know how visiting the cemetary means Sicilians have forgotton Jesus Christ. It just makes no sense. I visit my ancestors’ graves here in America. Will you say to me that I have forgotten Christ, when I pray every day, go to Church, and live the life of the best Christian that I can be? Your blatant reference to Evangelicalism in Sicily leads me to believe that this blog is really about something more… I think I know what it is – I’m Sicilian and I’ve heard it many times over. But I will give you the benefit of the doubt of not assuming I know what you’re really thinking. I’m not going to judge you, so please do not judge Sicily or Sicilians. I’ve already explained to you how they’ve suffered enough for thousands of years.
Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. For with the judgement you make, you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get (Matthew 7:1-3).
Since you’re concerned about Christianity in Sicily, I will challenge you to the following. If only the Word of Jesus Christ was brought back into the lives of Sicilian children in the classroom, would Sicilians be more open to Jesus Christ and participate in Church activities more regularly. If you really want to pray for the Sicilian soul, please pray for their political, cultural, and religious freedom. Only an independent Sicily can bring back life and hope to the Sicilian people. The new leader of La Regione Siciliana, President Raffaele Lombardo (of the Movement for Autonomy), is a devout Christian, and working hard for the rebirth of Sicily and Sicilian society. Perhaps your Church could contact his office. Sicily is semi-independent, and therefore has power over most of its public services, including public education. It would be a miracle if something could be worked out allowing the daily teachings of Catholicism (or any form of Christianity) in the classrooms of Sicily.
P.S. your comment:
- “They are paper memorials to the dead. Placed by the family of the loved one for years and years to come after their death.” -
For years to come? These paper memorials usually disintegrate and wash away after just a few weeks. If not, they’re usually ripped off and replaced with a new, fresh memorial to the most recent person to pass away. Aboveall, this is the Sicilian form of submitting an obituary to the local newspaper. This practice in Sicily predates the modern printing press. It was a way to let locals from the same neighborhood know when someone had passed on. There was no other form of public communications – no newspaper, no telephone, no radio, no TV, no internet. That’s how one received the local news, from the corner ‘bulletin board’, from which it spread throughout the neighborhoods by word-of-mouth. This is another ancient Sicilian tradition that has lived on to this day. It has nothing to do with being obsessed with death.
I’M A CRISTIAN AND I WILL KEEP ON PRAYING FOR SICILY THIS REALLY SADDENS ME DUE THE FACT THAT THE MAN I CARE FOR HAS THIS WAY OF THINKING AS WELL, I PREACH THE WORD TO HIM BUT I WILL NOT STOP PRAYING FOR SICILY OR HIM!!! THNAX FOR THIS POST…