One of the striking differences between Sicily and the U.S. is the pervasiveness of Catholicism. Being the major religion in Italy, it seems like it's not really a question of whether you're Catholic, but which parish you belong to.
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| A street sign in Ciminna directing visitors to their churches. |
In Burgio, my husband's father's town, I found out there were two almost competing parishes: San Luca and San Vito. You are born into a family that either attends San Luca or San Vito. You don't switch parishes. My husband's family belongs to San Luca. One of his cousins is married to a woman whose family belongs to San Vito. "They don't come to church with us on Easter," my husband's aunt explained to me. "They go with her family."
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| Tiles depicting the patron saints of the two parishes, on display at the grocery store in Burgio. |
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| A statue outside of the Mummy Museum in Burgio. |
Where we have statues of historical figures in the U.S., Sicily has statues of Padre Pio. In the U.S., a wall mural depicting social change is common; in Sicily, one of a Biblical scene, like this one in Ciminna:
I noticed Ciminna's shrines right away. They were of particular interest to me because they're not common in our part of the U.S. In Ciminna, they are everywhere -- on street corners, in squares, at dead-ends. Most are in the open air, but some are behind gates or carved into walls. And each is meticulously cared for, beautified with flowers and well-lit with candles or lights.
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| A glimpse behind the gate. |
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| On the left, remnants of an old shrine. |
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