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| photo by Paul Badde |
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| photo by Paul Badde |
Text and photos by Antonio Bini (except as noted)
In 2020 and 2021 the May celebration of the feast of the
Holy Face was scaled down due to the pandemic, with the suppression of the
procession, which in ordinary times was always attended by many devotees and
companies of pilgrims. But the strong desire to maintain, even during the
emergency conditions, the centuries-old continuity of the feast had allowed only for the transfer of the Holy Face - by a small civil defense truck - to the church
of San Nicola, in the center of the town, to the church where the anonymous
pilgrim in the sixteenth century entrusted the Holy Face to Dr. Leonelli.
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| photo by Paul Badde |
The
celebration of Mass the past two years was also scaled back and access to the church limited to
just 78 people. This year, however, thousands of people arrived for the feast
of the Holy Face, on May 15 and May 16, which was certainly not less than in
the years before the pandemic. It was difficult to enter the church, with many
people having to remain outside.
We noticed a number of pilgrims coming from
abroad, Poland, Germany, France, etc. I managed to exchange some impressions
with the religious Benjamin Koulagna (in the photo), who accompanied a group of
pilgrims who came to Manoppello from Paris, thanks to the French Catholic
organization Etoile Notre Dame. His emotion was palpable. He told me that it
was the first time he had seen the Holy Face in person, receiving the feeling
that the sacred image almost wanted to speak to him. In his hand he had the
text of Benedict XVI's prayer dedicated to the Holy Face and carried a red
rose, like other members of the group.
The children dressed as angels returned to open the
procession, followed by the band. On the balconies of the centuries old houses
of Manoppello, the most precious embroidered blankets were exhibited by
families, a number of whom also had a supply of rose petals which they showered
down upon the Holy Face as it passed by.
Easily noticeable was the widespread feeling of serenity,
peace and festive devotion among the crowds of people who inundated the town
and the road connecting with the Shrine, eager to participate in the festival
as in the past.
Many mayors of neighboring towns participated in the event together with the
mayor of Manoppello, Giorgio De Luca,. In this period the municipality of
Manoppello is engaged in nonstop work to improve the roads and parking near the
Shrine, in preparation for the Jubilee of 2025.
The fireworks returned at the halfway mark along the route,
both on the journey toward the Church of San Nicola and on the return to the
Shrine. The influx of pilgrims was favored by the summer climate of the days.
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| The provincial Fr. Siro at the microphone and alongside the Rector Fr. Gentili |
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| Fr. Gentili leading the praying of the Rosary |
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Fr. Siro at the right of the photo with the Handmaids of the Most Precious Blood behind
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On both days the provincial father Fr. Matteo Siro was
present. The entire Capuchin community was in attendance, led by the rector Fr.
Antonio Gentili. On Monday, after the Mass celebrated by the Archbishop of
Chieti, Mgr. Bruno Forte, with the participation of the parish priest Fr.
Girolamo De Rose, Fr. Antonio Gentili and other religious, including the former
superiors of the Shrine, Fr. Germano di Pietro and Fr. Carmine Cucinelli, the
Holy Face was brought back in procession to the Basilica, through the streets
of the town, accompanied by prayers and hymns.
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| Fr. Germano di Pietro and Fr. Carmine Cucinelli |
To give the opportunity to the
largest number of people to follow the event, for the first time the entire
procession was broadcast live streaming on the Facebook page of the Basilica of
the Holy Face thanks to the footage of Angelo Vorraro, who is part of the
Volunteers of the Holy Face (in the photo). And many have connected from
various parts of the world with the FB page of the Basilica.
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| In the front row Fr. Cucinelli and Fr. di Pietro with the cameraman Angelo Vorraro |
Present also was Sister Blandina Paschalis Schlömer
and the author Paul Badde, engaged as always in the taking of a number of
photos of the Holy Face. Among his many photographs I point to one from May15 -
with the consent of Paul himself - in which the Holy Face, which never ceases
to surprise, seems to present extraordinary similarities with the Face of the
Shroud, demonstrating the infinite changeability of the exceptional image.
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| Photo by Paul Badde |
It was almost as if the celebration had blissfully canceled
the difficult period of the pandemic and Manoppello is ready to welcome the
great flows of pilgrims as was the case until a few years ago.
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