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Photo (c) Roberto
Romano
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Umbria Benedictine Itinerary
In enchanted places where nature and art tell the story of
the piety of the Saint of Norcia.
Today more than ever, Benedict, proclaimed Patron Saint of
Europe in 1958 by Pope Paul VI, provides us with an example of deep
spirituality and positive commitment to the community.
With his invitation
to prayer, ora et labora, the Saint maps out an extremely concrete and sound
“itinerary” for an authentic spiritual experience. A path of prayer which
leads to Norcia, his place of birth, where, despite the fact he only lived
there for a few years, the solid moral values of its inhabitants taught the
young man to lead a simple and austere life, based on the family and work.
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It was in these valleys that Benedict was introduced to the remarkable
ascetic way of life which the eastern monks, who had arrived from Syria in
the 4th century, were leading in grottoes and isolated retreats, in search
of a deeper, more genuine contact with God. The young Saint treasured this
experience, and it was to find a new and revolutionary expression in the
Benedictine Rule, in which the spiritual quest and material commitment were
made a concrete reality within the monastic community.
With the passing of
the centuries the monks abandoned their austere seclusion in the abbey to
move closer to the people living near the monastery, for whom they became a
spiritual, cultural and economic point of reference. The Benedictine monks
were mainly responsible for evangelising Europe and made a decisive
contribution to the moral and cultural regeneration of the continent after
the Barbarian invasions.
Places of interest:
| Basilica of S.Benedetto |
Norcia |
| Church of S.Scolastica |
Norcia |
| Church of S.Salvatore di Campi |
Norcia |
| Abbey of S. Eutizio |
Preci |
| Church of S. Felice di Narco |
Sant'Anatolia di Narco |
| Abbey of S. Pietro in Valle |
Ferentillo |
| Hermitage of S. Antimo |
Spoleto |
| Church of S. Giuliano |
Spoleto |
| Church of Sant'Ansano |
Spoleto |
| Church of S. Paolo inter vineas |
Spoleto |
| Church of S. Eufemia |
Spoleto |
| Church of S. Nicolò |
Spoleto |
| Church of San Gregorio Maggiore |
Spoleto |
| Abbey of S. Ponziano |
Spoleto |
| Basilica of S. Salvatore |
Spoleto |
| Abbey of S. Felice |
Giano dell'Umbria |
| Abbey of S. Fidenzio e Terenzio |
Massa Martana |
| Abbey of Santa Maria in Pantano |
(Massa Martana |
| Abbey of S.Benedetto al Subasio |
Assisi |
| Abbey of S. Silvestro |
Spello |
| Abbey of S. Croce |
Foligno |
| Church of S. Alò |
Terni |
| Abbey of S.Benedetto in fundis |
Stroncone |
| Abbey of S. Simeone |
Stroncone |
| Abbey of S. Nicolò |
Sangemini |
| Abbey of S. Cassiano |
Narni |
| Church of S. Michele Arcangelo |
Narni |
| Church of S. Pudenziana |
Narni |
| Abbey of S. Angelo in Massa |
Narni |
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The Route
Legendary caves, isolated grottoes and sacred woods give a unique character
to the lands of St. Benedict, where the silence and beauty of the landscape
invite meditation and closeness to God.
The first forms of asceticism practised by various Syrian monks in Val
Castoriana (near Norcia) from the 4th century on, gave birth to the western
monastic movement, founded by St. Benedict.
The itinerary calls at villages
and abbeys with a thousand-year-old history, where the close interdependency
of man and nature has always distinguished the religious and cultural
experience of the inhabitants.
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Benedict was born in Norcia in 480 A.D. and
it was here, on the site of ancient Roman edifices and the house where the
Saint was born in particular, that the great Basilica of S. Benedetto
was built.
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The priorship of S. Benedetto di Norcia was subject to the nearby Abbey
of S. Eutizio and, as a result of the various ups and downs which
culminated in the separation of the two churches, in 1369 they were given an
abbey title in common, in compliance with the monastic Rule. Just a hundred
years later the two Benedictine communities were separated for good and
granted their independence. Not far from Norcia is the church of S.
Scolastica, built on the place where the Saint founded the second
Benedictine order and where she lived until a few years before her death,
when she moved to Cassino to join her brother Benedict.
Among the ancient
possessions of the Abbey of S. Eutizio, was the church of S. Salvatore di
Campi, under the title of “parish church of S. Maria”. In around the
12th-13th century, this church gradually lost its religious prestige and
interest as a result of the uninterrupted development of the new castle in
Campi, until such time as the prodigious miracles worked by a large image of
the Crucifix attracted the devotion and piety of the faithful once more.
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Proceeding down to the valley and leaving the fortified
villages of Cerreto and Vallo di Nera behind, you will come to the small
center of Castel S. Felice in a defensive position on top of a small rise.
On its slopes stands the Abbey of S. Felice with its beautiful Romanesque
facade, silhouetted against the dazzling green woodland.
Beneath the
majestic apse, relieved by pilasters and small hanging arches, the river Nera flows peacefully and lazily by like a sleeping giant as if “asking
forgiveness” for the disastrous floods which, before the arrival of the
Benedictines, swamped the surrounding valley, destroying the farmers’
harvest and creating vast marshy areas where malaria was rife.
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The itinerary continues in the direction of Terni, pausing near Ferentillo
at the large Abbey of S. Pietro in Valle, built on the burial site of
two eastern hermits, Lazzaro and Giovanni, at the behest of the Longobard
Duke of Spoleto, Faroaldo II. Having crossed the mountains which separate
the Valnerina from the Valle Spoletina, the road goes up towards Monteluco,
where there are a number of secluded settlements founded by Syrian monks,
including the hermitage of S. Antimo. The hermits of Monteluco,
although maintaining their isolation in small grottoes scattered over the
mountainside, were subordinate to the nearby Abbey of S. Giuliano,
built in this period and assimilated into the Benedictine orbit after the
death of its founder, S. Isacco. In the course of the 16th century, the body
of S. Isacco, who died in around 552 A.D. and was buried in the church of S.
Giuliano, was moved to the crypt of the church of S. Ansano in Spoleto. In
the town of Spoleto the Benedictine itinerary winds its way among ancient
buildings of worship, including the church of S. Paolo inter vineas,
dating back to the 10th century and the Basilica of S. Eufemia, annexed to the old Ducal residence (now the Archbishop’s
Palace) and the only sacred building in Umbria to have a women’s gallery.
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As early as the 11th century, the church of S. Nicolò was subject to
the Abbey of S. Eutizio in Preci; the ancient church of S. Gregorio
Maggiore was also Benedictine, and was built on a cemetery where the
bodies of martyrs were buried who had been torn to pieces in the nearby
Roman amphitheatre.
Just outside the city walls stand two ancient Christian
edifices, impressive in their architectural structure and elegant in their
plastic decorations: the Monastery of S. Ponziano and the Basilica
of S. Salvatore dating back to the early Christian period.
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The route now crosses the pleasant Spoleto valley, in the direction of the
Abbey of S. Felice di Giano on the Monti Martani, amidst breathtaking
scenery which inspired St. Francis’ well-known phrase “Nihil jucundius
vidi valle mea spoletana” (Never have I seen anything more agreeable
than my Spoleto valley).
The Monti Martani, evangelised as far back as the
4th century A.D. by the first Christians, who were making their way along
the ancient route of the Via Flaminia, were familiar with the Benedictine
organisation thanks to two important abbeys built on the foundations of
Roman edifices: the Abbey of Saints Fidenzio and Terenzio and the
Abbey of S. Maria in Pantano near Massa Martana.
Of the numerous
Benedictine sites which enrich Umbria, worthy of particular mention are the
ancient Abbey of S. Benedetto al Subasio, in everlasting proof of the
friendship between Franciscans and Benedictines, and the Abbey of S.
Silvestro di Collepino, founded by Benedict himself, but which later
became Camaldolese. Near Foligno, from the little road which crosses the
narrow valley of the Renaro torrent, the ancient fortified Abbey of S.
Croce in Sassovivo is visible, rising majestically on the steep slope of
the gully.
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On the trail of the Benedictine presence in the Terni
district, the itinerary sets out from the ancient church of S. Alò of
Terni and calls at villages and castles steeped in history; in some cases
the route leads to complexes built within fortified historic centers, such
as S. Niccolò di Sangemini, although more often, it stops at abbeys built
outside the city walls and in the vicinity of the ancient path of the Via
Flaminia.
Among the latter are the splendid Abbey of S. Cassiano di
Narni, founded as early as the mid-6th century and fortified with mighty
walls to defend the Via Flaminia, the church of S. Michele Arcangelo
at Schifanoia and the nearby Abbey of S. Prudenziana.
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In the vicinity of the built-up area of Taizzano, in the heart of the
countryside round Narni, stands the Abbey of S. Angelo in Massa, on
the ruins of an ancient Roman villa. There are two ancient Benedictine
monasteries on the way up to Stroncone, and despite having been slowly and
gradually deserted, pilgrims still find their austere Romanesque vestiges
conducive to meditation and prayer: the Abbey of S. Benedetto in fundis
and the Abbey of S. Simeone.
Following in the footsteps of St. Benedict, the itinerary suggests a
concentrated, albeit geographically limited, journey, worthy of being
extended to the whole of the Umbria region, where each pilgrim, treading a
path amidst faith, art and nature, may come to realise that his quest in the
earthly life will lead him to a higher destination, to the light which
infuses every man who draws near; it will lead him to God.
Basilica of San Benedetto da Norcia - Norcia
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Tradition has it that the Basilica of S. Benedetto stands on the site of the
house which belonged to the Saint’s father, a descendant of the noble Anicia
family.
The pitched facade, terminating either side with two pilasters, dates back
to the 14th century and is characterised by the splayed door, whose lunette
houses the sculpted group of the Madonna and Child with two adoring angels.
The niches either side of the door contain sculptures depicting St. Benedict
and St. Scholastica.
The majestic rose window at the center is surrounded by
the symbols in relief of the four Evangelists.
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The Latin cross interior with a single nave over the crypt is the result of
the 18th-century “restoration”. In the left arm of the transept is a large
and rare canvas by Filippo Napoletano, depicting Saint Benedict and
Totila. Above the altar in the right-hand transept is a canvas by the
Roman artist Vincenzo Manenti, showing the Madonna and Child with Saints.
The crypt is divided into three small naves, the central one being
the widest, with a lowered arched vault above. Constructed on a Roman public
building of the 1st century A.D., it was converted into St. Benedict’s first
oratory and can be identified with the small chapel described by the monk
Adrevaldo da Fleury in the 9th century. The small left-hand apse is entirely
painted with 14th-century frescos and tradition equates it with the
birthplace of Saints Benedict and Scholastica.
continue... >>>
Courtesy of Umbria 2000
(c) 1997-2008 E. Massetti
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