Posted by socrates on Monday, May 15, 2017 in 2017 Blog post.

On Saturday night I observed mass in Il Duomo. Going to mass in such a massive and historic church was a surreal experience. I observe Greek Orthodox at home, but I have been to Catholic church before. The mass itself was similar in Italy and the United States, but the setting and the people made for a vastly different experience. Most of the people in church were elderly Sicilian folks. They were quiet and seemed to have a tight bond with each other. The folks dressed up nicely and seemed very serious and committed to prayer and taking communion. There seemed to be very few young couples and families, though I assume that was because of the timing of the Saturday night mass. Only a handful of tourists attended the mass, from what I could tell. The Sicilians in church seemed to be very quiet and serious in their following. However, they did offer peace and were very friendly after mass ended.

https://vanderbilt.box.com/s/cxhfynszobc07hw3dnf5tzenxglvy2p1

From my observations, the church seemed to be a much more integral part of the Cefalu’ community than it is back home. Being right in the center of town, the church serves not only as a place of religion but as a meeting spot and a focal point. The church is disproportionally large relative to the rest of the town’s buildings, but perhaps this is representative of the importance of the church to the city and the citizens. Generally speaking, I believe that Americans have started to stray away from religion in recent years, whereas in Sicily the church is still grounded as a vital part of the community. It helps that Sicily is predominately Roman Catholic, while the United States is a collection of various different religions. The primary difference between the church in Sicily and in the United States is that the church still serves as the center of the city in Cefalu’, both physically and in the community.

https://vanderbilt.box.com/s/1w8pqu47xjcu7q477fzwpwwn5dy0aysv