Holy Week in Riesi

In the province of Caltanissetta, Riesi is one of those Sicilian towns that jealously guards the traditional rites of Holy Week, which turn out to be one of the most important events of the year for the inhabitants and for tourists in search of values ​​that are lost in time.

A local poet wrote that "Easter in Riesi jiè nna party, one of li chiu belli ca nni remains …" and if once the organizers of the event were the workers of the nearby sulfur mines, today a Committee takes care of all aspects.

Description of Holy Week in Riesi

Holy Week in Riesi begins three weeks earlier. In fact, on the three Saturdays that precede it, the church of the Santissimo Crocifisso is the destination of a continuous pilgrimage. They are the faithful who come to honor the 5 statues that will be the interpreters of the kermesse. These are the Jesus crucified, Veronica, Our Lady of Sorrows, Ecce Homo and San Giovanni.

During Palm Sunday, after the traditional blessing of the olive branches, the procession of the Saints Peter and Paul from the Mother Church and, at sunset, a long row of firecrackers placed in two directions runs across the square in front of the church and is lit for what is called the male.

In the first two days of Holy Week, nothing in particular happens but from Wednesday the people and the brotherhoods involved begin to prepare themselves in anticipation of the Holy thursday.

On this day, after the official rites, the procession of the Hecce Homo and San Giovanni statues begins from the Church of the Most Holy Crucifix during which the Condemnation of Jesus is staged again.

The following day – the most awaited – is celebrated Passion of Jesus Christ which characterizes the entire day of Good Friday. It all begins in the morning and lasts until midnight in an atmosphere full of barrels produced by chestnuts that accompany sad music played by the band to revive, in an incredible crescendo, the most tragic day of the Passion of Jesus.

At the stroke of 5,30 in the morning, twenty-one cannon shots they have the task of waking up Riesi and at six, after the tapping produced by chestnuts, the statues of theAddolorata and of San Giovanni while from a balcony the cry is heard that Jesus has been condemned.

On the streets of Riesi, the divine presence is sought by following the continuous explosion of the chestnuts. Only at 15 pm, in the most important corners of the city between Corso Vittorio Emanuele and Corso Principe Amedeo, does the painful encounter preceded by the sound of the drum and a trumpet. The statue of St. John joins Jesus with the cross and returns to Our Lady of Sorrows who can finally join Christ amidst the applause of the faithful with another tapping.

Then we continue to reach Calvary where, at 17:00, Jesus is crucified amid the tears of many faithful. Two hours later, the urn brought by the authorities collects the mortal remains and at 20 pm the deposition takes place, i.e. the scinnence while along the entire route, singers sing dirges amidst a torchlight procession which makes the event very spectacular. A journey, this, which takes no less than four hours despite being less than a kilometer long.

Characteristic is the makeup, a signal given by two pieces of wood that bang against each other by the bearers of the simulacra who take three steps forward and two backwards always to the rhythm of the music. On Easter Sunday, at 11 in front of the Mother Church, St. Paul and St. Peter bring the Madonna and Christ together, and the final procession will announce the risen Christ.

The story linked to the Holy Week of Riesi

It is difficult to establish exactly the origin of Holy Week in Riesi even if some scholars indicate in the seventeenth century, a presumable period where the probability of the beginning of these rites can be considered possible.

Where and when the Holy Week in Riesi takes place

As specified, it all begins on the third Saturday before Easter Sunday.

What to do during Holy Week in Riesi

Falling close to spring, the ascent of the is suggested to the visitor Mount Veronica to enjoy a beautiful overview of Riesi, as well as to go on excursions in the adjacent countryside such as Plan of Our Lady which begins at the end of via Primo Maggio.

Obviously, a visit to the historic city center is taken for granted where Corso Principe Umberto, Via Roma, Piazza Garibaldi and Corso Vittorio Emanuele are the main meeting points. However, the fulcrum is represented by the renovated and redeveloped Piazza Garibaldi which gathers the city's nightlife as there are many clubs and meeting places of all kinds. And it is in this square that the Mother Church is located.

How to get to Riesi

By car:
Riesi is connected via the State Road of Solfare (SS190) and the SS626. The latter allows you to reach the nearest motorway, the A19, in 35 minutes by car.

By plane
Catania-Fontanarossa airport, an hour and a half by car.

© Mariangela Calabria, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; Cyrano, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons