A new season opens for the monumental churches of Naples, destined to transform into real centers of cultural aggregation, places of worship and culture, inhabited by the community. The "revolution" officially started today with a first dress rehearsal in the Church of Sant'Aniello a Caponapoli, in the heart of the historic center, where the exhibition was inaugurated Original motorcycle by Gianluigi Maria Masucci.
Don Antonio Loffredo, a symbolic figure in the relaunch of the Rione Sanità and now vice president of the newly formed “Napoli Centro” Foundation, illustrated the vision behind the project. “The goal,” he explained, “is to open the monumental churches for the Holy Year, keep them open all day for Neapolitans and visitors, and transform them into spaces for cultural events. These places are people's houses, in which the community must live. Cult e culture they share the same root: they must coexist and nourish each other”.
With the support of theArchdiocese, the project aims to recover and enhance an often overlooked historical-artistic heritage. “The churches are closed, there are few priests, but people can live in them,” said Don Antonio. The exhibition at Sant'Aniello is just a preview of what is to come: when the restoration work is completed, the church will be permanently open, becoming a space for prayer and culture, a true “home” for the community.
The work of the Foundation, chaired by the bishop, will focus on the opening and care of the churches identified, also involving the youth of the area. The first to open permanently will be the Cathedral of Naples, scheduled for January. The vision of the Foundation revolves around three fundamental concepts: remember, touch e guard.
"It is about reconstructing a dismembered body, returning the individual churches to the city of Naples. We need to remember, to put these places back in order, because they are members of a community," explained Don Antonio. The verb touch represents the idea of a complete experience: “We want these spaces to be open to all the senses. It is not enough to look at them, we need to listen to them through music and theater, feel them with sculpture and painting, live a total experience with the historical-artistic assets.”
Finally, guard: “These places are seeds that can still bear much fruit. We must preserve them for those who come after us, because they belong to all humanity.” The Foundation's mission is to actively involve the community in the protection of this precious heritage. “Our bishop has chosen art as a tool to awaken the conscience of the Neapolitans,” concluded Don Antonio.
The invitation is clear: “Even with just one euro each, we can become members of this Foundation. It is a way of saying: we are here, we want to consciously participate in the protection of these places and leave them to those who will come after us.” With this initiative, Naples reclaims a historical and cultural treasure, transforming it into a living and shared resource, ready to welcome the world.
Article published on 12 December 2024 - 17:54
I find the idea of opening churches for cultural events very interesting, but there are also many questions. How will the security and maintenance of these places be managed? And will priests be involved in this project?