In May, during the Marian celebrations, you can see little “Madonnas” of two, three or four years olds, dressed in white and light blue. This is a custom of the Christians of Jerusalem, who entrust their daughters to the Virgin Mary in the month dedicated to her.
On the Feast of St. Anthony of Padua, June 13, it was the turn of little boys, who were dressed in the brown Franciscan habit of the patron Saint of the Custody. There were a number of them in the Church of St. Saviour, where the friars and the local community gathered for the Solemn Mass presided by Custos - Father Pierbattista Pizzaballa – in the presence of the representatives of the Latin Patriarch, the other Churches of Jerusalem and the Italian Consul.
In the pews, there was a special guest who lent his voice to this celebration. Andrea Boccelli joined the choir of the Magnificat during Communion, offering the numerous attendees a performance of the Panis Angelicus. At the end of the Mass, the singer – certainly the best known Italian singer on the world scene – gave an encore with the Ave Maria by Schubert. Bocelli then met the Custos for a private conversation and attended the lunch offered by the Franciscans in the refectory of the convent.
The feast day of the Saint, who was named patron and special protector of the Custody by Benedict XV in 1920, continued in the afternoon with the office of the Vespers presided by the Custodial Vicar, Father Artemio Vítores.
By Serena Picariello
Photos by Marco Gavasso
On the Feast of St. Anthony of Padua, June 13, it was the turn of little boys, who were dressed in the brown Franciscan habit of the patron Saint of the Custody. There were a number of them in the Church of St. Saviour, where the friars and the local community gathered for the Solemn Mass presided by Custos - Father Pierbattista Pizzaballa – in the presence of the representatives of the Latin Patriarch, the other Churches of Jerusalem and the Italian Consul.
In the pews, there was a special guest who lent his voice to this celebration. Andrea Boccelli joined the choir of the Magnificat during Communion, offering the numerous attendees a performance of the Panis Angelicus. At the end of the Mass, the singer – certainly the best known Italian singer on the world scene – gave an encore with the Ave Maria by Schubert. Bocelli then met the Custos for a private conversation and attended the lunch offered by the Franciscans in the refectory of the convent.
The feast day of the Saint, who was named patron and special protector of the Custody by Benedict XV in 1920, continued in the afternoon with the office of the Vespers presided by the Custodial Vicar, Father Artemio Vítores.
By Serena Picariello
Photos by Marco Gavasso