Orthodox Pilgrimage in Sicily: Saints, Byzantine Churches and Places to Visit

For an Orthodox believer Sicily is not a foreign land. For centuries the island prayed in Greek and had bishops, monks and liturgical poets whom the Orthodox Churches still venerate today. Many pilgrims from Greece, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, Serbia and other countries discover here the shared roots of the faith. This page suggests an itinerary for an Orthodox pilgrimage in Sicily, also useful to Catholics who love the Christian East.

Sicilian saints in the Orthodox calendar

• Saint Agatha of Catania, martyr (5 February).
• Saint Joseph the Hymnographer, author of many canons of the Menaion (4 April).
• Saint Methodios of Syracuse, Patriarch of Constantinople and architect of the Triumph of Orthodoxy in 843 (14 June).
• Saint Pancras of Taormina, hieromartyr, first bishop of Taormina according to tradition (9 July).
• Saint Elias the Younger of Enna, a monk born in Enna (17 August).
• Saint Hilarion the Great in Sicily, the hermit who lived hidden in Sicily (21 October).
• Saint Lucy of Syracuse, martyr (13 December).

They lived before the separation of 1054 and are also venerated by the Catholic Church. The historical background is in Byzantine Sicily and the Italo-Greek saints.

Byzantine churches and mosaics

• The Martorana (Santa Maria dell'Ammiraglio), Palermo: 12th-century mosaics; today the Byzantine rite is celebrated there, in the Catholic Eparchy of Piana degli Albanesi.
• Palatine Chapel, Palermo, Monreale Cathedral and Cefalù Cathedral: the great mosaic cycles with Christ Pantocrator, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Santi Pietro e Paolo d'Agrò, at Casalvecchio Siculo near Taormina: the church of an ancient Basilian monastery, rebuilt in 1172.
• Santa Maria di Mili, near Messina, and San Filippo di Fragalà, in the Nebrodi: Basilian foundations of the late 11th century.

An itinerary from Taormina

1. Taormina: the church of San Pancrazio and the shrine of the Madonna della Rocca. Taormina is also the city where Saint Elias the Younger met his disciple Daniel.
2. Casalvecchio Siculo: the Basilian church of Santi Pietro e Paolo d'Agrò.
3. Catania: the Cathedral with the relics of Saint Agatha.
4. Syracuse: the city of Saint Lucy and Saint Methodios; the Basilica of Santa Lucia al Sepolcro and the catacombs.
5. Enna: birthplace of Saint Elias the Younger.
6. Palermo, Monreale and Cefalù: the Byzantine mosaics and the Eastern liturgy at the Martorana.

Places near Taormina are described in Places to meditate near Taormina and Messina.

Attending the Divine Liturgy

There are several Orthodox communities in Sicily, especially in the larger cities, as well as the Byzantine-rite Catholic parishes of the Eparchy of Piana degli Albanesi. Times and places of the liturgies should be asked directly of the parishes, as they change often. Orthodox Easter in 2027 falls on 2 May: for Easter rites in Sicily see the page Holy Week and Easter in Sicily.

The prayer of the heart in Sicily

Many Orthodox pilgrims bring their prayer rope and the Jesus Prayer. The valleys and mountains of eastern Sicily, where the Italo-Greek monks lived, are ideal places to pray in silence, in the spirit of hesychasm.

A spiritual day near Taormina

The Christian spiritual days I offer near Taormina are open to Orthodox and Catholic Christians: common prayer, a meal prepared and shared, walks in the countryside and the saints of ancient Sicily. No overnight stay, and entirely free.

Opening hours and access to places of worship and parks may change: it is best to check the official websites before going. Enter churches in silence and suitably dressed, without disturbing services.

How to take part

The days take place near Taormina, in Sicily. The places to visit are agreed together each time. There is no overnight stay: we share one day, and in the evening everyone returns to their own home. Hospitality has no price and does not depend on any offering: whoever comes is welcomed for who they are. Everyone contributes as they can: anyone who cannot leave anything is welcomed like everyone else, and takes part by giving a little of their time.

The days are reserved for Catholic and Orthodox Christians, because they are lived in shared prayer. To ask for a date, simply write to me on WhatsApp. The spirit of the days is told in the manifesto of hospitality.

If you would like to know what makes this mission possible, read The circle of love.

Explore the other pages

The days: Christian spiritual days in Sicily · The Philoxenia of Abraham · Spiritual search and finding yourself · Day retreat, silent retreat and pilgrimage: the international names

Spiritual travel in Sicily: Spiritual tourism in Sicily: the guide · Pilgrimage walking routes in Sicily · Holy Week and Easter in Sicily · Religious festivals in Sicily: the calendar · Spiritual Nordic walking and ski walking in Sicily

Nature and places: Spiritual Taormina · Spiritual walks in nature · Christian meditation in nature in Sicily · Places to meditate near Taormina and Messina · Places to meditate in Sicily

Prayer: Christian asceticism: the spiritual struggle · The prayer of the heart or Jesus Prayer · Hesychasm: the prayer of stillness · The Philokalia: the Neptic Fathers

The saints of Sicily: Byzantine Sicily and the Italo-Greek saints · Saint Hilarion the Great in Sicily · Saint Methodios of Syracuse · Saint Joseph the Hymnographer · Saint Elias the Younger of Enna · Saint Agatha of Catania · Saint Lucy of Syracuse · Saint Pancras of Taormina

Sources

• UNESCO – Arab-Norman Palermo and the Cathedral Churches of Cefalù and Monreale
• Wikipedia – Eparchy of Piana degli Albanesi
• Wikipedia – Santi Pietro e Paolo d'Agrò
• Catholic Encyclopedia – Methodius I (New Advent)
• Orthodox Church in America – Venerable Joseph the Hymnographer
• Wikipedia – Elias of Enna (with bibliography)
• Wikipedia – Pancras of Taormina