On April 15-16, 2023, the Province of St. Agatha and St. Lucy in Italy (Sicily) celebrated the 60th anniversary of the priestly ordination of Friar Fedele FIASCONARO.
On Saturday, April 15, the Minister Provincial, Friar Gaspare LA BARBERA, and many friars from various friaries gathered in the splendid Basilica of San Francesco d’Assisi in Palermo, (Sicily) Italy, for a Mass presided over by the Most Reverend Corrado LOREFICE, Archbishop of Palermo, Italy.
It was in the very same Basilica, on March 30, 1963, that Friar Fedele was ordained, together with Friars Augusto DRAGO and Giuseppe BENVENUTO.
The liturgy was attended by many of Friar Fedele’s family members from his hometown of Castelbuono (Palermo). Other attending included many parishioners from Marineo (Palermo), where Friar Fedele currently lives and serves as a priest; parishioners from the Sacro Cuore di Gesù Church in Palermo’s Noce district; and faithful from the Basilica of San Francesco d’ Assisi.
In his homily, the archbishop illustrated the deep mystery of the Sacrament of Holy Orders by which, in a special though not unique way, God chooses some men from among His people to make them ministers of the Word and stewards of the Sacraments. This is precisely the witness that Friar Fedele gave to all the faithful who met him. After the Mass, the FIASCONARO family provided dinner in the monumental cloister of the friary.
The following day, Sunday, April 16, the Feast of Divine Mercy, Friar Fedele presided over Mass at the friary in Marineo, which is dedicated to St. Mary of Dayna. Those attending that Mass included many local faithful and friars, the Mayor of Marineo, various military authorities, ecclesial groups and local confraternities.
The Minister Provincial gave the homily and reviewed the various ministerial services that Friar Fedele has carried out. At the end of the celebration, representatives of various local church groups expressed gratitude to Friar Fedele for his valuable witness of fidelity and his willing service toward the young, the old and the sick. The faithful agreed, acknowledging Friar Fedele’s unique spirit of hospitality and friendliness—characteristics that convey, to those who meet him, that he sees them as beloved children of God.
The friars of the Province joined Friar Fedele in praising the Lord for the gift of their vocation. At the same time, they asked the Master of the Harvest to send more brothers who, like Friar Fedele, will serve in the Lord’s vineyard with the same spirit of self-giving and self-denial.
Friar Rosario TERRANOVA, Provincial Secretary
