Feast of Saint Leo the Bishop (Patron Saint of Rometta)

The patronal feast of Rometta

Every year on February 20th, the municipality of Rometta, in the province of Messina (Sicily), pays homage to its patron saint, Saint Leo the Bishop. It is the most significant religious event in the Rometta calendar, a tradition that for centuries has united the villagers around the figure of their protector. The celebration takes place in the heart of the historic center, centered around the Mother Church of Santa Maria Assunta, which houses the saint's wooden statue.

Saint Leo, the hermit of the Peloritani

According to local tradition, Saint Leo was the Bishop of Catania in the 8th century. Exiled by the Byzantine Emperor Constantine V Copronymus for his opposition to iconoclastic laws, he found refuge among the oak and chestnut forests of the Peloritani Mountains. He lived there for several years as a hermit, in prayer and penance, in a cave carved into the rock, still known today as the Cave of Saint Leo. Popular devotion also remembers him for the miracle of water, granted during a long drought that threatened the valley's harvests.

The celebration program

The festivities follow the traditional structure of a Sicilian patronal feast:

• Novena: In the days leading up to February 20th, the novena in honor of Saint Leo is held at the Mother Church, accompanied by the community's devotional hymns.
• Solemn Eucharistic Celebration: On the day of the feast, the solemn liturgy serves as the spiritual focal point of the day.
• Procession of the statue: The most anticipated moment is the procession of the saint's wooden statue, carried on shoulders through the town streets amidst the devout participation of the faithful.

The May pilgrimage

The February feast is complemented by a second event on the first Sunday of May, when the people of Rometta undertake a traditional pilgrimage to the hamlet of San Leone, nestled in a valley of the Peloritani crossed by streams that flow into the Niceto torrent. On that occasion, the saint's portrait is carried to the church dedicated to him, where a Eucharistic celebration is held at the site that preserves the memory of his hermitage and cave.

A medieval village to discover

Rometta, the last Byzantine stronghold in Sicily to fall, retains the charm of a perched medieval village overlooking the Tyrrhenian coast and the Strait of Messina. The Feast of Saint Leo is the perfect opportunity to discover this authentic corner of the Peloritani, far from the main tourist flows, where faith and popular traditions remain vibrant and deeply rooted.