Madonna del Romitello Festival

The Madonna del Romitello Festival in Borgetto

The Madonna del Romitello Festival is the main religious event in Borgetto, a small town in the Province of Palermo, in the heart of the Jato Valley in Sicily. Every year, on May 10th, the entire community gathers around the venerated miraculous painting of the Madonna, depicted with the Dead Christ on her lap, housed in the Romitello Sanctuary, about 5 kilometers from the town in a panoramic position on the slopes overlooking the Gulf of Castellammare.

The miraculous painting and the procession

The heart of the festival is the solemn procession of the painting. In the days leading up to May 10th, the image is accompanied from the Sanctuary towards the town; on the day of the festival, following the 7:00 PM Eucharistic Celebration at the Sanctuary, the painting is carried in procession through the streets of Borgetto to the Mother Church, where it remains exposed for the veneration of the faithful for about a month. The first Sunday of June marks the return procession, during which the painting is taken back to the Sanctuary. The devotion dates back to 1896, when, after extraordinary events on August 31st, the Curia of Monreale declared the image miraculous; in 1922, the Madonna was crowned Queen of the Gulf of Castellammare, an anniversary still commemorated on August 27th.

Pilgrimages and popular traditions

The day of May 10th is marked by religious services held from dawn until evening, while parish communities reach the Sanctuary on pilgrimage, sometimes even at night, along the path that climbs through the woods. Alongside the devotional aspect, the festival preserves a strong component of popular traditions and folklore: in the squares of Borgetto, one can taste the characteristic Virgineddi, pasta with fava beans prepared as an ancient devotional vow. The festival is managed by the Passionist Fathers, custodians of the Sanctuary since 1920, together with the organizing committee, the confraternities, and the municipal administration.

A sanctuary between history and legend

The Romitello Sanctuary was founded around 1460 by the work of Blessed Giuliano Majali, a Benedictine monk who retired as a hermit in the Carrubella woods: the name of the place derives from the cells and the oratory of the "Romiteddu". Established as a parish in 1971, the Sanctuary remains a destination for pilgrimages from across the Palermo territory and an identity landmark for Borgetto and for the communities of emigrants who, for decades, have continued to support the festival even from abroad.