Madonna delle Indulgenze Festival of Casalucense

A Marian festival in the heart of the Land of Saint Benedict

The Madonna delle Indulgenze Festival is the most deeply felt religious event in Sant'Elia Fiumerapido, a town in the province of Frosinone, Southern Lazio, just a few kilometers from Cassino and the Abbey of Montecassino. Celebrated annually on the third Sunday of Easter—two weeks after Easter Sunday—it unites the local community, the faithful from the Cassinate area, and many expatriates who return specifically for the occasion. At the heart of the festival is the venerated 15th-century wooden statue of the Madonna, carried in procession from the town to the Casalucense Sanctuary.

The Casalucense Sanctuary: over a thousand years of history

The sanctuary stands on the slopes of Monte Cifalco, about three kilometers from the town center, on an ancient site of worship: a Roman inscription testifies that nymphs were venerated there during the Imperial era. Around the mid-9th century, Benedictine monks from the nearby monastery of Sant'Angelo di Valleluce built a small religious cell on the ruins of a Roman villa. In the 16th century, the chapel was consecrated to Santa Maria delle Indulgenze, as the monks granted plenary indulgences to pilgrims on specific occasions: the day of the festival, every Sunday in May, and on the Feast of the Assumption. Expanded between 1840 and 1841, inaugurated in its three-nave form in 1860 by the Abbot of Montecassino Carlo De Vera, and frescoed in 1890 by Enrico Risi, the temple was severely damaged during World War II—this is the land of the Battle of Montecassino—and reconsecrated on July 2, 1954. Closed after the 1984 earthquake, it was reopened for worship in 2000 and is now a diocesan sanctuary of the Diocese of Sora-Cassino-Aquino-Pontecorvo, managed since 1991 by the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate.

The procession and the rites

The festival is preceded by a Marian triduum of hymns and prayers starting on Thursday evening. On Sunday morning, following the solemn mass, the sacred statue of the Madonna delle Indulgenze leaves the church of San Sebastiano in the center of Sant'Elia Fiumerapido and travels in procession through the town streets to the sanctuary, accompanied by a multitude of the faithful, civil and military authorities, and local clergy. In the afternoon, the vesper mass is traditionally presided over by the diocesan bishop; in the evening, the statue returns in procession to the town, where it is displayed once again for veneration in the church of San Sebastiano.

The secular festivities: music, games, and fireworks

Alongside the religious rites, the Monday of the festival marks the most popular day: traditional games for adults and children, live music in the square—in recent years, Piazza Risi has hosted free concerts and shows promoted by the Municipality—and, to conclude, a fireworks display. It is a model of a patronal festival typical of the Ciociaria region, where the sacred and the profane coexist naturally.

Sant'Elia Fiumerapido and the Rapido Valley

The Municipality of Sant'Elia Fiumerapido, crossed by the Rapido River, serves as a gateway to the Comino Valley and the Land of Saint Benedict. The Madonna delle Indulgenze Festival is the ideal opportunity to discover this authentic corner of Lazio: the village, the hamlet of Valleluce linked to Saint Nilus, the trails of Monte Cifalco, and, just a few minutes away, Cassino with its abbey. The sanctuary is easily reached from the Cassino-Sora highway and is a destination for pilgrimages throughout the month of May.