Most Holy Crucifix Festival (Cristo Lungo)

The 2025 edition of the Cristo Lungo Festival animated the historic center of Castroreale (Messina) from August 23rd to 25th, 2025. The festival opened with the transfer of the Crucifix from the Church of Sant'Agata to the Mother Church, where the effigy remained exposed for the veneration of the faithful.

The highlight day of August 25th followed the usual ritual: blank shots and bell ringing at dawn, morning holy masses and the solemn celebration presided over by the Archbishop of Messina, the tour of the village by the M° Settimo Sardo brass band, and, in the late afternoon, the grand procession of the statue on the cypress pole with the return to the Church of Sant'Agata. The evening concluded in Piazza Duomo with the brass band concert and the fireworks display, renewing a tradition that has been passed down for generations in Castroreale.