Saint Vincent the Martyr Feast

The patronal feast of San Vincenzo Valle Roveto

On January 22nd, the community of San Vincenzo Valle Roveto, a town in the Valle Roveto in the province of L'Aquila, Abruzzo, gathers around its patron saint for the feast in honor of Saint Vincent the Martyr. It is the anniversary that defines the town's identity: the village itself bears the name of the saint, celebrated on the day the Church remembers Saint Vincent, deacon and martyr of Zaragoza.

A thousand-year devotion

The bond between the town and its saint dates back to the Middle Ages. The Codice Casamariese documents the existence of a church dedicated to Saint Vincent the Martyr as early as the 11th century, around which the ancient settlement perched on the hill developed. After the devastating 1915 Marsica earthquake, which hit the entire valley hard, the town was largely rebuilt in the valley near the railway station, while the historic core of San Vincenzo Vecchio remains on the hillside as a testament to its origins.

The religious program

The heart of the feast is the solemn Eucharistic celebration in the parish church of Saint Vincent the Martyr, followed by a procession with the statue of the saint through the streets of the town. The parish community, led by the parish priest Father Domenico Buffone, welcomes on this occasion the Bishop of the Diocese of Sora Cassino Aquino Pontecorvo, Monsignor Gerardo Antonazzo, who has presided over the patronal festivities in recent years, emphasizing themes of communion and synodality in his homilies.

• Solemn Holy Mass in honor of the patron saint
• Procession with the statue of Saint Vincent the Martyr
• Moments of prayer and popular devotion
• Gathering of the community and families of the town

The village and the Valle Roveto

With about two thousand inhabitants distributed in numerous hamlets — including Castronovo, Morrea, Roccavivi, and San Giovanni Valle Roveto — San Vincenzo Valle Roveto overlooks the Liri river valley, along the State Road 82. The patronal feast of January 22nd is the event that best tells the story of this community in the Valle Roveto, where popular faith and a sense of belonging to the territory remain alive even in the heart of the Abruzzo winter.