A 'starry sky' of light and contemporary baroque: the new church of Santa Barbara unveiled

After a long journey that began on January 31, 1982, with the delivery of a modest premises on Via Messico by the then Bishop of Agrigento Luigi Bommarito to the parish priest Calogero Bonelli, on Wednesday, March 25, with a solemn ceremony, Archbishop Alessandro Damiano will consecrate and open to worship the new church of Santa Barbara.

"We arrive at this goal after a long journey,” declared Don Leo Argento, parish priest of Santa Barbara since September 26, 2021.

Today Don Leo leads a community of about 10,000 souls, assisted by Caritas groups, scouts, catechism, renewal of the Spirit, Cav, listening center, after-school open to everyone (Catholics and non-Catholics), also ensuring a monthly supply of food to 250 families, thus giving life to “a parish as a place of meeting and fraternity”.

The construction of the Santa Barbara parish complex cost 4 million euros, with funds mostly coming from the 8 x 1,000 provided by the CEI – Italian Episcopal Conference - 16% from the parish and the remaining part from the diocese.

Based on a project drafted by architects Lillo Giglia, Francesco Lipari, and Giuseppe Conti, a main liturgical hall was built, with a capacity of about 900 seats, a weekday and adoration chapel, for 50 seats, belfry, sacristy, rectory, and ten classrooms for pastoral ministry.

The style recalls the ancient Sicilian baroque adapted to contemporary sacred architecture; the structure is designed to play with natural light thanks to small lateral square openings that create a “starry sky” effect inside the church, while the orientation is designed so that the sun at dawn on December 4 – the feast of Santa Barbara - illuminates specific liturgical points, as stated in a project presentation.

The Crucifix, the Madonna, and the Stations of the Cross are works created by sculptor Giuseppe Agnello from Racalmuto.