Modica and the near revolt of the Sangiorgiari: stories of a time that will never return

In 1902, Raffaele Grana Scolari noted in his diary one of the most intense episodes of Modica's devotion: the near revolt of the faithful of San Giorgio against a decision by Bishop Blandini. The photographer Antonino Giurdanella recalls it on social media, emphasizing how the episode testifies to the city's attachment to the knight saint.

“On April 23, indeed – Giurdanella recounts – Parish Priest Candelieri had forbidden the San Giorgio procession from ascending to the upper neighborhood. But the Modican people, deeply connected to their Patron, did not accept that prohibition. By popular demand, the permission was wrested directly from the bishop, and the procession was able to proceed where tradition dictated. The bishop's reaction was very harsh: he suspended a divinis the canons of San Giorgio for that 'transgression'. But the city did not stand by. The faithful gathered together in defense of their prelates, and Parish Priest Ignazio Marino personally went to the bishop to request the revocation of the measure.”

“On April 28 – it is further explained – more than two thousand people gathered at the Modica station to await the return of the parish priest and learn the outcome of his mission. When the suspension was lifted, the city exploded in a feeling of gratitude: thanksgiving masses were celebrated, and the community found its unity around the Patron.”

In the period images, the feast of San Giorgio appears in the early years of the twentieth century, along with Raffaele Grana Scolari, Bishop Blandini, and the crowd waiting for Parish Priest Marino.