The abandoned churches? Do not become garages or glaciers

Duddell's starred restaurant in London is in St. Thomas's old church

. The problem of abandoned churches Belgium and the Netherlands, but it also begins to significantly affect our peninsula. To cope, and also to avoid what happened in Prague where a sacred baroque building was alienated and then became a nightclub, in late November (29-30) an international conference will be held in Rome, promoted by Pontifical Council for Culture, by the IEC and the Pontifical Gregorian University (who will host it), on the theme "God no longer lives here" Rejection of places of worship and integrated management of cultural heritage ecclesiastical ". Conference that in the intentions of the organizers will have to develop and give birth to the guidelines on the subject.

Yesterday, at the headquarters of the Vatican Dicastery, the presentation of the event, with Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, with Msgr. Nunzio Galantino – Secretary General of the IEC appointed President of the APSA – and with Ottavio Bucarelli, Director of the Department of Cultural Heritage Chiesa alla Gregoriana

Even though there are no precise statistics, the phenomenon of dismantling churches, says Msgr. Valerio Pennbado, director of Cei's office who s 39; occupies the construction of worship, in Italy "is in the hundreds". In our country, he explained, "65,000 churches belong to parishes, but in total there are about 100,000 private properties, state properties, regions, municipalities". "As Italian bishops – added Galantino – the problem is not only cultural in nature but of value and pastoral nature, it is important that this intersection of interests and sensitivities drives the conference". "Many – the prelate noted – requests and proposals for the enhancement of sacred buildings that are no longer used for the liturgy that comes to us". The major problems, reported the Secretary General of the CIS, arise when "churches no longer belong to dioceses or parishes but are given to individuals who do what they want".

Although bishops have long been asking that abandoned churches retain their aura of sacredness, cases where, as Cardinal Ravasi explained, insane places of worship are turned into commercial premises. For Galantino, the economic crisis, the dwindling public funds for heritage management, the reduction of religious practice and declining pastoral activities due to the scarcity of clergy are "critical issues that no longer justify the presence of different churches ".

To increase the difficulties, he added, "the earthquakes of the last two years that have damaged about three thousand places of worship, 300 in the Archdiocese of Camerino-San Severino Marche". Already in 1992, the prelate recalled that "the Italian bishops had offered indications to badign abandoned churches for cultural purposes – libraries, archives, museums – but many of them are still waiting for the intended use, and in 2004 they were solicited. evaluate its use for other activities that fall under the pastoral objectives. "

Answering journalists' questions, Galantino then intervened on the case of the entrance tickets tested by some churches of the FEC of the Ministry of Education. Interior, and ruled that this could be a solution for the maintenance of the sacred buildings. "They arrived at the CEI – he said – many events, despite the diversification between liturgical participation and tourist route. This is a complex issue that can not be solved with the admission ticket. "