Basilicas in Italy—Northeastern Sicily

I blogged about the following basilicas on November 6, 2019.

• Basilica Cathedral of the Assumption, Messina, Messina.

Basilica of St. Leon, Assoro, Enna

Has been considered a minor basilica for centuries.

The church was built in the 12th Century as a chapel for the Queen of Sicily.

Pictures are from Flickr and Wikipedia.

Basilica of St. Mary Major, Nicosia, Enna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius VII in 1819.

The church was built by the Normans in the 12th Century to replace a mosque.  It was rebuilt in the 18th and 19th Centuries.

The top picture is from TripAdvisor and the others are from Wikipedia.

Cathedral Basilica of St. Nicholas of Bari, Nicosia, Enna

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Paul VI in 1967.

The Basilica is the cathedral for the Diocese of Nicosia and was built in the 14th Century.

The first picture is from Pinterest and the others are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of St. Nicholas of Bari, Taormina, Messina

Declared a minor basilica by Pope John Paul II in 1980.

The Basilica was originally built in the 13th Century but has been restored and renovated several times since and thus employs a variety of styles.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of St. Sabastian, Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto, Messina

Declared a minor basilica by Pope John Paul II in 1991.

The basilica was built in the 1930s and is one of the largest churches in Sicily.

All pictures are from Wikipedia except the first, which is from Pinterest.

Basilica of Holy Mary Assumed into Heaven, Montalbano Elicona, Messina

Declared a minor basilica by Pope John Paul II in 1997.

The origins of the church date to the 11th Century, but the current building was mostly constructed in the 17th Century.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of St. Christopher, Canneto de Lipari, Messina

Declared a minor basilica by Pope John Paul II in 2004.

A small church was built near here in 1696 and moved to this location in the late 1800s.  The church was remodeled and enlarged in the 1920s.  Most of the decorative details date from the 1950s. 

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica Sanctuary of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and St. Anthony of Padua, Messina, Messina

Declared a minor basilica by Benedict XVI in 2006.

The church was built under the direction of Father Annibale Maria de Francia (1851-1927) who is now a canonized saint.  He founded orphanages and religious congregations.  The eclectic style stone building was constructed in the 1920s. 

Pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of St. John Paul II, Barcellona Pozzo de Gotto, Messina

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Francis in 2013.

No information.

Basilica Sanctuary of St. Mary of Tindari, Tindari, Messina

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Francis in 2018.

The church is built on a hill and the site has previously contained a fort, a Roman temple, and an early cathedral, and a castle.  A church was built here in the 16th Century and housed a Black Madonna made of cedar wood from Lebanon and dating to the 9th Century.  The current Baroque building dates mostly to the 20th Century.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica Shrine of Our Lady of Millicia, Altavilla Milicia, Palermo

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Francis in 2023.

The church has been a place of pilgrimage for 300 years and contains a 14th Century Madonna painted on wood likely by the Giotto school.  The church also has 400 paintings on tin taken from sardine cans from the 19th century to the present day. These paintings were made by local artists and represent the graces obtained by the intervention of Our Lady of Milicia, which people brought to the church to fulfil a vow after their prayers were answered.

The first two pictures are from local sources and the last is from TripAdvisor.