The Poor Clares of Sicily land on the web, in a portal, the life of the 7 monasteries

Telling the life of the seven monasteries. The Poor Clares of Sicily land on the web and rely on a portal to make their history and activities known. On www.clarissedisicilia.it, on the homepage, ample space is dedicated to liturgical appointments but also to the history of Saint Clare, proclaimed patron saint of television and telecommunications by Pope Pius XII, and of the first female order in the history of the Church, whose rule it is living in the “privilege of poverty”. In Sicily the first monastery was founded in Catania in 1220, the second in Messina in 1223. Of the 53 born over the centuries on the island, today only 7 remain and are thriving with vocations. Two are located in the Diocese of Trapani: the oldest is that of Santa Chiara in corso VI Aprile in Alcamo; the other, that of the Sacred Heart moved to the former Capuchin convent in Erice. As many arise in the province of Catania, in Biancavilla and San Gregorio, one each in Caltanissetta, Messina and Castelbuono in Palermo. Through the portal, with dedicated links, it is possible to know the activities that the Poor Clares carry out in each of the seven monasteries, as well as the history of each. The monasteries are connected to each other by the Federation dedicated to Sant’Eustochia Smeralda Calafato (1434-1485), a Poor Clare from Messina who gave a strong impetus to the Observance movement in Sicily, for an authentic return to the original Rule of Santa Chiara. According to some studies, the face of Sant’Eustochia is hidden in that of the famous painting of the Annunciation by Antonello da Messina, his contemporary and Franciscan Tertiary.