San Fili - Churches
The Mother Church
The Mother Church (Main Church) of San Fili is dedicated to the SS.. Annunziata.
The oldest document related to this church is dated 1304. The original church was not very big, there was one main altar dedicated to the Virgin Mary and 2 side altars of which one was dedicated to San Felice da Nola
. During the period between 1748 to 1802 the church was refurbished and enlarged. The chief engineer, a student of Vanvitelli, was a priest from Rogliano named Saverio Ricciulli. Vanvitelli was involved with the royal palace of Caserta. In addition to overseeing the restoration of this church he was also involved with the restoration of the Cosenzas' Duomo and the Church of the Madonna of the Forest in Montalto.
The church is arranged like a Latin Cross with 3 aisles. The front section is baroque but the area surrounding the door is made with local tufaceous rock carved by F. Belmonte and R.DeBartolo.
The inside of the church is adorned by a wooden chorus and confessionals carved by Antonio Lattari of Fuscaldo and other local carpenters
These structures were completed towards the end of 18th.. century. On both side aisles there are small chapels that originally belonged to private citizens. Above the main altar there is an image of the Madonna
painted by Cristoforo Santanna of Rende.
On the sides there are 4 paintings representing the Evangelists one of which was painted by Antonio Granata. Inside the church there are wooden statues of St.Joseph, The Immaculate Conception and a crucifix made from olive wood by Frangipane that has been recognized as a national treasure.
To the left of the main altar through a door you reach the sacristy. In there are the vestments and vessels, and the Church archive. The book containing the history of how the church was build is also maintained here. On the right of the main door, there is another small door that leads to the belfry by using a spiral staircase. This belfry used to be taller, but earthquakes and lightning have destroyed part of it. At the top there is a mechanical clock built at the beginning of the 1800's by the brothers Pasquale and Antonio Blasi.
The Ritiros' Church.
The Ritiros' church was originally known as Saint Marys' of the Angels. The original chapel was built in 1514 and was later enlarged by brother Pietro daCassano in 1612. The church belonged to the fraternity of the Brothers Minor. A book published by the minister of Grazia and Giustuzia dated 1864 tells us that the building had 10 rooms; five rooms facing north for the 'Brothers' and five rooms facing south used by the poor and travelers. In 1812, the order was suppressed. From 1830 to 1866 the house was inhabited by the Fraticelli Ritiranti who followed orders from the brothers in Rende. The order was suppressed again on July 7,1866.
The land surrounding the building was used as a cemetery. Originally the bodies were buried in crypts below the church. The Ritiro, a baroque building, still contains a marble statue of the Madonna of the Angels, a creation of Gagini, and a wooden Crucifix of the '600.
On February 20, 1980 an earthquake damaged the church. It was declared dangerous and closed to the public. A petition started on February 25, 1981 by local priest Don Luigi Magnelli and signed by over 600 local people was the begining of the push to refurbish the church. A commitee was formed during a meeting in the ' Circle of Culture E.Granato' on Feb.16,1982 with the goal of getting the church repaired.. The members of the committee were Don Luigi Magnelli, Goffredo Jusi, Domenico Greco, Francesco Gambaro, Cesare Gentile, Mario Apuzzo, Luigi Bruno, Pietro Perri, Corrado David, Michele Cesario, Renato Mazzulla (Bucita) and Francesco Cirillo (USA). Thanks to the many contributions and the support of the Calabria Region, the Minister of Education and the Belle Arti, a total of over 850 million lire were collected. The repairs were finaly completed and on November 2,1996 to commemerate the event Father Franco Perrone celebrated a mass.
The Church of the Saint Spirit
Situated in the historical center, the church of the Saint Spirit is a little church with only one aisle, constructed at the beginning of the ' 600, with bell tower and portale tufaceo baroccheggiante. In the overhanging rosone there is a fresco representing S.Francesco di Paola realized in 1854 after an earthquake to show faith for the escaped danger. In the inside there is an interesting wooden bust of S.Francesco, opera of the Neapolitan school of the ' 600; along the walls, always in wood, of the ' 700, the scranni of the Confratelli of the ancient one congrega of the Saint Spirit. Behind the Greater altar the burlap of the Painter Antonio representing Grenade of the 1797 reduction of the Santo.Sulla Spirit turns some frescoes of Raffaele Rinaldi: Saint Francisco with the Madonna and the Saint Spirit, Giuditta and Oloferne, the head of Oloferne shown to the Giudei.
The Church of St.Antonio Abate
This is a little church situated on a hill, dedicated to
Saint' Antonio Abbot, of the order of the Gerosolimitani; of
remarkable architectonic formulation and artistic importance, it goes back
to the sec. XVI. It belonged to various religious and knighthood orders. It was the reunion place for a brotherhood whose members , in the processions, wore white garments adorned with a cross. It was hospital, shelter for the poor and a military warehouse. Of recent, restored by the Soprintendenza to the Fine Arts, it has been declared National Monument. It introduces a beautiful visible ceiling in beams of wood and, on the Greater altar is a beautiful picture of Raffaele Rinaldi representing S.Antonio with the Trinity and Madonna, dated 1899. Interesting also
one beautiful statue in wood of the Saint.
The Carmine
The church of the Carmine, constructed around 1919/1920, rose thanks to the interest of Don Salvatore Apuzzo, our fellow townsman who personally went from house to house in the town, the surrounding campaigns and the surrounding towns to collect monies and other offering. Finally after many sacrifices, he succeeded to construct the church. The sagrestia was missing, therefore he asked for help the Gentile family, in particular to Cecilia Gentile, who offered to the Madonna of the Carmine the small house attached to the church and converting it to a sacristy. In 1920 Don Salvatore, always helped from the people, obtained the statue of the Madonna who is now in the church. The current dress that the Madonna wears, was given in 1963-64 by Clelia Noto and has been sewn and embroidered with golden wire by the intelligent seamstress Mafalda Chiappetta, married Nigro.
Edited and translated to English by Pietro Parrinello- Selden- USA February 27, 1998
The church is arranged like a Latin Cross with 3 aisles. The front section is baroque but the area surrounding the door is made with local tufaceous rock carved by F. Belmonte and R.DeBartolo.
The inside of the church is adorned by a wooden chorus and confessionals carved by Antonio Lattari of Fuscaldo and other local carpenters
On the sides there are 4 paintings representing the Evangelists one of which was painted by Antonio Granata. Inside the church there are wooden statues of St.Joseph, The Immaculate Conception and a crucifix made from olive wood by Frangipane that has been recognized as a national treasure.
To the left of the main altar through a door you reach the sacristy. In there are the vestments and vessels, and the Church archive. The book containing the history of how the church was build is also maintained here. On the right of the main door, there is another small door that leads to the belfry by using a spiral staircase. This belfry used to be taller, but earthquakes and lightning have destroyed part of it. At the top there is a mechanical clock built at the beginning of the 1800's by the brothers Pasquale and Antonio Blasi.
The Ritiros' Church.
The Church of the Saint Spirit
The Church of St.Antonio Abate
The Carmine