A fire almost completely destroyed the historic Monastery of Bernaga, in Perego, province of Lecco (Italy), where San Carlo Acutis received his First Communion, on June 16, 1988. The disaster occurred around 7:30 p.m. (local time) on Saturday, October 11, on the eve of the liturgical feast of the adolescent saint.
The 21 nuns who were in the monastery at the time of the fire are safe. The nuns watched television, following the vigil for peace in St. Peter’s Square with Pope Leo XIV.
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The Archbishop of Milan, Bishop Mario Delpini, said: “The Ambrosian Romite nuns of the Order of Saint Ambrose of Nemus are all safe! There were no injuries!”
The prelate highlighted the “great relief” he felt after the tragedy, in which, he said, “impressive flames were seen engulfing the old monastery, restored in 1963 as the headquarters of the new Romita foundation.”
Church of Milan, middle of the Italian arquidiocesis, informa that, unfortunately, the “merciless” fire has destroyed a heritage of documentation, of signs of devotion, those few personal effects with which the nuns live. Nine fire teams attended the scene.
As for the artistic heritage, the monastery did not house frescoes or decorated chapels, but some ancient fabrics were saved by the nuns, along with the works left by Monsignor Pasquale Macchi, secretary of Pope Paul VI, and the relics of San Carlo Acutis, according to the Ambrosian diocese.
“In this disaster I want to express the solidarity of the entire Ambrosian Church and my closeness and prayer. I know that the nuns will continue to pray and that trust in God will be the most necessary encouragement. Saint Paul VI, who encouraged Mother Cándida (Casero) in the foundation; San Carlo Acutis, who received his First Communion in the monastery when he was very young; Mother Cándida and the other Romitas buried in the internal cemetery of the monastery certainly continue to be close to the nuns,” said Bishop Delpini.
“And in this moment of fear and pain, of precariousness and uncertainty about the future, the nuns can be sure of the proximity, the solidarity, the assistance of the many friends of the Bernaga and of all of us,” the archbishop concluded.
The Ambrosian Romite nuns are a cloistered female religious community founded in 1474. The monastery also has very ancient origins, as it was built in 1628.
“We still don’t know what really started the fire, and we probably never will, given that almost everything was destroyed. Thank God the sisters were quick to call the emergency services and got to safety in a few minutes… Unfortunately, when the firefighters arrived, the monastery was already completely engulfed in flames,” declared at the Church of Milan of Fr. Emanuele Colombo.
The consecrated men of the Diocese of Milan also wanted to send their message of solidarity and closeness to the nuns: “Dearest Sisters Romitas Ambrosianas of Bernaga: The entire Consecrated Life of the Diocese of Milan – male and female – expresses its closeness following the serious fire that hit its historic Bernaga Monastery in the municipality of La Valletta Brianza.”
“This event, unexpected and painful, happened shortly after the Jubilee of Consecrated Life and on the eve of the liturgical memory of San Carlo Acutis, who precisely in the Church of his Monastery received First Communion. May the example of his faith and the prayers of many sustain them, giving them comfort and hope,” the letter reads.
Translated and adapted by the ACI Prensa team. Originally published in ACI Press.
Veronica Giacometti
Born in 1988, graduated in Letters and Media Communication and specialized in Information, Publishing and Journalism at the University of Rome III, she has published a book with the TAU publishing house called “Even the Popes communicate.” He interned at Vatican Radio and is passionate about social networks and cyberculture. Originally from Trastevere, she is an active volunteer in the parish of Saint Francis in Ripa.