Garda Lake Centennial Event Celebrates San Vigilio’s Legacy and Unity
Over two thousand representatives from the communities of the three provinces with jurisdiction over Lake Garda gathered yesterday under the sign of San Vigilio. They met in the morning at Garda to celebrate, within the framework of events promoted by the Diocese and the Province of Trento, the 16th centenary of the saint’s death, who was also a major evangelizer in the Brescia and Verona territories. The celebration was religious, presided over by the bishops of the three dioceses, but also a popular event, with local administrators from the three provinces united in their effort to recover the memory of the historical collaborations between the three entities in religious and civil fields.
It was a successful meeting, so much so that both organizers and participants emphasized their intention to repeat the ceremony every year, as a «sign of communion and unity among the populations of the three dioceses and Garda.» The Trentino pilgrims departed from the port of Riva aboard the motorboat Tonale, with more than six hundred people, accompanied by their archbishop Luigi Bressan, the president of the province Lorenzo Dellai, and other officials.
Many others arrived in Garda by their own vehicles and three buses. A sizable group from the Verona diocese also participated, boarding at Desenzano with the steamboat Zanardelli, also stopping at Sirmione, Peschiera, Lazise, and Bardolino, with Verona Bishop Flavio Roberto Carraro and Bishop Emeritus of Feltre and Belluno Maffeo Ducoli onboard.
Boats and the water liturgy
Carried by the hydrofoil Galileo Galilei, the Brescia pilgrims, along with their bishop Giulio Sanguinetti, the president of the Province Alberto Cavalli, and other officials, met at Punta San Vigilio to celebrate the water liturgy and proceed with the blessing of the lake, before arriving at Garda for the Eucharistic celebration, which was held along the lakeside promenade. The event aimed to highlight the work done by San Vigilio in the Garda territory.
With the spirit, as highlighted by the Archbishop of Trento in the homily, «of praying together for our diocesan communities and re-launching the shared commitment to promote our people.» Monsignor Bressan, a former apostolic nuncio to Thailand and Pakistan, emphasizing that he was on a stunning lake, said that «man entrusts this richness to himself so he can develop in all dimensions of existence, respecting an environment that must not be abused.»
Contributions and related celebrations
The president of the Province Aleardo Merlin, together with outgoing mayor Giorgio Comencini and candidate mayor Davide Bendinelli, recalled how Garda is a laboratory of collaboration. The presence of Evangelical pastor Ingrid Rauh from Arco added an ecumenical touch to the event.
The celebration continued in the afternoon with songs performed by the youth group Grande coro from Brescia, while the Eucharistic liturgy, attended by about a hundred priests, was accompanied by an inter-parish choir with members from Santa Maria Assunta, San Alessandro, and Anzolin de la Tor di Riva. The event was broadcast live on satellite by Telepace.