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HISTORY OF THE BUILDING

On the evening of 8 September 1943 (the day of the armistice between Italy and the Allies in the Second World War and of the German occupation of the country), in the presence of a crowd of anguished faithful, the bishop of Verona, mgr. Girolamo Cardinale, in front of the image of the Madonna del Popolo, in the cathedral, made a "vow" in the name of the city and the diocese to erect a church in honor of the Immaculate Heart of Mary: «Save our city, our villages from enemy offenses , our homes; save our populations and our distant children. [...] and so that our prayers may be more accepted [...] we vow to erect a church dedicated to your Immaculate Heart». Hence the popular name (Tempio Votivo) of the sanctuary. "Extreme ruin was threatened for our city and our towns", wrote Msgr. Cardinal; «he also expected our land to become a battlefield between the opposing armies. With this terror and fright in our eyes we made our vow." Verona, which really ran very serious risks of destruction (it was one of the main centers of the Republic of Salò and of the commands of the German troops), was in fact substantially spared. After the war, however, we had to wait for an event such as the "Peregrinatio Mariae" for the planning of the church to start concretely. Starting from 25 September 1949, for eight months the beautiful wooden statue of the so-called Pilgrim Madonna (the work of a craftsman from Ortisei, blessed by Pius XII in Castelgandolfo) passed from parish to parish in the diocese of Verona, welcomed with extraordinary demonstrations of devotion and of party. 250,000 faithful took part in the final celebration of the peregrinatio in Corso Porta Nuova on 21 May 1950! The statue, which was finally accompanied in procession to the site planned for the construction of the sanctuary, is today located in the Chapel of the Madonna, under the women's gallery on the right of the church. The design of the Votive Temple is due to the architect and urban planner Paolo Rossi de' Paoli (1900-1966), born in Bologna and died in Rome, but Veronese by adoption. An initial project, with a circular structure, which the Bishop of Verona did not like, was later used for the sanctuary of the Madonna of Lourdes, built on the structures of the Austrian fort of San Leonardo, on the homonymous hill overlooking the city. The system is clearly traditional, but some solutions are modern. In the building structure, for example, the architect wanted to insert some elements inspired by the most famous Veronese basilicas, so that the same architectural language would express the origin and vocation of the Votive Temple, sanctuary of the entire city. Thus the stairway leading to the presbytery and the underlying crypt recall San Zeno; the upper part of the facade and the two unfinished side towers refer to Sant'Anastasia; the women's galleries also characterize the church of San Lorenzo in Corso Cavour. The construction work, which began some time after the laying of the first stone (Sunday 25 February 1951), was directed by the engineer Enea Ronca. The Votive Temple, inaugurated on December 8, 1952, was consecrated on May 13, 1958. From 1965 to 2013, the sanctuary and the parish were entrusted to the Franciscan order of Friars Minor Conventual.

THE OUTSIDE

The Votive Temple is the first monument in Verona that is offered to the gaze of visitors as they leave the Porta Nuova railway station. The plan is a Latin cross, with the central body in the shape of a ship. Given its location in the square, in front of the station building, the church is not oriented according to tradition (that is, it is not facing east), but extends in a south-north direction. For those who exit the square from the railway station hall, the Latin cross structure (and the original cloister on the left, with six large arches on the outside and 53 tall, narrow arches on the courtyard) is immediately recognizable. As it is, however, the sanctuary appears unfinished, because the walls of the sides and of the transept are not yet covered with tuff, as was foreseen in the original project.

The facade

The facade, which according to Veronese taste - as in San Zeno Maggiore and San Fermo - plays on pictorial rather than plastic values, is substantially flat and covered with tuff (building material also typical of Verona) and is divided into two parts by a frame, under which is engraved an inscription bearing the title of the church-sanctuary of the Votive Temple: Cordi Immac. [howl] Deiparae Mariae Dec. [atum] an. [no] Dom. [ini] MCMLIII, that is "dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of the Mother of God Mary in the year of our Lord 1953". (The year indicated here is that of the completion of some important works - in particular the cladding of the facade - and their inauguration, which took place on 8 December, exactly one year after the blessing and the opening of the church for worship. ) Towards the top of the two towers, the bas-relief coats of arms of the province (the one with the symbol of the ladder) and of the municipality of Verona are set, to highlight from the very first moment the link between the temple and the city. In the upper part of the facade, connected to the two towers by arches (which are then repeated and crown the entire building like battlements - perhaps a reference to the arches of the Arena, the Roman amphitheater of Verona), stands out a large bas-relief dedicated to the Mother of God: the glorious Virgin with Child is enclosed in the mandorla, symbol of resurrection and eternal life: it is surmounted by a cloth - supported by two angels - and by the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove ("the Holy Spirit will descend over you, the power of the Most High will overshadow you” — Lk 1, 35) and surrounded by venerating angels. THE large bas-relief panel in Verona tuff, by the Florentine Marcello Vigni, is closed by two inscriptions: at the top, DOM (Deo Optimo Maximo); below, Fortis ut mors Mater aciebus terribilior ("strong as death is the Mother, more terrible than an army drawn up for battle"), inspired by two verses of the Song of Songs: Ct 8,6 ("strong as death is love” – where “love” has been replaced by “mother”, which is Mary) and Ct 6,4 (“terrible as hosts and banners displayed”, referring to the bride of the canticle). The lower part of the facade is enlivened by 9 narrow windows, under which the three entrance doors open, flanked by two three-seater stone seats. Above the side doors there are two relief panels in white marble, the work of the Veronese sculptor Nereo Costantini (1905-1969), author, among other things, of the hugely popular bronze statue of Juliet in the courtyard of Juliet's house in Verona. The scenes depict the Vow and the Dedication of the church to the Virgin Mary. The two rows of faithful, preceded by the bishop, are oriented towards the inscription above the central door: Quod supplici urbi praeses vovit eps Hieronymus Matris sacrat puro cordi ("What the prelate vowed to the city in prayer Bishop Jerome consecrates to the Immaculate Heart of the Mother"). On the sides of the central door, two other vertical panels in high relief, executed by the sculptor Vittorio di Colbertaldo, who is also the author of the beautiful Via Crucis inside. They illustrate, without interruption, the most important scenes of Mary's life. Counterclockwise from top left panel: Birth of Mary, the Presentation of Mary in the Temple, the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Birth of Jesus; then (in the right panel, from below), the Flight into Egypt, the Wedding at Cana, the Crucifixion, the Pietà and the Assumption.

The structure is of the traditional type, with a Latin cross plan, single nave with women's galleries, raised presbytery, apse with ambulatory, crypt. (The crypt — currently used for celebrations and meetings — occupies the whole area of ​​the cross vault and apse with its ambulatory without any intermediate support.) Some solutions, however, are modern and original, such as the flaring of the nave towards the cross vault, the disposition of the apse in wings, the women's galleries created as stepped galleries. The elimination (after the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council) of the four side altars, the movement of the statue of the Pilgrim Madonna from above the main altar to the nave under the right gallery, the main altar at the center of the cruise, the entrance compass, the Chapel of San Francesco at the end of the left aisle. The visitor's attention is immediately attracted - also due to the progressive, slight widening of the nave - by the raised presbytery, clearly distinct from the level of the faithful, which is accessed via a wide staircase. It is in fact the most evocative part of the church by far, with the figures of the angel and the Virgin of the Annunciation on the large pale walls, the immense fresco in the apse, the ambulatory area - where the colored lights of the painted windows, the interplay of lines of the pipes of the organ and of the seats with the high backrests "in the shape of angel's wings". slight widening of the nave - from the raised presbytery, clearly distinct from the level of the faithful, which is accessed via a wide staircase. It is in fact the most evocative part of the church by far, with the figures of the angel and the Virgin of the Annunciation on the large pale walls, the immense fresco in the apse, the ambulatory area - where the colored lights of the painted windows, the interplay of lines of the pipes of the organ and of the seats with the high backrests "in the shape of angel's wings". slight widening of the nave - from the raised presbytery, clearly distinct from the level of the faithful, which is accessed via a wide staircase. It is in fact the most evocative part of the church by far, with the figures of the angel and the Virgin of the Annunciation on the large pale walls, the immense fresco in the apse, the ambulatory area - where the colored lights of the painted windows, the interplay of lines of the pipes of the organ and of the seats with the high backrests "in the shape of angel's wings".

The frescoes of the side altars

The four frescoes corresponding to the side altars were painted between 1954 and 1959 by the painter Carlo Bonacina (1905-2001). Born in Mestrino (Padua), but Trentino by adoption, he remained for a long time linked to the realistic and plastic values ​​promoted by the "Novecento" artistic movement. In Verona, the frescoes (Crucifixion and Via Crucis) in the chapel of the former seminary of the Stigmatine Fathers on the hill of San Leonardo are also by him. Left, Santa Maddalena di Canossa among the orphans (1958, fresco offered by the Canossian nuns): the basilica of San Zeno in the background recalls the activity of Canossa in the neighborhood of the same name, where the mother house of the institute is also located founded and where his remains are kept. Further on, St. Joseph with the Adolescent Jesus (1958, offered by the parish community of the Votive Temple). On the right wall, San Vincenzo de Paoli among the poor (1955, donated by the Veronese Vincentian Conferences). Further on, San Giovanni Bosco among the young (1959, offered by the students and former students of the Salesian congregation, which boasts an ancient and strong presence in Verona): behind the saint, the Turin basilica of Superga. As can be seen, these frescoes also underline the city vocation of the sanctuary.

The two chapels

In 1968, in line with the renewal desired by the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, a reorganization of the "liturgical places" was implemented in the church - by Luciano Raineri - starting from the presbytery, in order to highlight the centrality of the Eucharistic celebration. On this occasion the two side aisles (under the women's galleries), which already housed the four altars dedicated to the saints, were chosen as the "place of sacred images", where to bring together the various signs of private piety. Once the altars were demolished to bring out the niches frescoed by Carlo Bonacina, two lateral spaces were obtained, free from impediments and capable of accommodating the Chapel of the Madonna and that of San Francesco, respectively to the right and left of the central nave.

The Chapel of Our Lady

The statue of Maria col Barbino (known throughout the diocese of Verona as the Pilgrim Madonna), supported by a circular cantilever base in red Verona marble, is placed at the bottom of the right aisle, in the center of a concrete niche cylindrical, plastically animated on the surface to symbolize a rocky bottom. The niche connects to the wall of the nave with a second niche dug out to make room for a seat, which with the small cylindrical table forms a small "weekday" presbytery. The axis of the chapel, centered on the statue of the Madonna, has the direction rotated by 45 degrees towards the main nave to underline the close relationship between the cult of the saints (and of Mary in particular) and the central one of God. The circular shape, which is the dominant motif of the chapel,

The Chapel of San Francesco

At the bottom of the left aisle, the Franciscan Fathers - who took care of the sanctuary and the parish of the Votive Temple from 1965 to 2013 - wanted the construction of a chapel dedicated to St. Francis, also designed and built by Luciano Raineri . The articulation of the background, divided into two parts, refers to the famous episode of San Damiano. In the small church of Assisi, now in ruins, the Crucifix one day addressed the young Francis - then on the path to conversion - with these words: "Repair my house, which is falling into ruins". Francis, who had not understood the profound meaning of the exhortation (the Lord was referring to the critical situation of the Church in the society of the time), dedicated himself to restoring the building. The left side of the monument, in rough stone (where some elements - a diagonal and a semicircle niche - recall the small church of San Damiano), it represents the Church of Francis' time, but also the earthly, wild and disorderly city, place of traffic of the new bourgeoisie was then affirming in Italy; the right side, in polished and uniform marble, instead symbolizes the Church renewed by the work of the saint (but also the city made civil and Christian by his passage), the shining Jerusalem, ordered to God. The wooden statue is the work by E. Moroder-Doss, an artist from Ortisei, who was asked to draw inspiration from the famous portrait of St. Francis left by Thomas of Celano, one of his disciples. Here is the Portrait of Francis written by Tommaso da Celano: «How enchanting, stupendous and glorious in his innocence, in the simplicity of his word, in the purity of heart, in the love of God, in fraternal charity, in the promptness of obedience, in courtesy, in his angelic aspect! Of a mild character, of a calm disposition, affable in speaking, cautious in admonishing, most faithful in carrying out the tasks entrusted to him, shrewd in advising, effective in operating, amiable in everything. [...] In his incomparable humility he showed himself to be good and understanding with everyone, adapting himself appropriately and wisely to everyone's customs. Truly holiest of saints, and of sinners as one of them. O most holy Father, merciful and lover of sinners, therefore come to their aid, and for your very high merits, we ask you to relieve those you see lying miserably in guilt!». (I Celano, 83 — FE 464-65) in the love of God, in brotherly charity, in the promptness of obedience, in courtesy, in his angelic aspect! Of a mild character, of a calm disposition, affable in speaking, cautious in admonishing, most faithful in carrying out the tasks entrusted to him, shrewd in advising, effective in operating, amiable in everything. [...] In his incomparable humility he showed himself to be good and understanding with everyone, adapting himself appropriately and wisely to everyone's customs. Truly holiest of saints, and of sinners as one of them. O most holy Father, merciful and lover of sinners, therefore come to their aid, and for your very high merits, we ask you to relieve those you see lying miserably in guilt!». (I Celano, 83 — FE 464-65) in the love of God, in brotherly charity, in the promptness of obedience, in courtesy, in his angelic aspect! Of a mild character, of a calm disposition, affable in speaking, cautious in admonishing, most faithful in carrying out the tasks entrusted to him, shrewd in advising, effective in operating, amiable in everything. [...] In his incomparable humility he showed himself to be good and understanding with everyone, adapting himself appropriately and wisely to everyone's customs. Truly holiest of saints, and of sinners as one of them. O most holy Father, merciful and lover of sinners, therefore come to their aid, and for your very high merits, we ask you to relieve those you see lying miserably in guilt!». (I Celano, 83 — FE 464-65) in his angelic aspect! Of a mild character, of a calm disposition, affable in speaking, cautious in admonishing, most faithful in carrying out the tasks entrusted to him, shrewd in advising, effective in operating, amiable in everything. [...] In his incomparable humility he showed himself to be good and understanding with everyone, adapting himself appropriately and wisely to everyone's customs. Truly holiest of saints, and of sinners as one of them. O most holy Father, merciful and lover of sinners, therefore come to their aid, and for your very high merits, we ask you to relieve those you see lying miserably in guilt!». (I Celano, 83 — FE 464-65) in his angelic aspect! Of a mild character, of a calm disposition, affable in speaking, cautious in admonishing, most faithful in carrying out the tasks entrusted to him, shrewd in advising, effective in operating, amiable in everything. [...] In his incomparable humility he showed himself to be good and understanding with everyone, adapting himself appropriately and wisely to everyone's customs. Truly holiest of saints, and of sinners as one of them. O most holy Father, merciful and lover of sinners, therefore come to their aid, and for your very high merits, we ask you to relieve those you see lying miserably in guilt!». (I Celano, 83 — FE 464-65) lovable in everything. [...] In his incomparable humility he showed himself to be good and understanding with everyone, adapting himself appropriately and wisely to everyone's customs. Truly holiest of saints, and of sinners as one of them. O most holy Father, merciful and lover of sinners, therefore come to their aid, and for your very high merits, we ask you to relieve those you see lying miserably in guilt!». (I Celano, 83 — FE 464-65) lovable in everything. [...] In his incomparable humility he showed himself to be good and understanding with everyone, adapting himself appropriately and wisely to everyone's customs. Truly holiest of saints, and of sinners as one of them. O most holy Father, merciful and lover of sinners, therefore come to their aid, and for your very high merits, we ask you to relieve those you see lying miserably in guilt!». (I Celano, 83 — FE 464-65) to relieve those you see lying miserably in guilt!” (I Celano, 83 — FE 464-65) to relieve those you see lying miserably in guilt!” (I Celano, 83 — FE 464-65)

The "Via Crucis"

14 groups (in bronze) of the Via Crucis - one of the most interesting in the city - were created by the sculptor Vittorio di Colbertaldo, originally from Forlì but who lived for a long time in Rome and Verona (in the sanctuary of the Madonna di Lourdes, on the hill of San Leonardo , the 15 bas-reliefs of the Mysteries of the Rosary are his work). It is a work of notable artistic value, where a profound biblical spirituality and a very human popular devotion find expression. The 14 stations are those consecrated by Western Christian piety and established in this form in the 16th century. The iconography is of the traditional type, but the artist succeeds in expressing from time to time, through very few figures, with great sobriety and effectiveness, the essence of the dramatic action. See the second station (on the left): Jesus is loaded with the cross. Jesus spreads his arms to grasp the cross which is given to him; but the sculptor transforms this simple physical, natural gesture into an attitude of priestly prayer: thus Christ does not take, but "embraces" the cross, driven by a total love for men ("having loved his own who were in the world, loved them to the end”, Jn 13, 1). The composition expresses the words of Jesus himself (Jn 12:27): «Now my soul is troubled; and what should I say? Father, save me from this hour? But that's why I've come to this hour." Also worth a stop is the V station (always on the left): The Cyrenean helps Jesus carry the cross. The left arm of the Cyrenean is intertwined with the right arm of Jesus - who has fallen to his knees - as if to help him get up. 11??? Gospel according to Mark (Mk 15, 21) says that the soldiers "forced" a certain "Simon of Cyrene to carry the cross of Jesus", but also adds that he was the "father of Alexander and Rufus", as if to suggest that - at the time when the the evangelist writes — the Cyrenean family is part of the Christian community: and the sculptural group well expresses the spirit of this tradition. Observe again, further on, the sixth station: Veronica wipes the face of Christ. The woman, bent on her right knee as a sign of veneration, raises her eyes towards the Lord and extends her linen with both hands to dry his face. The two gazes meet, and the whole expresses an immense pity: that of Veronica for the sufferings of Jesus, but also that of Jesus for Veronica, who is here the whole of sinful humanity, for which the Lord is delivering own life. In the seventh station (Jesus falls for the second time), very human, the Lord is depicted at the moment he is about to fall. Everything here plastically expresses exhaustion: his body is bent under the pressure of the cross, the heavy mass of hair seems to drag his head downwards; and while the left hand, rather than gripping the cross, drags it to the ground, the long and heavy right arm dangles inertly as do the open fingers of the hand, without any strength to cushion the fall. A stop also in front of the XII station (Death of Jesus on the cross), on the right wall. Mary and John are stuck in an attitude of anguish and tension, with their heads turned towards the face of the Lord. The Gospel according to John relates (Jn 19, 26-27): «Jesus then, seeing his mother and her beside the disciple whom he loved, said to his mother: “Woman, here is your Son!”. Then she said to the disciple: "Here is your Mother!". And from that hour the disciple took her into her house." Mary is also the mother of the Church, to which the mission of generating and welcoming new children of God is entrusted. In the context of a traditional type of composition, the figure of Christ is original here, whose arms and shoulders, instead of being dragged down by the weight of the body, they are aligned with the horizontal arm of the cross, while the head, thrown upwards, seeks the Father: «Jesus, crying out in a loud voice, said: "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit". Having said this, he expired" (Lk 23:46). The position is the one assumed by Christians for prayer: Jesus, in fact, after having "extended his arms on the cross" to be nailed to it, it widens them in a powerful sign of abandonment to the will of God and of love for men. Classical and inspired by the Gospels is also the composition of the XIII station (Jesus is taken down from the cross): Joseph of Arimathea is lowering the body of Jesus from the cross. Now "everything is accomplished": it is the final moment of the kenosis (that is, the "emptying of oneself") of Jesus Christ the Son of God, his descent into hell: the diagonal lines of the figures underline the bitterness of the moment, but also the momentum of the mother who welcomes her child into her womb. Note the correspondence between this scene and that of the second station, placed opposite on the opposite wall: there the Lord extends his arms to welcome the cross, here Mary welcomes the body of her crucified son between hers. It is also worth looking elsewhere, in the stations of this Via Crucis, how many times the sculptor entrusts important expressive tasks to the faces, gazes and arms of the characters; and how the work as a whole expresses an extraordinary human and spiritual tension: not only the suffering of a man is represented, but that of the man-God, of Jesus Christ, who enters his "passion" in complete freedom for the salvation of men.

The windows

All the windows of the church are currently painted. The most interesting small windows are perhaps the older ones (made in the 1950s) and that is most of those in the ambulatory, those in the facade women's gallery and some others (which are distinguished by style and technical quality) in the lateral women's galleries. There are 25 small windows in the ambulatory: the central one, the thirteenth, depicts the risen Christ. The others - as well as those of the lateral women's galleries - are figures of saints, which can be divided into various categories: saints of the universal Church (such as Saint Jerome, Saint Joseph, etc.); figures of saints requested by individual bidders; saints (or characters with a reputation for holiness) of the Veronese Church (St Zeno, St Peter the Martyr, St John Calabria, Francesco Perez, St Gaspare Bertoni, St Magdalene of Canossa, blessed Giuseppe Nascimbeni, blessed San Daniele Comboni, Pietro Leonardi, Blessed Giuseppe Baldo, Saint M. Domenica Mantovani, etc.); saints linked to religious institutes present in the diocese (St. Philip Neri, St. Louis Maria Grignion de Montfort, St. Josephine Bakhita, etc.). Also under this aspect, therefore, the Votive Temple is characterized as a sanctuary of the city of Verona. Some windows concern very modern saints: for example, in addition to Saint John Calabria, Blessed Gianna Beretta Molla and Blessed Josemaria Escrivà de Balaguer. The 9 beautiful stained glass windows of the facade women's gallery depict saints linked to Jesus' childhood and adolescence: in order, from left to right, Saint Zacharias and Saint Elizabeth, Saint Anne, the Virgin Mary, the adolescent Jesus himself, Saint Joseph, Saint Joachim, Saint John the Baptist, old saint Simeon. There are 90 windows, all painted today: 65 of the women's galleries, 25 of the ambulatory.

THE PRESBYTERY

Certainly the most valuable and fascinating part of the church is the presbytery, which widens with the transept at the top of the staircase. The scene is dominated by a large fresco - whose subject is the proclamation of the dogma of the Assumption of Mary - under which the arches of the ambulatory open.

Pino Casarini

The execution of the fresco was entrusted to a famous Veronese artist, certainly one of the greatest painters of sacred art of the 20th century: Pino Casarini (1897-1972). Painter, fresco artist, sculptor, stained glass artist, set designer (active above all for the Arena and the Roman Theater of Verona), illustrator, caricaturist, as well as an art teacher, his tireless activity was prodigious. To limit ourselves to the field of frescoes, it is enough to mention a few: the Royal Palace of Bolzano, the basilican hall of the University building of Bo (Padua), the cathedral of Thiene (Vicenza), the apse of Sant'Agnese (Venice), the cathedral of Vittorio Veneto, the cathedral of Sacile (Pordenone), sanctuary of the Madonna delle Grazie of Arco (Trento), cathedral of Vicenza, church of Coredo (Trento), parish church of Cordovado (Udine); in the city of Verona: atrium of the INA building, apse of San Giuseppe fuori le mura, Music Hall of the Castelvecchio Museum, lounge and theater of the Due Torri hotel. - His are the bronze portals of the cathedral of Sacile and of the church of Cordovado. Among the stained glass windows, we recall those of the cathedral of Vicenza, of the infirmary of the Major Seminary of Trento and the multi-lancet windows (grandiose) of the church of the monastery of Santa Chiara in Naples. In his works of mural painting the references to Byzantine mosaics, Giotto, Masaccio, Piero della Francesca and mannerism are evident from time to time; but after the Second World War Casarini, while remaining faithful to his predilection for "painted history", gradually opens up to the new directions of European painting. Also in the fresco of the Votive Temple there is a certain taste for the deformation of the figures which is affected,

The great fresco

What appears, even conceptually, as a single large fresco is actually made up of two clearly distinct parts. Pino Casarini started it in 1954; by the end of the same year he had completed only the upper front of the apse with the Madonna among the angels. But precisely the figures of the angels - violently deformed - suffered the criticisms of many and above all the bishop did not like them, so that the work (also due to lack of funds) was interrupted for a long time. When it resumed, eight years later (end of 1962), the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council was underway in Rome. The subject of the central wall is the solemn Proclamation of the dogma of the Assumption, which took place in St. Peter's on November 1, 1950 (and defined with the papal bull Munificentissimus Deus) in the presence of a certain number of bishops representing the entire Catholic episcopate. The characters depicted are real, like Pius XII's master of ceremonies at the time, Msgr. Dante (to the left of the pope in the painting), who will later be named cardinal by John XXIII. On the extreme right and extreme left, on their knees, the first parish priest, don Eugenio Caprini, and then vicar general of the diocese, mgr. Pietro Albrigi, the latter in the attitude of an offerer with the model of the temple in his hand. A curiosity: the Swiss Guards look like the sexton of the Votive Temple at the time and a mason from the church building company. The subject of the side walls, with the two theories of bishops who appear in groups of nine (three groups on each side) under the canopies, refers not so much to the proclamation of the dogma, but rather to the meetings of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, which, as has been said, was taking place in Rome while the painter was at work. The composition, however, appears completely unitary, both pictorially and theologically. The first proposal of the subject is due to Msgr. Girolamo Cardinale, who had been present in the Vatican at the solemn proclamation of the dogma of the Assumption and had asked to be depicted among the bishops in the fresco. Between November 19, 1962 and January 7, 1963, the painter completed the figures of the twelve apostles in the upper part of the side walls. By choice of the artist himself, apart from St. Peter (with the keys, to the right of the Virgin) and St. Paul (with sword, to the left of the Virgin), the individual apostles are not identifiable. The angels of the Assumption are also completely redone. At the end of 1963 the fresco was completed, and on 6 January 1964, the feast of the Epiphany, it was blessed by the then bishop of Verona, Mons. Joseph Carrara. The figure of Msgr. Girolamo Cardinale - the only one who seems to accompany the observer everywhere with his gaze - is the first at the bottom left, recognizable by the inscription Verona Fidelis: the date of execution is also marked, 30 September 1963. is blessed by the then bishop of Verona Msgr. Joseph Carrara. The figure of Msgr. Girolamo Cardinale - the only one who seems to accompany the observer everywhere with his gaze - is the first at the bottom left, recognizable by the inscription Verona Fidelis: the date of execution is also marked, 30 September 1963. is blessed by the then bishop of Verona Msgr. Joseph Carrara. The figure of Msgr. Girolamo Cardinale - the only one who seems to accompany the observer everywhere with his gaze - is the first at the bottom left, recognizable by the inscription Verona Fidelis: the date of execution is also marked, 30 September 1963.

The Assumption of Mary

Pius XII had decided to proceed with the solemn proclamation of the dogma of the Assumption - the culmination of a very long, universal and uninterrupted tradition in the Church - after having consulted the bishops of the whole world. In the Eastern tradition of the Dormitio Virginis, the Madonna, lying in her tomb, is assisted by the grieving apostles and by her son Jesus Christ himself, often represented with his mother's soul (in the figure of a child) in her arms. In the modern Western tradition, on the other hand (see, for example, Titian's canvas of the Assumption in the cathedral of Verona), the apostles look upwards at the Madonna abducted into heaven, supported by angels. In the fresco of the Votive Temple the apostles are depicted frontally in two theories, as columns and foundation of the Church, guardians of the Truth and symbol of Tradition. The pope (Pius XII) reads the document under a group of angels who, crowning the Virgin of the Assumption herself, welcome her into heaven: what is proclaimed on earth is also the reality and truth of a celestial event; the successors of the apostles - the bishops of the militant Church, below - are in full communion with the pope and with the apostles themselves, that is, with the triumphant Church, with the celestial Jerusalem: the same color, moreover (the blue of eternity , place of the celestial Church), on which the apostles and angels stand out, is also the background to the canopies, under which the pope and the bishops are seated. The canopies are an evident symbol of the transcendent reality of the earthly Church: they are the biblical "tent of meeting", the "dwelling place of the Lord", the "sanctuary of the presence of God", over which the “shadow of the power of the Most High” extends. In this way the composition pictorially expresses the deepest content of the event of Mary's Assumption into heaven: the risen Jesus Christ conquered death, destroyed the barriers that separated us from God and opened a breach in heaven not only for Mary his Mother, but also for all men.

A “sacred representation”

The fresco, which covers an area of ​​hundreds of square meters, is a masterpiece of the artistic maturity of Pino Casarini, by now fully master of the fresco technique and very skilled in exploiting, as an expert scenographer, the back wall and the wings structure of the side walls. The chromatic effect is entrusted to a few colours. The whole is dominated by the uniform blue tone of the vast expanse of the background and the bright red, almost violent, of the side canopies (the symbolic color of the militant Church, that is, the earthly Church of the "martyrs" or witnesses), on which the vivid humanity of the bishops, divided into six groups of nine each. Even if the figures are solemnly, almost liturgically aligned and stylized (they appear rough-hewn in stone or wood, in the same way as the apostles, solid and well-planted commoners), what is striking is the variety of attitudes (there are those who pray, those who meditate, those who exchange a word with their neighbours) and the realism of the features, of the clothes, of the color of the skin, of the very stature of the characters: an expression of a universal Church (“Catholic”) scattered across every continent and characterized by the diversity of peoples and cultures. In addition to the aforementioned bishop of Verona (on the left), the Armenian cardinal Gregorio Agagianian can be recognized on the right, dressed in oriental style and with a white beard. The white tones that characterize the pope and the area around him express the light and splendor of transcendence, resurrection, eternal life and draw attention to the central event, the proclamation of the dogma of the Assumption; above, vertically, wrapped and highlighted by a large circle (which recalls an immense lunar disk), the beautiful, sweet figure of the Virgin Mary appears. Finally, the precious gold of the flabellums and rods stands out against the shades of blue, red and white, vertical elements that visually connect the two scenes of the "sacred representation" and guide the viewer's gaze upwards. An interesting detail: the golden rods of the canopies are "real" half rods fixed to the walls.

The Annunciation

The stupendous figures of the Annunciation, which stand out on the two large walls of the presbytery, were traced by Pino Casarini in a few hours and with great certainty (as was his habit) and then completed within a few days (free of charge, accepting a request of the parish priest don Eugenio Caprini). The Virgin, on the right, is depicted in the act of protecting herself with her hand and veil from the irruption of God, of the Light, of the Holy Spirit into her life through the angel's greeting: "Hail, full of grace , the Lord is with you." Mary's expression is the very natural one referred to in the Gospel according to Luke: "At these words she was disturbed". In fact, a new course is linked to the answer of this girl from Nazareth, not only in her life, but in the very history of all humanity. The figure of the Archangel Gabriel, on the opposite side, is extremely plastic, so much so that it seems to detach itself from the light wall without a background and hover in the air: it truly appears as an irruption of the eternal into space and history. With extreme efficacy, the position of the angel's hands expresses his concern to reassure the Virgin, a perfect visual translation of her words of reply: "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God" (Lk 1, 28-30) .

THE LARGE GLASSES OF THE TRANSEPT

The two large windows in the transept were made in 2000, based on the overall drawings and sketches prepared at the time by the same author of the fresco of the Assumption. In the context of this artistic technique - where he also left works of extraordinary value - Pino Casarini had abandoned the method used in the West for centuries and had returned to refer to the more demanding one of the great French glass masters of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, however making use of modern inventions to improve the chromatic results. The work was completed by the "art workshop" of Albano Poli, who, already a disciple of Casarini at the Nani School of Art in Verona, had collaborated with him on the stained glass windows of the monastery of Santa Chiara (Naples), the cathedral of Vicenza, of the Della Valentina funeral chapel in the cemetery of Sacile (Pordenone), of the church of the nuns of the Holy Family in Castelletto di Brenzone (Verona) and many others. The artist only had time to paint two episodes from the New Testament, in the left-hand window: the Crucifixion (on the six central panels), visible on site, and Jesus walking on the water. The fidelity with which Albano Poli - strengthened by a long and close collaboration with the Master, of whom he has kept the sketches and all the preparatory drawings to this day - has created this work is a sure guarantee that the creation of Pino Casarini, after forty years, it has been returned to us intact, with the use of the artisan techniques he loved so much. The two windows, each made up of about a hundred glass panels, make up a veritable Biblia pauperum, a "Bible of the poor" displayed in images. The one on the right, which overall presents the profile of the two Tables of the Law, is dedicated to the Old Testament, of which it illustrates the main episodes, consecrated by the Christian iconographic tradition: from bottom to top and from left to right, The Creation of Eve, Original Sin and The Expulsion from Eden, Noah's Ark; Abraham and the Three Angels, The Sacrifice of Isaac; the Exodus or Passover, with Moses saved from the waters, Moses receiving the tables of the Law (in the central part), the burning bush, the last night in Egypt and the Passover supper; above, David and the angels. Other spaces are filled by the figures of the four major Prophets. The window on the left, characterized overall by the profile of the cross, illustrates the following scenes inspired by the New Testament: always from bottom to top and from left to right, the Sermon on the Mount flanked by a scene from the Apocalypse and one from the Last Judgment; The Miraculous Catch, The Wedding at Cana and Jesus Walking on the Water; Last dinner; foot washing; in the horizontal arm of the cross, scenes from the Passion: Jesus' prayer in Gethsemane, the large central Crucifixion (to which corresponds, in the other window, the scene of Moses receiving the tables of the Law), The scourging, a scene from the Life in Nazareth, The Annunciation and Mary's visit to Elizabeth; above, The Supper at Emmaus. The remaining spaces are filled by the figures and symbols of the four Evangelists, corresponding to the prophets on the other side. The general conception of the stained glass windows is vigorous and fascinating also from a theological point of view. Indeed, as can be seen, they illustrate all the main foundations of our faith. The New Testament, on the left, is the continuation and fulfillment of the Old and its promises. The Shema, i.e. the commandments or "words of life" of the Law (the Torah), engraved on stone tablets (which appear in the general profile and in the central episode of the right-hand window) are realized in the body of Christ himself through his glorious cross (general profile and central episode of the left window). What in the history of the Jewish people happens "in figuration" - as Saint Paul says - with Jesus Christ is accomplished "in reality". On the horizontal arm of the cross, with the central episodes of the Redemption - which constitute the Christian Easter -, the same section of the window on the right corresponds with the main scenes of the Exodus, that is, of the Jewish Passover. The episode of Abraham and the three angels at the oak of Mamre corresponds to the Last Supper, in which the Christian tradition has seen the Trinity overshadowed, whose presence is full in the Eucharistic celebration (think of the famous icon of the Trinity by Rublev). The scenes of the "origins", with the creation and fall of man - at the bottom of the window on the right - correspond on the other side to the scenes of the "last times" and the restoration of God's original design, with man new of the Sermon on the Mount and the Final Judgment. Finally, the four evangelists correspond to the four prophets. the same section of the right-hand window corresponds with the main scenes of the Exodus, i.e. of the Jewish Passover. The episode of Abraham and the three angels at the oak of Mamre corresponds to the Last Supper, in which the Christian tradition has seen the Trinity overshadowed, whose presence is full in the Eucharistic celebration (think of the famous icon of the Trinity by Rublev). The scenes of the "origins", with the creation and fall of man - at the bottom of the window on the right - correspond on the other side to the scenes of the "last times" and the restoration of God's original design, with man new of the Sermon on the Mount and the Final Judgment. Finally, the four evangelists correspond to the four prophets. the same section of the right-hand window corresponds with the main scenes of the Exodus, i.e. of the Jewish Passover. The episode of Abraham and the three angels at the oak of Mamre corresponds to the Last Supper, in which the Christian tradition has seen the Trinity overshadowed, whose presence is full in the Eucharistic celebration (think of the famous icon of the Trinity by Rublev). The scenes of the "origins", with the creation and fall of man - at the bottom of the window on the right - correspond on the other side to the scenes of the "last times" and the restoration of God's original design, with man new of the Sermon on the Mount and the Final Judgment. Finally, the four evangelists correspond to the four prophets. The episode of Abraham and the three angels at the oak of Mamre corresponds to the Last Supper, in which the Christian tradition has seen the Trinity overshadowed, whose presence is full in the Eucharistic celebration (think of the famous icon of the Trinity by Rublev). The scenes of the "origins", with the creation and fall of man - at the bottom of the window on the right - correspond on the other side to the scenes of the "last times" and the restoration of God's original design, with man new of the Sermon on the Mount and the Final Judgment. Finally, the four evangelists correspond to the four prophets. The episode of Abraham and the three angels at the oak of Mamre corresponds to the Last Supper, in which the Christian tradition has seen the Trinity overshadowed, whose presence is full in the Eucharistic celebration (think of the famous icon of the Trinity by Rublev). The scenes of the "origins", with the creation and fall of man - at the bottom of the window on the right - correspond on the other side to the scenes of the "last times" and the restoration of God's original design, with man new of the Sermon on the Mount and the Final Judgment. Finally, the four evangelists correspond to the four prophets. with the creation and fall of man - below in the window on the right -, on the other side correspond the scenes of the "last times" and the restoration of God's original design, with the new man of the Sermon on the Mount and the Final judgement. Finally, the four evangelists correspond to the four prophets. with the creation and fall of man - below in the window on the right -, on the other side correspond the scenes of the "last times" and the restoration of God's original design, with the new man of the Sermon on the Mount and the Final judgement. Finally, the four evangelists correspond to the four prophets.