It’s not often you hear of a church, monastery or abbey rising from the dead these days of viciously judgmental and often uncaring “Christianity,” but our trip to the Gargano promontory led us to one of the most compelling spiritual sites we’ve visited on our trip. The abbey, shown below, has a very long history that came to an abrupt end; in 1991 volunteers not only helped restore the buildings, but have helped to start a whole new spiritual community on the site.
Today the abbey is nearly self sufficient. Little lambs run wild over the landscape and the this time of year the gardens are being whipped into shape by volunteers and residents.
The Abbey is both Latin and Byzantine. In summer you can take iconography classes. But there’s a catch.
Like many places in off-the-beaten-track Puglia, you won’t find information in English on site. In fact, you won’t find much on the internet either. But friends of the Wandering Italy Facebook Page say that this means a visit—or attending a workshop—becomes more of a genuine Italian experience when its experienced in the mother tongue.
Of course, I suspect many of them speak a little—or a lot—of Italian.
Nevertheless, most folks want those real life, one hundred percent genuine Italian experiences, so dang it why not try to muster up the courage to go to the abbey and see what you can do, check out what experience might move you. I’ve hacked out a little guide with history, pictures, and a map showing the location of the Abbey. It’s the only map I know of where the Abbey is actually shown in the right place, so beware of imitations.
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See: The Abbey of Pulsano Guide
Go in peace. Heaven knows the world needs some right now.
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