Pope Francis made a brief trip to southern Italy on Friday to commemorate the 25th death anniversary of a popular Italian bishop known for his pastoral zeal and works of peace The Pope flew to the towns of Alessano and Molfetta associated with Bishop Tonino (Antonio) Bello of Molfetta-Ruvo-Giovinazzo-Terlizzi whose cause for beatification was opened in 2007 The Pope left from Rome's Ciampino Airport to the Galatina military airport from where he boarded a helicopter to Alessano the town where Bishop Tonino was born and later buried Pope Francis visited the tomb of the bishop and met some of his relatives Pope Francis flew north to the port town of Molfetta He celebrated Mass in the cathedral and then headed back to Rome After attending school in his hometown from 1940 to 1945 he entered the seminary in Ugento and then at the Pius XI Regional Pontifical Seminary in Molfetta He then proceeded to Bologna for higher studies and completed his theology course at the Benedict XV Ponticial Seminary After his priestly ordination Bello was appointed vice-rector at the seminary of Ugento He later studied at Rome’s Pontifical Lateran University from where he obtained a doctoral degree He then served as an assistant to the Catholic Action organization rector of the seminary and administrator of the Sacred Heart parish of Ugento and parish priest in Tricase Pope John Paul II appointed him Bishop of Molfetta and Ruvo Bishop Bello renounced all signs of power and tried to help the most disadvantaged He ensured Caritas groups were established in every parish founded a community to help people with addictions and Venezuela where he visited immigrants from his diocese Bishop Bello is greatly known for his work with Pax Christi He was appointed the president of Pax Christi Italy in 1985 An outspoken critic of the Gulf War and other conflicts he led a group from Italy across the Adriatic to Sarajevo where he headed a peace march Bishop Bello envisaged the Church in “apron” evoking the image Christ at the Last Supper who tied a towel (apron) around his waist and got down on his knees to wash the feet of his disciples in a symbolic gesture of humble loving service Bishop Bello preferred to take a bus and often used a bicycle since he felt cars added to air pollution He died of stomach cancer in Molfetta on 20 April 1993 Pope Francis visited Alessano and Molfetta exactly on the 25th anniversary of the death of Bishop Tonino Bello Thank you for reading our article. 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Just click here “Pizzica pizzica” translates to “bitten bitten.” I am driving to a folk concert with two Italian friends situated a few kilometers from the point where the Adriatic and Ionian seas meet at the tip of the peninsula The place seems scrubbed bare of inhabitants the central piazza is packed with thousands of people The crowd stretches from the town’s ornate neo-Gothic church to the clock tower everyone staring up at the brightly lit stage the region’s ubiquitous pale stone; pizzica singer Enza Pagliara a local photographer who has brought my friend Giovanna and me here sidling past elderly signoras in cardigans and pumps men with slick black hair and neat red pants and young women in diaphanous skirts and eggplant-tinted curls climbs the step of a fountain to get a better view and the song seems as ancient as the limestone buildings of Alessano When I tell Bevilacqua I can’t understand a word he explains the lyrics are in Salentino and Griko dialects spoken here that date back to the Greeks who colonized the area long before the Romans arrived plaintive tunes for gathering wheat under a beating sun; come-hither courtship dialogues with back-and-forth verses between voice and instruments; and pieces with polyphonic overtones that sound like Balkan ballads Pagliara invites her elderly aunts and uncle on stage to sing a few traditional lullabies and other songs from their childhoods and Bevilacqua whispers that this is a pizzica pizzica which translates to “bitten bitten.” The tambourine Pagliara is dancing so fast that her long black hair swishes wildly and her feet barely touch the stage The earth vibrates with thousands of feet pounding the cobblestones in the square I give in to the rhythm and start twirling with the music The crowd in the square breaks into small circles as people stomp and pair off for impromptu courtship dances The pace is dizzying; no one can resist the song’s contagious energy the antithesis of pizzica’s seemingly tortured beginnings while paying homage to the customs of the past represents a reawakening and reclaiming of the region’s culture turning something morose into a joyous event many in the crowd continue playing tambourines and we wander amid the stalls that sell CDs and t-shirts emblazoned with big black spiders The people around us keep dancing until we straggle back to the car at two in the morning It feels like the Italian countryside foreigners visited forty years ago and oppressively hot; during the cooler evenings and people slink out as if from under rocks I’ve come because I’m fascinated with Salento’s myth of the tarantula in which women throughout history have claimed they’d been bitten by a tarantula perhaps in order to escape their otherwise dreary lives I’d seen images of these women in a dramatic film and heard it mentioned among my Italian friends I wanted to understand more about this culture—and its music Neighbors would whisper that she’d been bitten by the tarantula and would circle around her playing instruments The spider’s poison would cause her to convulse and become manic The afflicted tarantata would eventually rise up and dance in circles stomping on the ground to the music (particularly the tambourine) and the symptoms allegedly returned every year in June around the feast day of San Paolo (Saint Paul) Salento is better known for its craggy coves and Baroque architecture than for its tarantate who—like the poisonous spiders that supposedly caused their frenzied state—have mostly died off I noticed signs of those spiders everywhere Faded posters of tarantulas were tacked up on village walls advertising traditional pizzica music concerts Happy-looking spiders beckoned from highway billboards How had Salento transformed the tarantula—a grim symbol from its past—into a cheerful icon celebrating the region and its music a handful of anthropologists and ethnomusicologists started recording pizzica music for instance—famous for discovering Muddy Waters and other American roots musicians—amassed a collection of traditional Salentino folk songs recorded music and oral histories in the early 1970s and has written several books on tarantismo and he invites me over to his house in a town near Melpignano His living room walls are covered with relics from his long career in anthropology: masks and black-and-white photos of Salento’s past is energetic and impassioned when talking about his region’s deepest traditions and we chat for hours about the history of the tarantula rites how they came to Salento (probably from the Greek Dionysian cult) and the varieties of stories he has collected from tarantate over the years which he says by the 1980s was mostly forgotten or considered hillbilly music “We had to revisit what identifies us as Salentini,” he says most associations with Salento had been negative a land from which people emigrated because there was no work a land with no partisan heroes—a land that had been silenced and forgotten.” But when ethnomusicologists began rediscovering the songs and musicians began playing them Salentini realized that pizzica music and dance are what makes their territory unique upbeat in sound—began to take on a positive cast and this affected the way Salentini saw everything about their culture we started seeing the territory in a truly different way a small underground pizzica scene started to percolate a 1995 neorealist film that included interviews and sessions with traditional Salentine musicians The film recounts the story of one tarantata a young contadina (peasant woman) who was “bitten” by a tarantula and fell ill after her lover was killed and she was promised to his murderer “By freeing the music from associations with the spider we’ve turned something negative into something profoundly positive,” Chiriatti tells me A classic Salentine building in the town of Muro Leccese; the harbor at Otranto On the day before the final concert of the week in Melpignano I find my way to the ruins of the sixteenth century Carmine church and musicians are preparing for a dress rehearsal pressing a sweating bottle of water to her face to stay cool in the hundred-degree heat I sit down next to her and ask about pizzica’s tarantula-related origins who has studied tarantismo and pizzica for more than twenty years says that most people think the tarantulas were a myth the anthropologist Ernesto De Martino set out with an interdisciplinary team of physicians and psychologists to study thirty-five women afflicted with tarantismo His work was published in English as The Land of Remorse (and “remorse” in Italian has a double meaning: re-bitten) most Salentini believe that the tarantula bite was an excuse a way for people in the villages to express rage “It was a territory that was extremely poor,” Pagliara says the padrone even had the diritto della prima notte,” meaning the local landowner had the right to sleep with a bride first on her wedding night “For women”—she makes a strangling gesture around her throat—“it was untenable and the tarantula was the way to let loose of everything Pagliara grew up singing the songs with her aunts because “I knew there was something precious in this music.” She went to early pizzica gatherings in the ’90s and learned to dance and play the tambourine at first they were ashamed and wanted to sing songs from the radio instead “Their songs have a real sense of this territory from the older days but also at small pizzerias and at parties “I don’t know how to sing pop or anything else,” she says “Our oldest music was therapy for the tarantata I can’t help it; I feel like I have the living soul of the music inside me At the final concert of the Notte della Taranta I hear similar sentiments from other Salentini I talk to who dances to pizzica almost nightly with small gatherings of musicians We sit in a café outside a gas station in a small village near Otranto fit retiree of fifty-six who worked as a jail guard was one of the rare men bitten by the tarantula The family took him to the church of Saints Peter and Paul in the village of Galatina to join the other tarantate in the region who likewise became agitated on that day and went there to be calmed his father had to dance whenever he heard a tambourine Now de Giuseppe says he’s inherited that urge “A little bit of the spider’s venom has been transmitted to my blood,” he says “I don’t fall to the ground and have convulsions but I need to dance when I hear the tambourine.” De Giuseppe’s belief in the spider venom is unshakeable “They wore skirts—that made it easy to get bitten,” he explains “Do you think that saying you were bitten by a spider might have been a way for people who were extremely stressato to let off some steam?” I ask no one else in Italy went pazzo (crazy) after being bitten by a spider.” “There are no more spiders because of pesticides The lure of pizzica draws in festivalgoers from all over Italy and the world On the final night of the Notte della Taranta Melpignano is transformed into a huge fairground with food vendors and remote video screens for dancers who want more space peddling hundreds of little tambourines to tourists the acoustic bass player in Pagliara’s band Spedicato tells me he became interested in pizzica while studying ethnomusicology in Lecce I ask him why tens of thousands of people are gathering outside right now and he says there’s a huge interest in traditional music now among his generation; these days it’s cool and people will make a circle and play pizzica and dance,” he says People love the music because it’s so rhythmic and hypnotizing “There are moments when the tambourine and the voice send people into a trance It’s a way of getting outside yourself.” So there’s a fascination with the music’s history “Pizzica is popular partly because of the magic associated with it,” he says the music as an antidote—we’ve got a collective infatuation.” and soon the crowd swells to more than 100,000 people all swaying together in front of the moonlit monastery ruins Special guest stars—world musicians from other countries—join the Orchestra Notte della Taranta in compulsively danceable collaborations along with several of her friends who’ve traveled all the way from Bologna in the north for the concert the audience speeds up as the hour gets later and later When a man taps me on the shoulder and tells me I’ve been “bitten by the tarantula,” I check my watch and notice I’ve been at the concert for seven hours straight The concert finishes around four in the morning and it feels as though it just got started Giovanna and I walk the streets of Melpignano as the wine sellers pack up and the crowds disperse to the far corners of Italy dancers twirl and stomp on imaginary spiders a few curling up on the stone steps of San Giorgio church the sky grows light and the pale limestone glows a faint pink Laura Fraser is a San Francisco–based journalist and author whose articles have been featured in the New York Times, Mother Jones, and Vogue. She is the author of the memoir All Over the Map >> Next: How Sicily’s Last UNESCO-Recognized Puppeteers Are Fighting to Save Their Tradition AFAR participates in affiliate marketing programs which means we may earn a commission if you purchase an item featured on our site.© 2025 AFAR LLC By Sr Bernadette Mary Reis and Robin Gomes numbering about 20,000 welcomed Pope Francis singing “Oh The Pope began his discourse defining Fr Tonino as someone who knew that understanding the poor was “true wealth” Fr Tonino imitated Jesus by drawing near to the poor to the extent of “dispossessing himself,” Pope Francis said In order to promote peace on a global level He was convinced that “the best way to prevent violence and every type of war is to take care of those in need and promoting justice” where people work” upholding the dignity of the worker over profit Quoting Fr Tonino Pope Francis summed up his reasoning the word of peace will go forth and make its way through the streets thirsting for justice.” Fr Tonino had an “allergy for titles and honors” Fr Tonino stripped himself of every “sign of power in order to make way for the power of the sign….” The Pope then invited the faithful to “find the strength” to be divested of everything that inhibits putting on aprons which Fr Tonino called “the only priestly garb recorded in the Gospel” Pope Francis reminded the faithful of Alessano that “from your land God raised up a person: a gift and prophet for our time He encouraged the faithful not to be content with the nostalgia of his memory but rather may we be swayed by his young Christian ardor and hear his urgent invitation to live the Gospel without diminishing any of it.”  After attending school in his hometown from 1940 to 1945 he entered the seminary in Ugento and then at the Pius XI Regional Pontifical Seminary in Molfetta.  After his priestly ordination Bello was appointed vice-rector at the seminary of Ugento.  He later studied at Rome’s Pontifical Lateran University from where he obtained a doctoral degree.  He then served as an assistant to the Catholic Action organization rector of the seminary and administrator of the Sacred Heart parish of Ugento and parish priest in Tricase.  Meanwhile he was collaborating with Caritas Pope John Paul II appointed him Bishop of Molfetta and Ruvo.   Bishop Bello renounced all signs of power and tried to help the most disadvantaged.    He ensured Caritas groups were established in every parish His pastoral zeal took him to Australia Argentina and Venezuela where he visited immigrants from his diocese.  Bishop Bello is greatly known for his work with Pax Christi an international Catholic peace movement.  He was appointed the president of Pax Christi Italy in 1985  An outspoken critic of the Gulf War and other conflicts he even rallied against the NATO.  In December 1992 he led a group from Italy across the Adriatic to Sarajevo where he headed a peace march Bishop Bello envisaged the Church in “apron” evoking the image Christ at the Last Supper who tied a towel (apron)  around his waist got down on his knees to wash the feet of his disciples in a symbolic gesture of humble loving service Bishop Bello preferred to take a bus and often used a bicycle since he felt cars added to air pollution.  He often went out to the streets bars and restaurants to interact with people.  He died of stomach cancer in Molfetta on 20 April 1993.  He was 58 The pope’s wish for “a poor Church for the poor” would have made Tonino happy.The municipalities of Alessano and Molfetta His visit will be a pilgrimage in the footsteps of Bishop Tonino Bello meant to offer a model of what it means to be a bishop — and a follower of Jesus — in today’s world deep in the heel of the boot that is the Italian peninsula It was in this village that Antonio Bello was born in 1935 a city of more than 60,000 people on the Adriatic coast is the place where Bello was made a bishop in 1982 and where he served until his death in 1993 Throughout his priesthood and his time as a bishop Bello modeled his life on the core values of the Gospels opening his door and his arms to anyone in need told Italy’s La Stampa newspaper he sees similarities between Pope Francis and Bishop Bello — known to the faithful as “Don Tonino.” “The pope’s words ‘how I would like a poor church for the poor’ would have made Tonino happy,” Bishop Cornacchia said Bishop Bello’s preferential option for the poor took shape in Alessano a marshall with the Carabinieri (Italian military police) His widowed mother worked hard to make ends meet while raising Tonino and his siblings He saw first hand the struggles of the working poor in post-war Italy As a young man Bello entered the seminary at Ugento He gathered regularly with childhood friends to play soccer After his ordination in 1957 he was assigned to help form future priests in the same seminary where he once studied and later assigned to be a pastor in various parishes in small town Puglia In each of his posts his attention was focused on the disadvantaged and he put his energy into working for justice and peace When he was made bishop of the Diocese of Molfetta-Ruvo-Giovinazzo-Terlizzi On one of his first days in the diocese he took part — incognito — in a peace march organized by the student movement Catholic Action Only at the end of the march did he reveal that he was the new bishop immediately taken with their new supporter forged a strong friendship with Bishop Bello now a prominent Italian politician and campaigner for LGBTQ rights told RAI Television that Bishop Bello was “an apparition a word that touched people’s hearts … he had the flavour of truth a scandalous truth that broke taboos and conventions and was not confined by liturgical formality.” Several days later he set the whole city talking when he chose to wear a wooden cross and use a wooden crozier at his installation Mass He not only opened the doors of his own home to the poor and disadvantaged who came to him looking for help but instructed the parishes of the diocese to do the same He made sure every parish in Molfetta had a Caritas group (Caritas is the Church’s humanitarian aid agency) and he established a drug rehabilitation centre in the diocese All of his actions were informed by a deep prayer life The students involved in Catholic Action recall Bishop Bello telling them it was important to be “contempl-active.” He spent long hours in front of the tabernacle and wrote deep theological reflections on topics related to the struggles of modern life This combination of practical action and deep prayer caught the attention of the Italian branch of Pax Christi — an international Catholic peace movement In 1985 he was chosen as the head of Pax Christi Italia telling soldiers to “do what your conscience tells you.” He led a peace delegation to Sarajevo in December of 1992 while the city was still caught in the middle of war Bishop Bello was diagnosed with cancer in 1992 but continued going about his usual activities he led the peace march to Sarajevo in between rounds of chemotherapy The cause for Bishop Bello’s beatification was officially opened in 2007 Articles like these are sponsored free for every Catholic through the support of generous readers just like you Please make a tax-deductible donation today Help us continue to bring the Gospel to people everywhere through uplifting Catholic news MORE INFORMATION VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The church needs courageous men and women like Italian Bishop Antonio Bello of Molfetta who imitated Jesus’ closeness to the poor and the downtrodden Visiting the birthplace of the beloved bishop affectionately known as “Don Tonino,” the pope said Bishop Bello’s life and ministry “remind us to not theorize closeness to the poor but to be close to them as Jesus did.” “Don Tonino did not do this because it was convenient or because he was seeking approval but because he was moved by the Lord’s example we find the strength to rid ourselves of the garments that get in the way so that we can dress ourselves in service which is the only priestly vestment recorded in the Gospel,’” he said April 20 Pope Francis arrived in the morning by helicopter in the town of Alessano located in the southern Italian province of Lecce the pope carried a bouquet of white lilies and yellow sunflowers and laid them in front of the bishop’s tomb Surrounded by palm trees and an olive tree adorned with rosaries and multicolored peace flags Pope Francis spent nearly five minutes praying silently He also prayed in front of the tomb of the bishop’s parents Don Tonino spent his first years of priestly ministry as vice rector of a seminary while collaborating with the Catholic charitable organization After he was named bishop of Molfetta in 1982 by St Bishop Bello not only served the poor of his diocese but also worked to promote peace often rallying against wars in the Persian Gulf and Bosnia-Herzegovina He served as president of Pax Christi Italy The Vatican approved the opening of Bishop Bello’s sainthood cause in 2007 Pope Francis rode in a small white golf cart and greeted thousands of men Standing in front of an image of the bishop the pope said Bishop Bello did not remain “with his hands in his pockets” but worked tirelessly to promote peace “with the conviction that the best way to prevent violence and every kind of war meant taking care of the needy and promoting justice.” the shops where communion is handcrafted,” he said he had a “healthy allergy toward titles and honors” and instead chose to free himself “from the signs of power to make way for the power of signs.” let us allow ourselves to be transported by his youthful Christian zeal let us listen to his urgent invitation to live the Gospel without concession It is a strong invitation given to each one of us Pope Francis boarded a helicopter to Molfetta where he celebrated an outdoor Mass in the diocese Bishop Bello served for nearly 10 years Pope Francis recalled the bishop’s devotion to the Eucharist and the word of God Christians who are nourished by the Eucharist “also share the Lord’s mentality and are called to “no longer live for themselves but for others.” “dreamed of a Church hungry for Jesus and intolerant of all worldliness a Church that ‘knows how to perceive the body of Christ in the uncomfortable tabernacles of misery ‘Tuff Nut’ Bianco Pet Nat: The ‘Tuff Nut’ Pet Nat is a minimal-intervention citrus beast that’s lush and full The fruit-forward fizz dances on your tongue just like the sherbet you spent all your pocket money on as a kid The roots of Australia’s only planting of Bianco d’Alessano run deep through the Riverland’s red soil at Sherwood Estate hand-made wine that’s full of heart and Australian spirit ‘Hertz’ by Amyl and the Sniffers: Like popping Mentos in a Coke bottle It’s got all the components for an Aussie punk great: blistering guitar solos an unrelenting beat and an edge of raw authenticity that can only come from being unapologetically yourself it’s a cathartic release of energy that’s irresistibly repeatable “Take me to the beach / Take me to the country / Climb in the backseat / If you love me...” So demands frontwoman Amy Taylor spitting out a desire to swap the city for stretches of bitumen and sunburnt soil a country that’s simple and self-sufficient Amyl and the Sniffers and Delinquente Wine have soared to the top of their industries in recent years and they’re there for the same reason With their middle-finger attitude towards the norm both have bottled a no-fuck-around attitude that pulls you in for more ultimately extending an invitation for you to run barefoot through the outback soil How does Coopers Best Extra Stout pair with ‘Child In Time’ By Deep Purple How does 78 Degrees Australian Whiskey pair with ‘Red’ By Daniel Merriweather How does Flagship Distillery’s The Fringe Gin Fizzpaired pair with ‘Music Sounds Better With You’ By Stardust How does Balter Cerveza pair with ‘48 Roses’ by Balter How does Vale Brewing’s Vale Crisp Lager pair with ‘The Things I Love in You’ by Cold Chisel How does Pieslingfreak No.12 pair with ‘Freak’ by Silverchair Brightside Eurotrash pair with ‘Girls & Boys’ by Blur Crafted by French-born winemaker Jean Baptiste Courdesses the juice of this eponymous label is unearthed from the Adelaide Hills hamlet Basket Range… How does Doozy Peach Half & Half pair with ‘A Little Less Conversation’ by JXL vs Elvis Presley How does Prancing Pony’s The Zeppelin Neipa pair with Led Zeppelin’s ‘Kashmir’ How does El Toro Tequila Mango Margarita pair with Tame Impala’s ‘Is It True’ How does Delinquente Wine Co’s 2023 ‘Tuff Nutt’ Bianco Pet Nat pair with Amyl and the Sniffers ‘Hertz’ How does Polka Lilly Pilly De-Alcsparkling pair with ‘Mr How does Unico Zelo’s Pollen Gewürztraminer pair with Silk Sonic’s soulful hit “Smokin Out The Window’ Sign up with your email address to receive news and updates about everything happening in Adelaide E: info@thenote.com.auP: (08) 8379 9522PO Box 21 Glen OsmondSouth Australia 5064 NewsExclusives GigsSinglesAlbumsNew ReleasesVideos Perfect PairOur Faves Lucky DipLook At This Photograph Gig GuideVenue Directory AboutTerms and Conditions Website by Edwards Design VISIT: Pope Francis looks on during his pastoral visit in Alessano, southern Italy, April 20. Reuters VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis will play host to a second group of victims of priestly sexual abuse in Chile, the Vatican said on Tuesday, days after the country’s bishops all offered to resign over the scandal. Earlier this month, the pope met three men who were victims of a priest accused of abusing boys in Santiago in the 1970s and 1980s. The second group includes priests who also fell foul of the same disgraced churchman, the Vatican said. The five men, accompanied by two other priests who have helped them and two lay people, will see the pope from June 1 to 3. “With these new meetings ... Pope Francis wants to show how close he is to the abused priests, help them with their pain and hear their precious views on how to improve current preventative measures and to struggle against abuses in the church,” the Vatican said. The Chilean scandal revolves around Father Fernando Karadima, who was found guilty in a Vatican investigation in 2011 of abusing boys. He never faced civilian justice because of a statute of limitations. Now 87 and living in a nursing home, he has always denied any wrongdoing. During a visit to Chile this year, Pope Francis appeared to doubt victims who had accused a bishop of witnessing the abuse but doing nothing to stop it. Shortly afterward, in a dramatic U-turn, the pope sent the Vatican’s most experienced investigator of sexual abuse to look into the allegations. On the strength of his report, the pope called Chile’s bishops to the Vatican last week, where he accused them of “grave negligence” in investigating allegations of abuse, and said evidence of sex crimes had been destroyed. Poll results are published every Monday in The Guam Daily Post. Saturday’s Mad Collab Block Party in Hagåtña brought together more than 70 local businesses and artists in celebration with hundreds of attendees. It was all about the wonders of Artificial Intelligence in the palm of your hand.  All of the latest features in Samsung's Galaxy AI were showcased at a GTA-sponsored event Thursday. University of Guam students and alumni presented original research at the 19th annual International Conference on Business, Economics & Information Technology (ICBEIT), hosted by the University of Guam School of Business and Public Administration in Mactan Newtown, Cebu, Philippines from… Your browser is out of date and potentially vulnerable to security risks.We recommend switching to one of the following browsers: SaveSave this storySave1/9Native Share2/9Native ShareWhippet boardshorts, £120 3/9Native ShareHampton Alessano triangle bikini, £220 5/9Native ShareIpanema Huntington triangle bikini, £215 7/9Native ShareWhippet wicker-print shorts, £150