Francicanava pointed to a spot in the rock, he was right: the Church of the Sacred Heart in Barriera del Bosco.

Before the houses and traffic of the neighborhood arrived, there was mainly rock here: the dark expanses of the ancient lava flows of Mount Etna that shaped the territory of Barriera del Bosco.

On that hard ground, over time, a community grew larger. And it is right here that I took shape: I am the Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

My construction is linked to a figure that many in the neighborhood still remember: Francicanava.

He was neither an engineer nor an architect, but a man of faith, close to the Salesians. During the excavation work, he pointed out a precise spot where, according to him, the rock beneath the ground was more stable. The workers initially looked at him with skepticism. Then they checked: beneath the soil, a solid base of ancient lava rock truly emerged, perfect for supporting the weight of the church. Since then, some, with a smile, continue to say that without Francicanava, I would not be so sturdy.

My structure is essential. The floor plan is in the shape of a Latin cross and the central nave is wide, designed to accommodate a growing community. The belfry rises above the houses of the neighborhood and marks its profile. During construction, they say that a small iron cross was found among the stones: it was embedded at the base of the belfry as a sign of protection. Above me, the dome lets in light that, in the afternoon hours, slowly descends toward the altar.

But my story does not stop within the walls. Next to me lives the courtyard of the Salesian Oratory.

Here, generations of boys have grown up: impromptu games, meetings, neighborhood parties. It is the beautiful form of an intuition born far from here. On December 8, 1841, Don Giovanni Bosco met a boy named Bartolomeo Garelli in Turin and began with him what would become the first oratory.

From that meeting, an educational model was born that continues even today: Oratory, Church, School. Three words that here become three letters, OCS. I remain here, at the center of Barriera del Bosco. My stones come from an ancient ground, but the stories that pass through these walls every day continue to change.

FuoriClasse – IC Italo Calvino