In this video I am in Monreale a hillside town about a half hour outside of the Sicilian capital, Palermo. It may take 45 minutes if you rely on public transport. This video will tell the story of the Palermo Cathedral versus the Monreale Cathedral through a story of a sibling rivalry.
You can see that I am in a square, or piazza in Italian. There is a beautiful fountain in the background.
This is a fable about two brothers competing to make the most beautiful church. The story continues below.
Quick Italian Lesson
Cattedrale is the word in Italian for cathedral.
Fontana in Italian means fountain.
The two cathedrals discussed in this video:
Cattedrale di Palermo
Cattedrale di Monreale
Both cathedrals are considered UNESCO World Heritage sites and were constructed in the late 1100s.
The Cathedral of Palermo versus the Cathedral of Monreale
From the outside of the Mondreale Cathedral there is nothing special about it per se.
There is a story of 2 brothers, a fairy tale. In reality it was a competition between the archbishop and bishop at the time. They wanted to compete to see who could make the most beautiful church or cathedral at that time. They were wanting to win bragging rights for their city.
The cathedral in Monreale is famous for its inside beauty. The inside is adorned with gold mosaics, Byzantine style frescos and marble, very ornate and beautiful. There is a picture of Jesus Christ over the altar welcoming everyone as they enter the cathedral.
On the other hand, the cathedral in Palermo is renowned for its outside beauty. The architecture is stunning displaying different styles from Arab, Norman, Spanish, etc. It took many centuries to acquire the look it has today.
The inside of the Palermo Cathedral is beautiful as well but considered average for this story.
Sicilian Sibling Rivalry
The brother that built the church in Monreale, the one with the inside beauty, proclaimed that his church was complete. Thus, the brother from Palermo, who built the church with the outside beauty came to view what his brother had accomplished in Monreale.
Upon arriving and seeing the church in Monreale, the Palermo brother was very smug and overconfident. He saw the plain-looking cathedral from outside and he thought that he would win the competition. Upon arriving inside the cathedral in Monreale and saw the beautifully ornate gold mosaics, Byzantine frescos and marble, he had a heart attack and died.
He died of shame and embarrassment!
The surviving brother from Monreale was of course upset. Oh my God, what have I done? He pondered in a very melancholy manner. He was curious about the church in Palermo, so he had to rush to go see it.
After traveling the road from Monreale to Palermo, he comes upon the beautifully adorned cathedral of Palermo, with its Arab and Norman architectural features and he has a heart attack upon seeing it from the outside. He does not even get a chance to view the inside.
He dies of shame and embarrassment as well.
Sicilian Lesson on Jealousy and Envy
This is a fictional story, but it does show how jealousy and envy can be dangerous to our health. In today’s Facebook culture, we all look at everyone else’s posts and are jealous of their vacations, cars, houses, trophy wives, etc. And it’s not a story unique to Sicily.
The grass is not always greener on the other side.
We all have gifts and abilities that are unique to each of us. There are blessings and gifts that are bestowed upon each of us. We all have our own “cup of tea” so to speak. Each of us has a purpose and a place that makes up the fabric of our existence. We all need each other to live harmoniously in this world that God created. It’s not a perfect world but He made it that way on purpose.
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