Rotary Club Morimondo Abbey

[Article by Silvia Lodi Pasini] MORIMONDO – Discovering the excellence of Morimondo Abbey with an equally excellent guide: Sandrina Bandera. In fact, it was she, former superintendent of the Historical, Artistic and Ethnoanthropological Heritage of Milan and its province as well as director of the Pinacoteca di Brera and university professor at the most prestigious universities in Lombardy, who last Wednesday led the members of the Rotary club "Morimondo Abbazia" to discover the architectural characteristics that make a unique the Cistercian monument after which their club is named.  And no one better than Sandrina Bandera, who has lived in Morimondo by choice for some years, could carry out the task of illustrating the Abbey with competence and passion, also explaining to the numerous members present at the guided tour the historical and cultural context of which the monument is an expression. It is the Cistercian culture and the Christian faith that imbue Morimondo Abbey, which presents a singular vertical development that makes it unique and, inside, preserves the oldest wall representation in the world. Aspects that Dr. Bandera illustrated in great detail, also focusing on the figure of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, founder of the Cistercian order and promoter of that "active" monasticism of which the Morimondo Abbey, with all its history and culture, is a typical expression. Aspects also highlighted by Don Mauro Loi at the opening of the convivial moment at the S. Bernardo restaurant, headquarters of the rotary club, which followed the visit. The parish priest illustrated the commitment supported by the Abbatia Sancte Mariae de Morimundo Foundation, the managing body of the monastery, to carry out its institutional tasks, raising awareness among those present of the importance of financial support for the various initiatives useful for preserving and enhancing the inestimable cultural value of the monument, and of the rich catalog of documents contained in its scriptorium. President Giuseppe Resnati's special guest was the incoming governor of District 2050, PierMarco Romagnoli, who warmly complimented him on the beautiful initiative. For the occasion, the club honored Professor Bandera with a scarf reproducing the Morimondo Abbey.

Silvia Lodi Pasini