 |
| San Michele Arcangelo di Caltanissetta |
Legend says that while plague swept through the rest of Europe in 1625, Caltanissetta managed to stay healthy thanks to it's relative isolation and carefully guarded walls. One day however, a priest watching from a window noticed a lone figure approaching the city gates. Either this window was very close to the gate or the priest had exceptional eyesight, because the priest immediately noticed that the newcomer was ridden with plague.
Panicked at the thought of what would happen if the disease reached the gates, the priest threw himself into fervent prayer. In answer, Michael the Archangel swooped down from heaven and killed the stranger on the spot.
Despite the harshness of this story, Saint Michael has since been considered the city's God sent protector. I suppose that it was pretty much a mercy killing since the stranger was doomed to die a painful death anyway, and countless Nisseni might have died otherwise.
