When he arrived in Subiaco the population was al ready Christian.The perish church was dedicated to S.T.Lawrence and the pries was Florantus. S.T Benedict was bord in Norcia,in the year 480,to wealthy parents,he had a sister called SCHOLASTICA. When he had finished his studies at Norcia,he went to Rode to do higher studies,but he was horrified by the Romen corruption and he fled to AFFILE. Soon after he wanted more solitude so set aut in the direction of Nero’s Villa. He het a monk,Romanus who showed him a cave below the monastery of Adeodatus. S.T. Benedict spent Three year in the cave and the monk Romanus,with a long rape,let down the food allowance.
There were moments of discouragement and temptation, indeed one day, an impure temptation was so violent and he naked into a bush of thorns and netles.
He was invited to be the superior of a monastery nearby, but the monks found him too severe and they tried to poison him.
St. Benedict owelt on the bank of Nero’s lakes for twenty years in St. Clement’s Monastery, where he began to write his rulf at the end of Benedict’s time at Subiaco there was 12 small monasteries all situated in the Anio’s valley.
In the 529 he set out with a few disciples for Cassino, where he lived for 18 years.
On the top of the mountain, in the abandoned Citadel, he built a Monastery where he completed the final redaction of his Rule.
He died on March 21st in the year 547.

THE UPPER CHURCH
The Church is divided in two parts: the first is a XIVtb century adaptatio of another building.
In this section all of the frescoos are from the school of Siena.
The left wall is divided in to three sections. In the lower is the “Kiss of Judas”, “The Flight of the Apostles”, and the “Scourging”; in the midle her is “Jesus Condemned to Death” and “His Journey to Calvary”.
In the highest section, under the vault, is the “Descent of the Holy Spirit”.
The wall on the right is also divided into three parts.
In the first lower parts an “Angel, Seated on the empty Sepulchire”, announces Jesus Resurrection, then there is “Jesus, Triumphant Entry into Jerusalem” on Palm Sunday.
In the middle section “Christ appears to Mary Magdalene”.
Them There is the “Scene of St. Thomas who touches wounds of Christ”. Above it is the “Ascension” of our Lord.
On the vault are depicted the “Four Great Doctors of the Latin Church”. On the lower part of the arch above the “Crucifixion” are depicted the “Prophets”.
The arch is decorated with “Angels weeping”.
In the second section of the Upper Church, in the frescoo on the front wall “St. Benedict” is the picted in pontificial garments, sitting on a throne.
On the right wall there are the “Attemp on the life of Saint Benedict by the monks of Vicovaro” and the “Cure of the Slothful Monk”.   Carocci Giulia 1F

 

THE UPPER  CHURCH
The steps in front of the high altar in the upper church , lead down to the lower church. To the right of the stairs there is the painting of Pope Innocent II with a white tiara. The Pope is holding up a parchment that contains the text of the papal bull with which he presented revenues to the Sacro Speco in 1203. This was paintede by the artist Conxolus. We find the name of Conxolus also near a very fine fresco of   “Our Lady with child ” between two angels.He did all the frescoes :in the lower church is a painter of the secon half of the XIII th century and belongs to that popular roman school which had its greatest presentative in Pietro Cavallini.
On the left wall Conxolus has painted the first events in the life of St. Benedict:the ” Miracle of Affile”, the “Melting with St. Benedict”, THE ” Melting with St. Romanus” and the withdrawal into the Cave. On the left of the stairways there is the ” Funeral of St. Benedict”, a fresco in a bad state of repair. Farther down is the “Miracle of the Goth” and the “Miracle of St. Placid.
On both sides of the window there are two frescoes , both depicting “Florentius attempt to poison St. Benedict”.
In the lower church there is the entrance to the very heart of the Sanctuary, “The Sacred Cave” ( Sacro Speco), where the young Benedict lived for three years.

 

THE MIRACLE OF THE GOTH
In this painting, where the lake is represented very simply by a large surface with wavy edges and fishes, on the left we can see the Goth who hands St. Benedict the wooden handle without its metal pruning hook which has fallen into the lake; on the right there is St. Benedict who dips in the water the handle, which is miraculously rejoined to the hook. This scene is represented with much feeling and expression.

Pacifici Iris 1F