Sicily is almost a nation in itself, and Sacred Art and liturgical beauty have always flourished in that island, in times of Christian freedom. Much of the liturgical beauty of vestments has been preserved in Sicily and elsewhere in Italy since the invention of the 1969 New Mass, and it is still used.
So it was astonishing to hear Francis mocking both Sicilians and their vestments, as well as their grandparents in a meeting with Sicilian bishops and priests today:
More lace, but where are we? Sixty years after the Council! A little updating also in liturgical art, liturgical fashion! Yes, sometimes bringing some grandmother's lace goes, but sometimes. It's to pay homage to grandma, isn't it? [source]
