The Easter tradition of Sorrento and the procession of the Dead Christ

Every year during Easter processions crossing the roads of the towns of the Sorrento Peninsula are about 20, from Meta to Massa Lubrense. To oversee its organization are the numerous confraternities, reproposing the Christian message for centuries. The best known and most solemn procession is undoubtedly the Dead Christ one, organized by the Venerable Confraternity of Death of Sorrento.

The Procession of the Dead Christ, which takes place during Holy Week in Sorrento, is a major Easter event in Italy. The Confraternity of Death was born in 1586 from the aggregation between the Confraternity of San Catello and the Confraternity of Death and Prayer of Rome, and, after the Battenti di Sant'Antonino, is the oldest confraternity of Sorrento.

Initially, the procession was very simple and was limited to a cross placed between the spear and the sponge, a wooden statue of the Dead Christ. Only the members, in charge of bringing the streetlights, attended it. At the end of the march, they all came into the Church, the lights went out and they sang the psalm Miserere. Then the brothers scourged their naked chests with ropes and whips.

Over the years, the procession of the Dead Christ has gradually assumed greater importance in the Sorrento area, turning into a moment of meditation and reflection for the entire city, which almost stops during the time of the parade. It's one of the oldest processions in Italy, reason why Sorrento is a famous tourist destination during Easter.

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