"Eparchy of Lungro 2026 Missionary Vigil – Byzantine Faith in Southern Italy" by Carlo Coppola
On March 8, 2026, the Eparchy of Lungro will hold its Diocesan Missionary Prayer Vigil in San Costantino Albanese (Potenza, Basilicata) — a landmark spiritual event that this year carries special significance due to its ecclesiastical setting. The Arbëreshë village belongs to the Byzantine Catholic Diocese of the Italo-Albanians of continental Italy, giving the event a powerful dimension of communion between different traditions within the Catholic Church, united in a shared evangelizing mission.
It is precisely Byzantine spirituality — deeply rooted in prayer, liturgical chant, and communal life — that lends the vigil its intense symbolic richness. Praying for the missions in this context means recognizing the Church as a communion of peoples and rites, none excluded. The event is part of the broader pastoral journey of the Eparchy of Lungro, led by a figure of extraordinary charisma and spiritual depth: Bishop H.E. Donato Oliverio. A refined theologian and pastor of hieratic presence, he embodies the unique vocation of the Eparchy — keeping the flame of Byzantine tradition alive within the Latin diaspora, resisting both the temptation of identity-based closure and that of cultural assimilation. He is a precious gem in the Italian ecclesial landscape, capable of uniting East and West not as opposing realities but as complementary expressions of a single faith.
Behind this moment of shared prayer lies tireless pastoral work. A central figure in its organization is Papàs Giampiero Vaccaro, parish priest of the local community of San Costantino Albanese, who — together with his parishioners — has devoted himself to every organizational and spiritual aspect of the event. Deeply rooted in the Byzantine tradition yet fully responsive to contemporary pastoral needs, Papàs Vaccaro also serves as parish administrator of the Parish of Saint John Chrysostom in Bari — a key outpost of Eastern spirituality in the heart of Apulia's capital city — alongside Papàs Antonio Calisi, vice-parish priest of the same parish. His ministry thus bridges the Arbëreshë mountain village and the urban center, uniting geographically distant yet spiritually kindred realities in a single pastoral mission, demonstrating how Byzantine tradition can be a living and fruitful presence even in the contemporary urban world.
The afternoon programme will include biblical readings, meditations, missionary testimonies, and moments of silent prayer, inviting the faithful to reflect on the meaning of mission today — not only journeying to distant lands, but living the Gospel in everyday life through hospitality and concrete solidarity. Ample space will be dedicated to prayer for peace, as well as to the Sacrament of Confession, with dozens of priests available to receive penitents.
San Costantino Albanese proves to be a deeply fitting and symbolic location for this gathering: a community where a faith born from the encounter between East and West has found a permanent home, where cultural identity and universal openness have coexisted harmoniously for centuries. Here, mission takes on a concrete and recognizable face — safeguarding one's own tradition in order to offer it as a gift to others, transforming historical memory into dialogue and fraternity.
The March 8 Prayer Vigil stands as an open invitation to all the faithful of the Eparchy and the surrounding region: a time of recollection and communion in which prayer becomes a shared responsibility toward the world, and a living witness to a Church that never ceases to journey forward.
By Carlo Coppola
