The ribbon cutting
It was inaugurated on Monday 20 January 2025, from Cardinal of Naples Don Mimmo Battaglia Bartimaeus Housea true Charity Center in the heart of Naples, a sign work, which comes to life at the beginning of this Jubilee year, designed for the most vulnerable people in the city. When we talk about poverty we think almost exclusively of the lack of material resources. In the collective imagination, in fact, the absence of food or clothing represents the only need felt by those who live in conditions of deprivation; however, there are equally important needs, such as the possibility of living with a family, of having significant social relationships and the possibility of accessing medical care.
To also provide answers to these needs, the Church of Naples has created, through its ETS branch as part of the works of the diocesan Caritas and with the support of the Con il Sud Foundation together with other private bodies in the area, a Bartimaeus House which stands in the complex of the Basilica of San Pietro ad Aram along Corso Umberto I in Naplesin what is configured as the first Sign Work of the Jubilee of Hope.
Here they will find support and welcome for various fragilities. It will be the new headquarters of the diocesan listening center and will have a residential community for young adults in fragile conditions who need to reclaim their autonomy, an emergency reception place for women and small families, a psychological support centre, a legal advice for migrants, an important solidarity clinic.
The inauguration was attended by, among others, Erri De Luca who held a lectio entitled “Jubilee. Freedom, restitution and redemption” and the master Lello Esposito which, through the Quadreria Sociale project, gave life and color to the rooms of the Charity Center thanks to the works created together with the inmates of the Giuseppe Salvia Penitentiary Institute of Poggioreale.
«Casa Bartimeo, the Charity Center, is a place that arises from the beating heart of our diocesan community» says the Cardinal of Naples Don Mimmo Battaglia “And by the desire of our Church to respond concretely to the cry of those who are fragile, alone, or wounded by life. This house is a tangible sign of hope and welcome, a space where love takes shape through service, listening and care. Casa Bartimeo wants to be much more than a refuge: it wants to restore dignity, accompany those seeking a new path, and embody the Gospel in the encounter with others. It is a challenge for all of us, an invitation to build authentic relationships and to never take our eyes off those in difficulty. I thank all those who, with their commitment and generosity, made it possible for this dream to become a living sign. Together we can continue to transform charity into a living and concrete presence, capable of illuminating even the darkest moments of our people, of our Naples.”
In the Charity center of Bartimaeus House a women’s reception/emergency community is active aimed at ironing out the difficulties experienced by women and families with children in fragile socioeconomic and/or housing emergency situations. The structure and services aim to offer them temporary reception and support activities with the aim of re-establishing family balance, improving living conditions and promoting social integration with a view to autonomy
A second male reception is then planneda service aimed at providing support and assistance to men who go through complex situations of economic hardship generated by separation or particular conditions of fragility. This community has the task of rebuilding the lives of these families with dignity and autonomy
“In this house,” he explains sister Marisa PitrellaCaritas director of Naples «will be involved in many projects from today: a residential community for men wounded by life and for small families who need to be welcomed in an emergency, a clinic to offer care and hospitality to the poor who ask for it, a new headquarters for the Diocesan Listening Center of our Caritas, a support service psychological for those who need to find strength and hope, a legal consultancy service to defend the rights of those who often have no voice. Every step we take together is a step towards a more just, more supportive, more humane society. Casa Bartimeo is a seed that we plant together today, with the hope that it will grow strong and luxuriant, bearing fruits of life, redemption and love. May this place become a light that shines in the hearts of those who enter, a beacon of hope for those who live in the darkness of loneliness and suffering.”
To expand the offer of the Charity centre, which will welcome people thanks to the reports of local services and the network of Caritas points spread across the entire territory of the Archdiocese, including healthcare services, with medical clinics and listening and orientation desks. The solidarity clinic is a healthcare facility that offers medical services and healthcare to people in situations of economic and social difficulty. It operates thanks to the voluntary contribution of doctors, nurses and volunteers who give their time and skills free of charge or at very low costs. The main objective is to guarantee access to basic and specialist medical care for those who otherwise would not be able to afford it. With psychological and legal support, psychologists and social workers work with guests through the creation of support groups and training activities aimed at improving the complexity of the condition in which they find themselves. Initial help and legal guidance, however, is useful to inform and direct guests in protecting their rights, to orient themselves through the bureaucratic procedures and deal with the problems that arise in reintegration into the world of work.
«The birth of the House» he underlines Gennaro Pagano, responsible for Bartimaeus House «it’s not just a project, it’s an invitation to walk together. Because it is only by joining forces, creating authentic networks of solidarity and putting the common good at the centre, that we can build a more just and inclusive city, a city that truly belongs to everyone, but above all to the smallest and the poor, to the marginal and to the suffering. Our commitment today is to continue working together, sharing visions and responsibilities, because no one can face the challenges of fragility alone. This house reminds us that, only by walking side by side, we can transform difficulties into opportunities and restore dignity and hope to those who thought they had lost them.”
The birth of Casa Bartimeo was made possible thanks to the support of the Con il Sud Foundation, the Grimaldi Foundation, the San Gennaro Foundation, the Neapolitan Province of the Friars Minor and the Archconfraternity of the Pilgrims. «Bartimaeus House» highlights Stefano Consiglio, president of the Con il Sud Foundation «it is an example of how efforts can be joined together to create a positive impact in communities. It is a shared path in which vision and hope find concreteness, around paths of social inclusion and social and cultural regeneration. The Foundation promotes participatory local development paths throughout Southern Italy by creating meaningful alliances with communities, in the belief that listening and trust are two fundamental elements for promoting change. The commitment in Naples as in many other southern areas – concludes Consiglio – goes in this direction, sharing important choices with local authorities, the Church, the business world and naturally third sector organisations”.
To promote a sense of community and encourage a path of rebirth and awareness, Bartimaeus House it is a place not only of welcome, but also and above all of beauty, thanks to the intervention of maestro Lello Esposito and his project of Social Picture Gallerywhich transformed the entire Charity Center into a symbolic place of beauty, redemption and sharing. The Quadreria Sociale will thus become a meeting point between art, spirituality and human values, with the aim of using creativity as a tool for dialogue and social regeneration. The first exhibition is dedicated to the fruit of the artistic laboratory Creative escapesconducted by Maestro Esposito with the inmates of the Poggioreal prisonAnd within the same penal institution. Through this path, art has become a means to free personal expression, encouraging a profound comparison with oneself and with one’s own experience. The works created by the inmates, under the guidance of the Master, reflect stories of suffering and hope, demonstrating how artistic language can break down barriers, give voice to those on the margins and build a bridge towards society.
The Picture Gallery is a dynamic project, open to the involvement of different social realities, and will become a permanent laboratory for initiatives that promote the culture of art, solidarity and change. Through the collaboration with Maestro Esposito, Casa Bartimeo aims to be a symbol of redemption, a place where the wounds of the past, also thanks to art, can find healing in beauty and dialogue. With Quadreria Sociale, Maestro Lello Esposito and the ETS Branch of the Archdiocese of Naples show how art can take on a higher mission, transforming itself into a powerful vehicle of human and social transformation.
