# Church of San Pasquale Baylon and Confraternity of Sant'Anna **At a glance:** The church of San Pasquale Baylon, home of the Confraternity of Sant'Anna, is a small 18th-century church on Via Don Luigi Orione, in central Casamicciola. Founded as a family chapel, after 1883 it took in the Suffragio confraternity while it awaited a new home. It holds Stations of the Cross donated in 1844 and an 18th-century wooden statue. ## Useful information - **Type:** Churches, faith and traditions - **Address:** Via Don Luigi Orione, 80074 Casamicciola Terme NA - **Period:** 18th century - **Coordinates:** 40.746720, 13.913290 - **Where:** Via Don Luigi Orione (Corso Vittorio Emanuele area) - **Area:** Central Casamicciola, between Piazza Bagni and the harbour - **Period:** 18th century, founded as a family chapel - **Confraternity:** Seat of the Congrega di Sant'Anna - **Don't miss:** Stations of the Cross by Luigi Marta (donated 1844); wooden statue of St Paschal (18th century) ## A family chapel that became a neighbourhood church Among Casamicciola's smaller churches, San Pasquale Baylon is one of the most intimate. Sources describe it as a family chapel: according to the tradition recorded by Achille della Regione in his book _Ischia Sacra_, it was commissioned in the 18th century by Francesco Antonio Corbera, while other local sources link it to the Mancusi family, heirs of the Corbera. Today it is the seat of the Congrega di Sant'Anna (Confraternity of St Anne), whose statue of the saint it keeps. San Pasquale Baylon (St Paschal Baylon), a 16th-century Spanish Franciscan friar, is a much-loved saint in southern Italy; in Casamicciola popular devotion invokes him in particular as a protector of women. ## History The year 1883 changed the life of this church too. The lay charitable confraternity of Santa Maria del Suffragio, which had its seat in the Purgatorio church in the Maio, found a welcome at San Pasquale thanks to the priest Vincenzo Piro. This bond links the little church to the history of the [Purgatorio church](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/history/church-santa-maria-del-suffragio-purgatorio/), later rebuilt on Via D'Aloisio and also known as the [Addolorata church](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/history/church-of-the-addolorata/). Inside, a plaque dated May 1911 commemorates Giosafatte and Mariantonia Morgera: a sign of local families' devotion to this place of worship. ## What to see inside - The Stations of the Cross along the walls, the work of the painter Luigi Marta, donated to the church in 1844 by Countess Giulia Samoyloff. - The polychrome wooden statue of St Paschal in a niche, carved in the 18th century by a provincial artist. - The shell-shaped holy water stoup, decorated with an amphora in giallo antico marble, and the ciborium on the high altar. - The statue of St Anne, the confraternity's patron. - In the sacristy, a rectangular marble washbasin attributed to a Campanian marble-worker of the second half of the 18th century and a statue of St Teresa from the same period. ## Where it is and how to get there The church is on Via Don Luigi Orione, in the area between Corso Vittorio Emanuele and the hill behind it, a few hundred metres from Piazza Bagni and the harbour. Sources give the address sometimes as Via Don Luigi Orione, sometimes as Corso Vittorio Emanuele: the two streets adjoin each other. You can reach it on foot by walking up from the seafront. It is not open every day: to visit, it is best to contact the parish of Santa Maria Maddalena or the Diocese of Ischia. ### What to see nearby Close by is the [church of San Giuseppe](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/history/church-of-san-giuseppe/), linked to the care home founded by the niece of parish priest Morgera. A little further uphill stands the [basilica of Santa Maria Maddalena](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/history/basilica-sacred-heart-santa-maria-maddalena/), Casamicciola's mother church and the starting point for a tour of the town's churches. ## Frequently asked questions ### Who was St Paschal Baylon? He was a Spanish Franciscan friar who lived in the 16th century and is widely venerated in southern Italy. In Casamicciola popular devotion invokes him as a protector of women. ### What is the Confraternity of Sant'Anna? It is the lay confraternity based at the church, where it keeps the statue of St Anne. Confraternities have historically played an important part in Casamicciola's religious life. ### What is the link with the Purgatorio church? After 1883 the church of San Pasquale took in the charitable confraternity of Santa Maria del Suffragio, while its Purgatorio church in the Maio awaited rebuilding. The move came about thanks to the priest Vincenzo Piro. ### Is the church always open? No opening hours are published. To arrange a visit, it is advisable to contact the parish of Santa Maria Maddalena or the Diocese of Ischia. ## Also worth seeing - [Church of Santa Maria del Suffragio (Purgatorio)](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/history/church-santa-maria-del-suffragio-purgatorio/) - [Church of the Addolorata](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/history/church-of-the-addolorata/) - [Church of San Giuseppe](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/history/church-of-san-giuseppe/) - [Basilica of the Sacro Cuore di Gesù and Santa Maria Maddalena Penitente](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/history/basilica-sacred-heart-santa-maria-maddalena/) - [History of Casamicciola](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/history/) ## Sources and further reading - [Ischia.org – Sant'Anna – San Pasquale Baylón, Casamicciola Terme](https://ischia.org/chiesa/san-pasquale-casamicciola) - [Isoladischia.com – Chiesa di San Pasquale Baylon (da A. della Regione, Ischia Sacra)](https://www.isoladischia.com/cosa-fare/chiese-e-musei/chiese/chiese-casamicciola-terme/chiesa-di-san-pasquale-baylon/) - [Wikipedia – Chiesa di Sant'Antonio al Mortito (famiglie Corbera e Mancusi)](https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiesa_di_Sant%27Antonio_al_Mortito)