Solemnity of the Dedication of the Duomo

In the Ambrosian liturgy, the third Sunday of October marks the anniversary of the dedication (consecration) of the Cathedral.

The third Sunday of October is the Sunday on which the history of Milan Cathedral records some of its significant milestones: the reconsecration in 453, by Archbishop Saint Eusebius, of the ancient main church devastated by the Huns; the dedication in 1577, by Archbishop St. Charles Borromeo, of the current Cathedral; the dedication in 1986, during the episcopate of Archbishop Carlo Maria Martini, of the new altar of the Cathedral, following the adaptation of the presbytery made necessary by the application of the liturgical and pastoral guidelines of the Second Vatican Council.

The Duomo l is the Mother Church of all Ambrosian faithful, where the Bishop’s Chair is located, from which he presides over liturgical celebrations and exercises his ministry as pastor and teacher. For every Ambrosian, the Cathedral is not only one of the most representative images of the city of Milan, but also a clear sign of unity in faith and in its own unique liturgical tradition.

The celebration revives and updates the traditional Rite of Transmigratio, which had been maintained until the structural restoration of the Cathedral began in the 1970s. In the past, it was a functional passage from one basilica to another in the ancient episcopal complex; with the construction of the current Cathedral, it became a symbolic rite of passage from the outside to the inside on the Sunday of the Dedication. Now it is revived as an invitation to all Ambrosian faithful to cross the threshold of the Mother Church, recognising themselves as living stones in Christ, who is the cornerstone of the house of God.
The Archbishop, together with the Chapter of Canons and a representation of the faithful, pauses in the churchyard of the Cathedral in front of the closed portal. Here he begins the celebration by praying – in dialogue with the faithful – Psalm 118 (“Open to me the gates of righteousness, I will enter and give thanks to the Lord”). The portal is opened and the procession enters the Cathedral to the singing of the Sallenda “Enter through its gates giving thanks to the Father”.
Also significant is the presence of various diocesan organisations: the Confraternities, the Orders of Malta and the Santo Sepolcro, the members of the Pastoral Councils of the Parishes and Pastoral Communities, the representatives of the Deanery Synodal Assemblies and the workers of the Veneranda Fabbrica.