San Carlo, Brugherio

San Carlo ("Saint Charles") is a church located in Via Piergiorgio Frassati, in the west of Brugherio and it is part of the pastoral community Epiphany of the Lord.

The surface, characterized by the amplitude of 10 thousand square meters, has allowed the architects to design, in addition to the church, also the parsonage and classrooms for catechism, reserving a discreet space for games and outdoor pools, both indoors.

In 1987 it was rented a room, made available by the municipality of Brugherio, under the arcades of Piazza Togliatti buildings and began to celebrate Mass and to organize some festive gathering events.

[4][5] For the design, the implementation and the financing of the entire work, Don Franco did not want to burden the "Cardinal Montini Plan"[6] about the construction of twenty-five new churches on the territory of the Diocese Ambrosiana, but relied on the generosity of its parishioners.

The constant search for funds gave rise to a series of initiatives including the distribution of envelopes for collection of offers in the occasion of Christmas 1988 bearing the plastic image of the new church and the lottery of 1991 with formalized tickets by Intendenza di finanza.

With the archbishop's decree of February 1, 1993, Father Mario Ferrario was appointed parish priest of Saint Charles Church, which was careful for the first ten years.

[8] From late 1994 to 2011 the parish was assisted by Fr Paolo Grima, Brugherio's native priest who has much cultivated personal relationships by listening to the people, especially the sick and suffering.

[9] The structure is characterized by an altar in the middle, towards which the architectural lines, and for the upward momentum, enhanced by beautiful wooden beams of the roof.

The presbytery is wide and suitably raised from the classroom floor by four steps The curved walls that surround it, creating a continuity from the altar to the nave, between celebrant and congregation.

This symbolically takes up the salvation-historical time path from the Creation to the coming of Christ, with the intent of making the entrance-altar journey as a passage from darkness to light.

At the base appears a continuous line, without interruption, in dark colors and dotted with tiny bright flashes (few golden mosaic tiles).

So we read the names of Adam, Noah, Shem, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah and then David, Solomon and finally Mary and Joseph.

With the altar, "stone" representing Christ, the perspective of the history of salvation design, shown on the floor, switches from horizontal to vertical dimension.

On the front there is a tree with 12 branches: it represent the birth of the Spirit sent by Christ and distributes to the twelve Apostles and through them, to all men the legacy of the sky.

[4] The baptismal font, such as the flooring, was designed by the painter Antonio Teruzzi that defines it in this way: "The octagonal shape symbolizes the resurrection and evokes eternal life".

The descendants steps that surround it are a sign of penance, because who wants to be baptized must come down to the source as Jesus went down to the Jordan River.

San Carlo is depicted half-length in traditional cardinal's robes, in an attitude of prayer in front of a small crucifix.

The painter describes his work in this way: "It was realized on a board in 135x210 cm polished stucco with ancient technique, revisited with the use of acrylic pigments.

All the furnishings of the chapel were donated by parishioners from the crucifix, in living memory, it has always belonged to the inhabitants of Moia farm.

During a visit to a sick person he was noticed by the parish priest Franco Perlatti, who was amazed at its beauty and preciousness.

Don Franco remembered this gift when he began to celebrate mass in the local rented in Piazza Togliatti and handed it back to the community.

[11] On the door of the tabernacle there is an icon that represents Christ, painted with natural colors (egg and special mixtures) by an artist of Kalambaka (Greece).

The floor of Saint Charles's Church