Once the bells have been released, the bells ring in San Dorligo

(by Francesco De Filippo) (ANSA) – TRIESTE, APR 28 – Because of the excessively long and frequent ringing of the bell tower of the historic church of Sant’ Ulderico/Sveti Urh, the diocese of Trieste was first involved in the stony areas of Dolina , then the judiciary and finally even Brussels. But then, after years of disputes, controversies and bitter controversies, an agreement was reached between the two communities, Slovenian and Italian. So today, from 12 January 2022 the bells have once again resumed their activity in the valley at 5pm. Dolina is a small fraction of the small municipality of San Dorligo della Valle, close to the border with Slovenia where in 2022 a controversy broke out due to the prolonged and frequent ringing of the bells. The parish priest, Klemen Zalar, according to those who were annoyed by the ringing of the bells, had set the bell clock at 6am, 12pm and 8pm with at least 70 strikes of the clapper, in addition to one chime every quarter of an hour, from 7am to 9pm at this rate: two shots in the first quarter of an hour, 4 in the half hour and 6 in the third quarter. An unsustainable situation for those who lived nearby, and he started a petition. Someone even took the trouble to measure the sound with a sound level meter, noting the frequent exceeding of the legal limit thresholds. Once the judiciary was involved in the case, the bells were seized, a measure that many judged to be “disproportionate” towards “religious freedom and cultural tradition in the area”. Even the eight Slovenian parliamentarians in Brussels deposited a question on the tables of the EU administration. Finally, common sense has taken over and, as reported by the newspaper Il Piccolo, thanks to the Regulation prepared for all the churches of the Diocese by Bishop Enrico Trevisi and the diplomatic arts of Don Ettore Malnati, theologian known in Friuli Venezia Giulia, today in In the context of a solemn religious ceremony the chimes resumed. And today the clock in the bell tower has also started to rotate again, so the hours can also be marked. “With the new statute of the Diocese and after having accepted the request of the Prosecutor’s Office which asked to postpone the first bell from 7 to 8, we managed to unblock the situation – commented Don Malnati – It is a gesture of pacification, there is no they are neither losers nor winners in this matter, with dialogue we have found a compromise: to give Dolina peace of mind and satisfy everyone’s needs”. (HANDLE).