Chiesa Nostra is a documentary on the complex and ambiguous relationship between the mafia and the church from the post-war period to the present day. A journey of lights and shadows which, through confidential documents and unpublished images, tells how mafia and religious power have sometimes overlapped, sometimes clashed. The ambiguities, the liaisons with occult powers, the commitment of bishops, and the "frontier" priests fighting against the mafia. The testimony through Pippo Delbono's interpretation of the alleged religiousness of the mafiosi strongly expressed by the bosses, and the decisive but often late response of a small number of churchmen. Pope Francis's turning point, and the excommunication of the mafia!

Director's notes

I grew up immersed in the Sicilian reality, for years I did not understand how the church, faced with such violent and despicable events, did not take a unanimous position of firm and decisive condemnation. I was shocked to read about priests and prelates accused of liaising with well-known members of "cosa nostra" but at the same time I knew and appreciated many "frontier" priests and their work in poor villages deeply entangled in mafia culture. I have seen the most conservative institution change in just a few years, thanks to the work of the many "father Puglisi". I listened to and appreciated the harsh words of Pope Francis, and his excommunication of the mafiosi. And today, I wanted to and I had to tell all this!