The 115th celebration of the MSS Feast, held on Sunday August 18 at Holy Savior Church will show yet again the very close connection of Norristown to the city of Sciacca in Sicily. The MSS Feast, which is highlighted by the traditional street procession through the east end of Norristown, with 25 people carrying a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary, continues a vow made by the ancestors of the Norristown descendants of Sciacca, whereby the people would promise to honor the Virgin Mary because of her intercession in the ending of the Black Plague in Sicily over 500 years ago.

In the original procession in Sciacca, which is always held on August 15th, the statue is stopped at the exact location where the miracle took place. Tradition has it that at a certain square (or piazza) in Sciacca, a plume of white smoke smelling like incense miraculously began to pour out from the statue, and permeated with its scent through the streets. As this happened, the people in Sciacca realized at that moment that the plague had ended. The people were cured, and rejoicing in the streets began.