What other factors fuel the growth of sicily as a major trading center?

Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean. It is one of the autonomous regions of Italy. The capital of Sicily is Palermo and the provinces are: Agrigento, Caltanissetta, Catania, Enna, Messina, Palermo, Ragusa, Syracuse and Trapani. The nearest region of Sicily is Calabria, 3 km east of the Strait of Messina.

For many centuries of its history, Sicily has been a rich region, disputed by many nations, mainly because of its important position on the Mediterranean trade routes. Cicero described Syracuse as "the largest and most beautiful city in all of ancient Greece." Archimedes, one of the greatest mathematicians of the ancient world, was a native Sicilian, born in the city of Syracuse.

the catholic church withhold people's access to the bible during the middle ages.

people could go to church and listen to the teachings, but it was absolutely forbidden to own and/or read the books of both the old and new testaments. it was also prohibited to translate the books (which where originally in biblical hebrew) to any other language.

this was done so the church could remain in control of what their teachings were and to enhance their importance and power, while also being able to judge people's actions through information that was unavailable for the general public.