The feast of the Black Saint
The cult of San Calogero,
the Calcedonian hermit from Calcedonia, arrived in the central Nebrodi
town of Demenna from Agrigento. Demenna was a Byzantine town with
a Basilian monastery dedicated to San Filippo di Fragalà or Demenna.
The cult reached Fitalia at the beginning of the 11th Century.
Heir to Fitalia, San Salvatore di Fitalia has
proudly conserved the cult for a thousand years,
keeping the most ancient traditions alive and
welcoming thousands of pilgrims who arrive
from all over the Mediterranean under the burning
August sun.
But how can one describe such an intense emotion, a moment of such great popular
involvement, the quiet that alternates with
waves of noise, crowds of pilgrims and the
faithful that never have time to rest or relax,
constantly called to action by the regular
cries of "let's all shout!", to which everyone
responds, "Thank you San Calogero"? This is
a moment of goose bumps and spine-tingling
excitement that makes the exhaustion of the
long journey seep from the body.
From 20th July to 21st August, and especially on 19th, 20th and 21st of August,
the town holds a festival in honour of the
black miracle-maker. For a month, the normal
tranquillity vanishes as hundreds of pilgrims arrive
bare-footed, wearing pungent smelling clothes
and with red, sunburnt faces. Bands play continually,
stallholders shout out to advertise
their wares, and an atmosphere of joyful harmony
invades every last street. Praying is ceaseless
and invocations of miracles are hurled
up heavenwards, wax and precious metal offerings
to the saint abound and then the processions
begin as the faithful follow the statue of
the saint on its tour, evoking the peregrinations
that the saint made during his life. Thousands
and thousands of pilgrims from all over
the Province line the streets hoping for a
miracle. The whole event is very moving and
full of mysticism as prayers are shouted, hankies
used both to wipe away the "sweat" of the saint and the tears of the
faithful. Every face is infused with profound
religious sentiment.
San Salvatore di Fitalia is proud of its "privilege"
of hosting the festival that best reflects
the culture of the Nebrodi area and which,
after so many centuries, has never diminished in its
intensity or changed in its form.
The August festival of San Calogero (19th,
20th and 21st) is "a teeming, colourful crowd,
painted by an invisible but prodigious hand,
an immense vision of celebration that remains
forever in the eyes and in the heart".
20th July - The month of San Calogero begins
After a special Mass, the traditional "Salva di San Caloriu" (a large fireworks
display) starts off the month of celebrations
in honour of the saint. On this day the "travels",
or daily pilgrimages to the Sanctuary of
San Calogero, begin.
The second Sunday of August has become the traditional day for a pilgrimage
on horseback
19th August - The eve of the feast
The town begins its transformation from a quiet place to a centre of hospitality
for pilgrims, tourists and stallholders.
On the morning of 19th August, salvos are fired
to announce the great annual religious event of the Nebrodi.
After a Mass in the sanctuary at 11.00am, the
first procession, in honour of baby Jesus, begins.
In the afternoon, at 6.30pm, there is another
important event, as the mayors of the towns making up the diocese of
Patti set off on their pilgrimage and the holy relic, conserved in
its silver reliquary dating back to 1724, is the focal point of a procession.
The atmosphere is very solemn, a reflection of the great devotion that
the religious and civic authorities have towards the Saint.
The festival really gets going during the night
with a pilgrimage that lasts from dusk to dawn.
Crowds of people arrive on foot from all over
the province, walking up the hill on the "Strada
del Pellegrino" (the pilgrims' road). A slow,
emotional procession continues until the morning
of 20th August.
20th August - The Feast of S. Calogero
It is the day of the festival. Bands play, the pilgrims are excited and vocal
and crackers and fireworks accompany hourly Masses... leading up to
the crowded 11.00am Mass in the Sanctuary with its traditional “panegyric”.
Eyes are glued to the wooden altar where, up
on high, the statue of San Calogero sits.
Faith and devotion are etched on the faces
of those present and expressed vocally with
cries of "Let's all shout... Thank you San
Calogero" when the statue, through a complex
system of ropes and pulleys, begins to move
from its niche. Three times the Saint vanishes
and reappears representing the moments of his
"miracles". The band begins to play its anthem
and then, to great applause, the shouts of
"Let's all shout... Thank you San Calogero"
continue.
The event is very mystical and moving. The
statue of San Calogero is taken amidst the noisy crowd across the church
to its platform, a Baroque work of art dating back to the late 1600s.
The procession begins as the Saint is carried
on his platform through the main streets of the town, followed by thousands
of his devotees. At 8.00pm, the procession of the Saint ends in the
Basilica of San Salvatore.
The evening continues with the concert of a
famous musician who attracts a crowd of young people. The natural conclusion
to this special day is a spectacular fireworks display
21st August - The town's Festa di S. Calogero
During the day celebrations are relatively quiet and in the evening at 7.00pm
the faithful gather together once more at the Basilica of San Salvatore
for Mass. Immediately after, at about 8.00pm, another procession starts
wending its way through the town's streets.
It is never certain how long this procession
will take but San Calogero makes his rounds,
or "travels", so that the town's population
can receive his grace.
The crowd follows him at every turn, never
tiring thanks to the force of their faith,
expressed once more in shouts of "Thank you
San Calogero".
At the end, the exhausted crowds re-accompany
the Saint to his church and, once more singing the anthem and repeating
their shouts of gratitude, watch as the statue is lifted back into
his place above the altar.
Once again this evening ends with a concert
of light music and fireworks.
The importance of this festival for the community
is enormous.
The whole population of the Commune of San
Salvatore di Fitalia pulls together and opens
its door so that the thousands of pilgrims who arrive in the town to
stay for a few days
have everything they need: public toilets,
extra local police, ambulance and first aid service and a great welcome.
The festival organisation
committee works all hours to ensure that everything
runs smoothly.
San Calogero is not only a summer saint, however, and throughout the year, the
people of San Salvatore di Fitalia have other
religious appointments with their patron, though these are on rather
a smaller scale:
5th February - Penitential Procession
On the morning of 5th February each year, a procession leads from the Sanctuary
to the Mother church. There is no noise and the clergy don't wear their
religious robes. The ornamental platform used to carry the statue of
the saint, is placed in the church and left until the following Sunday.
(Oral tradition has it that this procession
is a commemoration of one of the saint's miracles that took place during
a penitential procession aimed at liberating the town from a series
of violent storms that had tormented it for days).
Sunday after 5th February: Solemn procession of San Calogero
After Mass at 9.30am in the Sanctuary, a solemn procession takes the reliquary
of San Calogero to the Basilica of San Salvatore. It is placed in a
small wrought iron cage. Once Mass has been celebrated, the procession
moves through the streets to the sound of bands, the bangs of crackers
and shouts of the faithful. The final destination is the Sanctuary
of San Calogero, where the saint is placed once more in his rightful
place above the altar.
The last Friday of March: Penitential Procession of San Calogero
After Mass at around 10.00am this procession follows the same route as that of
5th February. Everything is done with the greatest
austerity, as it is still the period of Lent.
Palm Sunday: solemn procession of San Calogero and Sant'Antonio of Padova.
An original procession in which the faithful, with their blessed palm leaves
accompany the statues of their two Patron Saints, San Calogero and
Sant’Antonio of Padova. It is thought that the procession commemorates
the old division of the town dating back to the reorganisation of the
Sicilian church's territories under Norman rule. The town was divided
into two parishes, San Salvatore and Santa Maria Assunta. The first
had San Calogero as its patron, the second San Antonio di Padova. This
past confusion was the cause of antagonism between the different parishes
a long-running dispute as to which saint should be given precedence
during the processions. Everything was resolved in 1831, when the following
order was agreed.
"Ferdinand the Second, King of the Two Sicilies,
Commune del SS. Salvatore on 26th March 1831.
By agreement of the priests of the two parishes
and this Commune, in the Procession of Palm
Sunday this year, 1831, and every other year
to follow, the following has been established...
Palm Sunday Mass will be celebrated at the
same time in the two churches. When this is
finished both congregations will meet in a
small piazza, "Chianu Majazzenu" (today Largo
Addolorata), in the old town centre. It is
here that the procession will begin the saints
will take it in turns to begin the procession".
This is still the case today. After having
passed through the town's main streets and arrived at Piazza San Calogero
the two statues are placed together, a reading from the Bible is made
and then, after a series of firework explosions, the saints are accompanied
back to their respective churches.
18th June - Church festival
This day is liturgically dedicated to San Calogero with a solemn Mass and fireworks.
