Pasqua
It is Pasqua week here in Italy, and my village celebrates it in a big way.
Yesterday, there were processions lasting several hours while men of the local churches carried antique
wooden statues of Christ and Mary from their usual churches (there are 13 in Badolato Superiore dating back
to 1180) up steep streets and hillsides to other larger churches at opposite ends of the village in preparation for
the Pasqua procession on Sunday.
As you know, Pasqua is based on a very old pagan ritual celebrating the rite of Spring that was transformed to
a Christian celebration around 300 AD when the pagan religions were banned, and like so many ancient things
here in Calabria continue to this day. People have lived in this area for a very long time. Since before the
Trojan Wars, and during the time that the Pharos ruled Egypt there have been villages in Calabria.
Today, Pasqua is a religious festival that celebrates the resurrection of Christ. We have three processions in
the village to mark the occasion.. Friday, Saturday and Sunday, members of local churches walk in procession
between churches that date back to the medieval times and perform ceremonies with some of the same liturgy
and chants dating back hundreds of years. Yes, you can still see men dressed in costumes of the middle ages
and hear them singing authentic Gregorian Chant. Today, it is special event even for Italy- so TV News
Services like Rai Uno will be here to broadcast the event across Italian news or use the footage for some
documentary.. Historians will follow the men with microphones to capture the chant before it too is lost to the
modern world.. I’d guess perhaps in another 300 years or so at this rate.. Old customs die hard here..
Special masses are being held here to mark the events of the holy week. Men and women together will walk to
the local churches. The women will enter and fill the churches, while most of the men will take up positions
outside of the church, to congregate amongst themselves, in quiet talk, some smoking cigarettes.. Men here
are a close fraternity..
On Easter Sunday, the village will be overflowing with people from near and far who gather to watch the Pasqua
processione. It will last a good three hours and will reveal to the bystanders the crucifixion, death and
resurrection of Christ as it passes by, like scenes in a movie. At the end, and for the finale, the two statues;
that of Christ (who previously was in repose) and Mary, (who previously was in Black) will be reunited in a
ceremony that can only be described as exciting and dangerous! Young men, some balancing tall flags on their
belts and others carrying the antique wooden statues on huge wooden bases with long sturdy poles resting on
their shoulders weighing hundreds of pounds will advance towards the center of the community walking behind
a three-man drum line from opposite ends of the village in advance of the two statues..
The entire village will crowd to the place where the two statues will meet.. As the two opposing groups
approach, the pace of the drums will increase until they are in a full all-out run, with flags and the litters held high
above so the crowd can see.. In the last frenetic seconds the flags will pass by, waving in a flurry of excitement,
and the statues will dip low for an instant… When they separate, the statues will rise up and Christ will once
again be standing at the side of Mary, both now dressed in white robes and flowers… Music will play, the
crowd will cheer and celebrate the beginning of a new religious season by greeting friends and family in the
streets of the village, until the adrenaline and excitement of the moment pass and they disperse to their homes
for the Pasqua feast..
To feed family and guests, the women of village, will prepare flat pita bread, egg soufflés (frittata) and meals of
ham, goat and lamb in stone hearths using firewood they have gathered from the pruning of the olive groves
and carried in bundles balanced atop their heads to ancient houses that time has passed by. They will serve
antipasto of home cured sliced meats, cheeses and wine that the men of the village make along with
homemade pasta, rolled out on the kitchen table. For many families, it isn’t necessary even to go to a market
as everything will be provided by family members from their own gardens, pens and fields!
On Monday (Pasquetta), the local families will picnic in the parks, piazzas and the sea side.. Yes, it is getting
nice and warm here in Italy.. Pasquetta marks the beginning of the beach season, but only for sunning, walking
and meeting friends.. Swimming begins at the end of April for the German tourists, and mid-May for most
others... but that is another story..
All this tradition exists today because of the homogeneity of culture here. There is no need to ask if you
celebrate Pasqua, Christmas, or any other Catholic feast day. Of course you do!, if not religiously, for sure in a
civil fashion, so people exchange “Buona Pasqua” with friends and strangers alike without reservation and the
worries of offense or attempts to maintain political correctness…
As I am to you…
I wish you well, and hope that you too will enjoy the happiness of this occasion of re-birth with your friends and
families…
Buona Pasqua! e Pasquetta!
Ciao,
Martino
Yesterday, there were processions lasting several hours while men of the local churches carried antique
wooden statues of Christ and Mary from their usual churches (there are 13 in Badolato Superiore dating back
to 1180) up steep streets and hillsides to other larger churches at opposite ends of the village in preparation for
the Pasqua procession on Sunday.
As you know, Pasqua is based on a very old pagan ritual celebrating the rite of Spring that was transformed to
a Christian celebration around 300 AD when the pagan religions were banned, and like so many ancient things
here in Calabria continue to this day. People have lived in this area for a very long time. Since before the
Trojan Wars, and during the time that the Pharos ruled Egypt there have been villages in Calabria.
Today, Pasqua is a religious festival that celebrates the resurrection of Christ. We have three processions in
the village to mark the occasion.. Friday, Saturday and Sunday, members of local churches walk in procession
between churches that date back to the medieval times and perform ceremonies with some of the same liturgy
and chants dating back hundreds of years. Yes, you can still see men dressed in costumes of the middle ages
and hear them singing authentic Gregorian Chant. Today, it is special event even for Italy- so TV News
Services like Rai Uno will be here to broadcast the event across Italian news or use the footage for some
documentary.. Historians will follow the men with microphones to capture the chant before it too is lost to the
modern world.. I’d guess perhaps in another 300 years or so at this rate.. Old customs die hard here..
Special masses are being held here to mark the events of the holy week. Men and women together will walk to
the local churches. The women will enter and fill the churches, while most of the men will take up positions
outside of the church, to congregate amongst themselves, in quiet talk, some smoking cigarettes.. Men here
are a close fraternity..
On Easter Sunday, the village will be overflowing with people from near and far who gather to watch the Pasqua
processione. It will last a good three hours and will reveal to the bystanders the crucifixion, death and
resurrection of Christ as it passes by, like scenes in a movie. At the end, and for the finale, the two statues;
that of Christ (who previously was in repose) and Mary, (who previously was in Black) will be reunited in a
ceremony that can only be described as exciting and dangerous! Young men, some balancing tall flags on their
belts and others carrying the antique wooden statues on huge wooden bases with long sturdy poles resting on
their shoulders weighing hundreds of pounds will advance towards the center of the community walking behind
a three-man drum line from opposite ends of the village in advance of the two statues..
The entire village will crowd to the place where the two statues will meet.. As the two opposing groups
approach, the pace of the drums will increase until they are in a full all-out run, with flags and the litters held high
above so the crowd can see.. In the last frenetic seconds the flags will pass by, waving in a flurry of excitement,
and the statues will dip low for an instant… When they separate, the statues will rise up and Christ will once
again be standing at the side of Mary, both now dressed in white robes and flowers… Music will play, the
crowd will cheer and celebrate the beginning of a new religious season by greeting friends and family in the
streets of the village, until the adrenaline and excitement of the moment pass and they disperse to their homes
for the Pasqua feast..
To feed family and guests, the women of village, will prepare flat pita bread, egg soufflés (frittata) and meals of
ham, goat and lamb in stone hearths using firewood they have gathered from the pruning of the olive groves
and carried in bundles balanced atop their heads to ancient houses that time has passed by. They will serve
antipasto of home cured sliced meats, cheeses and wine that the men of the village make along with
homemade pasta, rolled out on the kitchen table. For many families, it isn’t necessary even to go to a market
as everything will be provided by family members from their own gardens, pens and fields!
On Monday (Pasquetta), the local families will picnic in the parks, piazzas and the sea side.. Yes, it is getting
nice and warm here in Italy.. Pasquetta marks the beginning of the beach season, but only for sunning, walking
and meeting friends.. Swimming begins at the end of April for the German tourists, and mid-May for most
others... but that is another story..
All this tradition exists today because of the homogeneity of culture here. There is no need to ask if you
celebrate Pasqua, Christmas, or any other Catholic feast day. Of course you do!, if not religiously, for sure in a
civil fashion, so people exchange “Buona Pasqua” with friends and strangers alike without reservation and the
worries of offense or attempts to maintain political correctness…
As I am to you…
I wish you well, and hope that you too will enjoy the happiness of this occasion of re-birth with your friends and
families…
Buona Pasqua! e Pasquetta!
Ciao,
Martino
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Dear All... Letters from Calabria