IL Sacro Fuoco di Sant'Antonio

While I plan to get back to my November trip (which includes Venice, Padova, and Bolognia), I thought I'd strike on my current "doings" while the fire was hot!  And while I do not mean to be, the subject of hot fire is just what this subject is about.

Il Sacro Fuocco di Sant' Antonio means "The Sacred Fire of St. Anthony" and it's a festival that is celebrated every year on January 16 in Bangaia, Italy.  As I found out today, it's a 25-minute uphill bike ride from Viterbo.  So while I was getting a little exercise, I stumbled upon this centuries-old tradition in Bangaia.  The picture at the right shows an 8 meters tall by 30 meters in circumference tower of logs that will become "The Sacred Fire" on the 16th.

The bonfire from the feast of
Saint Anthony, 2013

The Feast of St. Anthony Abbot is quite common, especially in rural areas and towns of the province of Viterbo (not the city of Viterbo…two different things) where the traditions are more deeply rooted than in large cities. Despite being born into a rather wealthy family, from an early age Anthony showed little interest in the opulence of worldly life.  When his parents died Anthony distributed all his bequeathed wealth to the poor and took up the life of solitude prayer. He spent many years living in an ancient tomb carved out of stone, struggling against the temptations of the devil, who often appeared to display his powers. These provocations lead Anthony to fast and give penance, always managing to triumph. Despite living a life of suffering, his life was very long-lived: in fact, he died at the age of 105 years.

The rituals that are performed every year on the feast of St. Anthony are ancient. He is considered the patron saint against outbreaks of certain diseases, both of man and of animals. While in Bagnaia, the townfolk had cordoned off a space in front of the church on the main square, where animals (in this case, chickens, hens, and roosters) could receive a blessing from the local priest. 

Anthony also is regarded as the patron saint of fire, as fire is an element of good wishes in this context. A party, therefore, which is meant and means to be celebrated at the beginning of every year, unleashes positive forces and, thanks to the element of fire, defeats evil and disease that may always be lurking. 

UPDATE:  January 16

So I recruited one of the Italian teachers from SYA to come with me (Alesandra, a.k.a. "Ale").  She had never been to Il Sacro Fuoco so it was just as exciting for her as it was for me!  We arrived right at 6:30, just after they had lit the bonfire.  As we were watching the smoke billowing out of the middle of the teepee of logs, the announcer provided more accurate stats of it than I had reported a few days before:  close to 9 meters (almost 30 feet) high and 35 meters (over 100 feet) in circumference at the base.  

As evidenced from the pictures, the logs didn't get going right away.  Lots of smoke in the beginning (see picture progression on the left), so Ale and I positioned ourselves upwind as to avoid being smothered.  The smoke was thick and very grey.  After about 45 minutes, we started to see a few flickers and cracklings here and there.  By the hour mark, we had ourselves a massive bonfire!  To put this spectacle in perspective, Pat (the SYA director) took his family to see Il Sacro Fuoco one year and stood about 100 feet away from the bonfire.  Even at that distance, little embers of the fire showered down on them to the point that they went home with singed coats.  "That night out cost me 300 Euros in new coats," he told me, "so whatever you do, don't wear any valuable clothing and stand farther back!"  

Ale and I took his advice, probably standing close to a football field away from the bonfire and still, a few little "fire drops" landed near us (no singed coats, however).  Wow!  As we continued to watch this amazing fire display, we treated ourselves to a dixie cup of wine and a porchetta (or sliced pork on a hard roll), a festive Viterbese sandwich.  The fire will probably burn all night and into tomorrow (unless the fire department has had enough and extinguishes it), but Ale and I had our fill of the scene after about an hour and a half.  It was, after all, a school night!