What a heartwarming and engaging day we had at Babylon Mercantile & Cookshop with GoSicily Sicilian Cooking Experience! Thank you to both of these outstanding colleagues for co-hosting this Experience Sicily celebration for Saint Joseph with me! This is always a very special feast for me that marks renewal and thanksgiving. Sharing it this way…
Tag: altar
Celebrate The Women In Your Life
Happy International Women’s Day! Buona Festa della Donna! International Women’s Day is celebrated throughout the world. It recognizes the contributions of women to society, originating in the labor and suffrage movements of the late 19th and 20th centuries. To celebrate today, recognize the women in your life, thanking them for their leadership and service.
San Pio A Modern-day Saint
Small homegrown shrines are very common in Sicily. This one near my cousins’ home in Bagheria is dedicated to the recently canonized (2002) San Pio (1887-1968).
Our Lady of Sorrows In Sant’Elia
Home altar for Our Lady of Sorrows with Santo Pio, photographed in the fishing village of Sant’Elia
Giving Thanks To The Father
Thank you to those who joined me last evening for our online Experience Sicily Saint Joseph’s Day celebration! Viva San Giuseppe! Happy Saint Joseph’s Day! Buona festa del papà! Pictured is my altar for this powerful patron of fathers, carpenters, the home, and those who toil for their work. The three tiers represent Jesus, Mary,…
Ritual Bread For Saint Joseph
Food historians believe grains were introduced to Sicily in approximately 1000 BCE by the Phoenicians. By 150 BCE, during the Roman era, grain became the base of island’s cuisine. By 1000 CE, during the Arab era, the majority of Sicily’s landscape was dedicated to grain agriculture, and that remains true today. Once you learn the…
An Altar For Saint Joseph
Altars for San Giuseppe or Saint Joseph may be seen throughout Sicily. The patron saint of fathers, carpenters, and those who toil for their work, he is extremely important to Sicilians. Friday, March 19 is St. Joseph’s Day. Next Thursday, March 18 at 8PM Eastern and Friday, March 19 at 5PM Eastern, I will offer…
The Saints As Guides For Life’s Cycles
The veil between the living and the dead is thin during these days of mid-autumn. In past centuries, November 1 was better known as All Hallows or Hallowmas (Hence yesterday being All Hallows Eve or Halloween, in northern Christian countries.). Now called All Saints Day, today is a solemn feast to acknowledge all saints, known…
Seeking Guidance In Siracusa
Observing the beauty and wisdom of the Madonna at an altar in Siracusa (Photo Credit: Chiara Musumeci Fotografia)
An Altar For Santa Rosalia
Normally on September 4, devotees of Santa Rosalia, Palermo’s patroness, recognize their protectress with a solemn pilgrimage to her sanctuary at the top of Mount Pellegrino. They pay homage to the maiden who died on this day in 1166, with prayers, solitude, and a trek up the mountain barefoot or on their knees. This year…