Irony knows no bounds. Proven daily.
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I did not know about this festival, despite having lived in New York City for more than 30 years. I was curious about the name of one of the people cited, Jordan Forgione. I wondered if he is related to Larry Forgione but I was also curious about his first name. The only Giordano I have heard of was Giordano Bruno, an early martyr of science. I looked up Bruno on Wikipedia. I knew that the Inquisition had murdered him in the Campo de' Fiori, in Rome, but I learned for the first time where he had been born: Nola. So the name endures.
I was lunching one day at a Greek pizzeria near Lincoln Center, and the waiter introduced himself as Byron. I asked if he was Greek, and he said yes. "Ah, the Greeks remember," I said. He had no idea what I was talking about. A name may endure while its significance fades from the collective memory.
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What a great, positive and truly uplifting article and event. As a woman I find some of the comments about excluding women off the mark. The story is not about women it's about carrying on an old religious and community tradition. Cheers to the organizers and volunteers for connecting the past to the present.
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So glad to see the feast thriving. By welcoming all to the communal "lift" the whole community is lifted as well. As for it being all male - well, they do have more upper body strength. I think there are more imprint things to worry about, like equal pay.
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Fans of this festival should read the fascinating chapter on its history in *Ritual Imports: Performing Medieval Drama in America* by the late (and much missed) scholar Claire Sponsler.
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"“It’s 2019 in New York City. We have to be as inclusive as possible,”
Yeah, because an all-male crew is very inclusive. They are only leaving half of the population out.
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@Sara Andrea
Oh please, Debbie Downer, there are more important things like equal pay. And besides do you know how heavy those things are? Lighten up.
7
@Sara Andrea this is traditionally men lifters. In Nola the women at one time lifted too, but it was the following day after the men. But that has also stopped.
6
This article interested me because I keeping tradition alive throughout all those 116 years is amazing. Tradition is keeping something that is meaning or very important to you and doing it each year or each month. In this case the family for three generations of Italians was brought to Brooklyn. I can relate this to a family tradition we have that is something we do during Christmas. During Christmas time, my family all gets together at my house and we all make food and do a gift exchange. Each family has a tradition and a tradition should last a life time to come.
12
This is the same struggle Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Denver, Colorado is facing. The neighborhood is changing and younger people are moving in. The small bungalows are being scraped for 6 unit "slot" homes. The new residents aren't necessarily Catholic and maybe don't understand why the 125 year old church in this neighborhood hosts a huge feast every year, but the best thing we can do is keep our doors and hearts open to the new residents in order to keep the Italian American traditions alive.
27
The feast for most of us born and raised in this neighborhood is not just a time of the year that we come out to celebrate. We live and breathe this all year round it is who we are, and the strenght of the faith we have. To watch the next generations which for me is my nephew and and great nephew carry on the tradition that my Father and Grandfather lived for, is bittersweet because I miss my Dad and Grandfather, and I wish that they could be here to see their great and great great grandchildren carry on for them means everything to me. and I know they are smiling down on their beloved Our Lady of Mt Carmel and San Paulino and there cherished Italian Tradition. Buona Festa
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