At the intersection of Mulberry and Canal Street on Saturday, September 14, 2024, people of all backgrounds gathered to celebrate the rich heritage of Italy with delicious food and friends at the 98th Annual San Gennaro Parade in New York City. The feast which takes place from September 12th to the 22nd in Little Italy is organized by the Figli di San Gennaro.
As the floats go down the narrow streets on Mulberry; I encounter many familiar faces along the way. “ The Italian Fairy,” Simona Rodano, with her group of dancers entertain the crowds while enjoying a cannoli. This is an iconic moment as this year’s theme honors Italian American Culinary Cuisine. Cannoli’s were provided by the world famous “Cannoli King” owner of Caffe Palermo, John DeLutro, known by all as “Baby John.”
In a truly unforgettable experience, I then make my way aboard the Figli Di San Gennaro float for an exclusive interview with the Vice president of the organization, John Fratta. As descendent of one of the founders of the feast, Mr. Fratta spoke to us about the mysticism and rich history of San Gennaro.
“You know, this is the feast of San Gennaro. San Gennaro is the patron Saint of Naples and he was beheaded in 305 by the Emperor Diocletian. Basically what happened was he was the Bishop of Naples, the Bishop of Benevento. Two of his friends were priests and they were arrested so he went to the prison to meet them. He knew he was going to get arrested and he did in fact get arrested. The Emperor wanted to kill him so first they put him in a firing furnace; the flames did not touch him! Then, they tried to poison him; that did not happen! Finally, in 305 they beheaded him!
A woman of the town in Naples collected his blood and put the blood in vials that are kept in the Cathedral in Naples. Every year on September 19th, his feast day, his blood goes from powder form, to blood, to liquid and bubbles up. They do this at the Cathedral in Naples. They have a mass and while they are saying prayers, you can see the blood liquifying. It happened also when Pope Benedict went to the Cathedral and lifted the vials, it started liquifying.
So really, we look forward to that. We get a call from Naples that the blood liquefied, and we announce it throughout the feast. We pray that it liquifies because if it doesn’t; something bad is going to happen in the world. The last time it didn’t liquify was the beginning of World War II. So every year we keep our fingers crossed the blood will liquify; especially in the world we live in today. Scientists have been trying to figure out how this is happening. They have been researching it and they have been doing their examinations, but they cannot come up with an answer as to how this blood actually liquifies. It’s really amazing! We get a video from Naples every year of the mass and you can see the blood actually liquifying. My mother went there, and she went there on the 19th and it changed her life; it really did!”
Mr. Fratta’s expression of devotion to his faith is powerful as he shares the mysticism and rich history of San Gennaro. As we approach our final destination aboard the float, we reach the Church of the Most Precious Blood, the National Shrine of San Gennaro. At the church, I have the pleasure to continue discussing the powerful devotion of faith in our culture with Monsignor Jaimie Gigantiello. Stay tuned for part 2 of our coverage of the San Gennaro feast next week as Msgr. Jamie and I discuss two pillars that are the embodiment of Italian culture: faith and food.
