Festa e Fiera di San Biagio (en)
2015-07-07 18:34:18
Corsano usually celebrates San Biagio on the 3rd of February, but also in the summer, in the week between July and August, when the celebrations in honor of the patron saint are attended by the locals of Corsano and by many tourists. In fact, the affection that the patron saint receives in Corsano is great, but also in the surrounding towns where many pilgrims come to worship and invoke the intervention of the saint regarding the diseases of the throat. The solemn celebrations for San Biagio begin on the eve of February 2 with a crowded procession in the streets of the town, followed by the Holy Mass in the church and the lighting of the traditional 'focaredda'.
On the day of the feast, the celebrations have a point of maximum participation during the customary panegyric, during which the pastor illustrates and celebrates the life and miracles of San Biagio. The festival ends with the fireworks show.
In the days of the feast, the traditional Fair - a large market with sales of various goods-is also held.
historical information:
The devotion of the inhabitants of Corsano to San Biagio is bound to various miracles and phenomenon of which the saint was held protagonist.
Kept in the archives of the Chiesa di Santa Sofia is a written record of the miraculous healing of Giacomo Venuti of Matino in 1708. The man, struck by a throat disease and was close to death, after having seen, kissed and touched the relic of the saint was immediately relieved.
In 1953, a child of 5 or 6 years old caught a serious throat ailment. His health condition became so serious that the doctor, in the evening of February 2 of that year, went to the patient’s home to communicate to the parents that despite his attempts could not do anything to tear their child away from death. The family, however, did not lose heart and decided to contact the parish priest to house the relic of St. Blaise in their home throughout the night, hoping for the Saint’s grace. The priest agreed to their request, but despite this, the next morning the child's condition did not improve. The relic was brought back to the church because it was needed for the procession. When the procession passed through the street where the child lived, the parents leaned out of their balcony and prayed again, requesting grace for their child. After the procession, the parish priest wanted to revisit the sick and his astonishment, he noticed the boy was healed.
There are several other miracles also linked to San Biagio involving the inhabitants of Corsano; one of them remembers that during the ignition of a bonfire for San Biagio, a Corsanese, particularly devoted to the Saint went into a storage to steal fagots for the 'focaredda'. When the owner of the property noticed the theft, he went to the chosen place for the bonfire and having found his wood, wanted to take it away with him. The owner with a cart full of wood, during the return trip, passed by the chapel of San Biagio and at that point the horse stopped; the attempts that were made to get the horse to go on was useless. A young Corsanese who had assisted the whole affair told the owner of the wood that perhaps the reason why the horse would no longer walk was because the wood should have been used for 'focaredda'. Then and there, all the wood was taken to the bonfire and the animal resumed its path. The owner realized that it all happened according to the will of the Saint and from that year, has never missed his wood contribution for the 'focaredda'.
Another story concerns a nut vendor, or a 'nuciaddàru', who had his stall near the church of St. Sophia, where the procession is formed. At the pre-fixed hour for the afternoon, he was astonished to notice that the church and the square was filled with people; astonishment turned into amazement when he realized that the statue of San Biagio was of small proportions and with indignation exclaimed, "Na festa tantu ranne, per na muzzetta de chiri" (A party so big for half-length ones) . The procession and the festival had their traditional swing. In the evening the seller returned to his town, but when he went into the house, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his throat and he began to cry. With disbelief and astonishment, he heard a voice from the other room saying: 'I am the half-length that you saw today in Corsano'. he Immediately understood, and conscious of the sacrilegious words he uttered in Corsano regarding the Saint, and began to pray and seek forgiveness, promising eternal devotion to S. Biagio.
The first written information on the establishment of the fair, however, dates back to manifestations and deliberations of 1800 kept in the archive of the municipal hall. In the archive is a poster of a manifestation of the fair dated January 10, 1899; another manifestation is dated January 28, 1915 in which are imposed prizes for the best cattle. All neighboring towns attended the fair.
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