Saint Joseph and Holy Family Festival

A unique Easter tradition in Sicily

The Saint Joseph and Holy Family Festival in Carlentini, in the heart of the Syracuse province, is one of the most singular celebrations in the Sicilian Easter calendar. It takes place not on March 19th, the traditional feast day of Saint Joseph, but on Easter Monday, forging a deep bond between the salvific value of the Resurrection and the solidarity of helping one's neighbor. It is this shift in date that makes the festival a true unicum in the landscape of the island's Easter traditions.

The origins: the 1842 decree

The festival has its roots, at least in its documented form, on April 3, 1842, when a municipal decree moved the patronal festivities from Pentecost to dedicate Easter Monday to Saint Joseph and the Holy Family. Local scholars believe the devotion may have even older origins, but it is from that date that the rite assumed the traits that the people of Carlentini still proudly renew today, passing it down from generation to generation.

The living Holy Family

The heart of the day is the living Holy Family: three members of the community, once chosen from among the town's poorest, wear the clothes of Joseph, Mary, and Jesus and travel through the town following an ancient route that once touched the homes of the wealthiest citizens. Along the way, the faithful pin banknotes offered as a sign of devotion onto the characters' garments. At noon, the Holy Family eats lunch on a stage set up in the main square, in front of the entire gathered citizenry.

The historical pageant

The procession is preceded and accompanied by a historical pageant of about sixty participants in late 19th-century period costumes. They parade through the town's streets to the sound of Sicilian music and dances, with richly decorated Sicilian carts, traditional farming tools like iornatari, carramatti, and nasse, and farm animals: rabbits, goats, geese, chickens, and piglets. Women in costume carry baskets filled with typical products of the Leontine land—asparagus, oranges, bread, oil, and ricotta—offered to the people as the Holy Family passes by.

The religious procession

The day begins early in the morning with marching bands traveling through the city streets. The deputies of Saint Joseph and the devotees emerge from the Mother Church, carrying the Saint's characteristic silver staff, to reach the Town Hall where the mayor and municipal administration await them. The Holy Family procession then reaches the Carmine Church for the Eucharistic celebration and continues along the devotional circuit. In the evening, the liturgical celebration and the procession with the statue of Saint Joseph are renewed.

The charity auction

In the afternoon, the evocative charity auction takes place, one of the most anticipated moments: artistic bread shapes, asparagus, rabbits, wheat, chickens, goats, and sweets, donated by the artisans and merchants of Carlentini, are auctioned off at prices far exceeding their real value. The auctioneers announce the bids with traditional expressions, and the entire proceeds are donated to the needy: charity thus becomes the ultimate meaning of the festival.

A community festival

Between faith, folklore, and rural identity, the Saint Joseph and Holy Family Festival represents an essential identity-defining event for the Municipality of Carlentini. It involves the parish, brotherhoods, local associations, and hundreds of volunteers, attracting visitors and emigrated locals back to the city to rediscover their roots in one of the most heartfelt traditions of Eastern Sicily.