Missing festa season? This is what village feast celebrations will look like come 1st July
These directives will remain in place till the end of the year.
Festa enthusiasts will be disappointed to hear that the usual celebrations still will not be held despite the lift of restrictions for mass gathering. However, directives issued by the Curia yesterday shed a light on what we CAN expect from our village feasts this summer starting this Wednesday 1st July.
A scaled-down procession alongside the village band/s and statue will be permitted to take place on the day of the feast, i.e. Sunday. Villages whose feast day has already passed will be permitted to find an alternative date on which to celebrate their patron saint.
Previously a large-scale celebration, the entrance and exit of the statue from its niche will this year be a private event overseen by the chaplain.
In a move supporting unity and solidarity at such unprecedented times, the Curia also called for rival bands from the same community to play at each other's celebrations. Joyous marches are not permitted to be played during the procession with only religious and processional hymns allowed.
These directives, among others, are applicable till the end of the year, or until an update is issued by the Curia.