The Farchie Festival of Fara Filiorum Petri, A Light Against the Darkness

The Farchie Festival of Fara Filiorum Petri, Chieti, Abruzzo 
Photo courtesy of Made in South Italy Today

By Lucian

Every year the various districts of Fara Filiorum Petri, a town in the Province of Chieti in the Region of Abruzzo, participate in the Farchie Festival, a famous fire ritual in honor of Saint Anthony the Abbot. The event commemorates the miracle that delivered the town from subjugation by the French army in 1799. At the time the town was surrounded by an oak forest. As the foreign soldiers advanced, the locals prayed to their patron Saint Anthony for deliverance. In answer to their prayers the saint appeared, and the oak trees that circled the town burst into flames and drove back the soldiers. In some versions the soldiers were trapped by the fire and consumed, in others the flaming trees actually fought back against the invading army, which fled in terror. 

On January 12th, each district begins their preparations for the festival. A heavy bundle of reeds called a farchia is construct-ed to venerate the Saint. The farchie (plural) can be up to 1 meter thick and 10 meters long, and are secured by flexible willow branches. The main procession takes place on January 16th, and after each neighborhood's religious service, they are all carried to the center town piazza near the Church of Sant'Antonio Abate. A few generations ago the torches were all carried on men’s shoulders. It was, in times past, considered a rite of passage for young men to carry their district’s farchia. Now many are carried by tractor, but a procession of singing devotees and live music still follows each. The farchie are later erected with ropes and long wooden sticks, and each is designed to be beautiful as well as engineered for a controlled burn. There is a competitive spirit among the neighborhoods. I have heard that part of the festivities include the praising of their farchia by each respective group, and the pointing out of the slightest imperfections in the others. However, all are gathered to respect the Saint and celebrate together, and it should come as no surprise that food is an important part of the feast. Ritual bread and traditional fare is served, including zeppole, or crispelle. Wine flows and people dance. The farchie are set alight at sunset and there are fireworks. On January 17th there is a solemn mass at the Church of Saint Anthony the Abbot, during which the spent farchie, domestic animals and the bread are blessed.

Chiesa di Sant'Antonio Abate, Fara Filiorum Petri
Photo courtesy of Made in South Italy Today 

Saint Anthony the Abbot has been patron of Fara Filiorum Petri for approximately a thousand years. The Benedictines, who controlled the area, supported the Saint’s veneration but he is said to have become the town’s patron after Antonian monks assisted the area’s sick during an epidemic around the year 1000 A.D.  There are many who believe that the Farchie Festival has its roots in local pre-Christian fertility and purification rituals, and in addition to its continuing Christian function of driving away evil spirits, also represented the natural cycle of death and rebirth. I’ve always found such connections to be fascinating and I try to be objective when they are debated. Each case is different; in some the evidence is strong, in others it is not.

There are many stories about Saint Anthony the Abbot and some specifically deal with his rejection of the old religion. In one story he is confronted by two demons in the form of a centaur and a satyr, figures specifically borrowed from pre-Christian beliefs; the two demons try to test Anthony’s faith but end up respecting him instead. In another story he refuses to debate two Greek philosophers, simply stating that if they wanted to understand Christianity then they should try to live as he did. Yet my favorite story of Saint Anthony deals with the gift of fire to mankind and parallels the pagan tale of the titan Prometheus.

Prometheus Bound by Peter Paul Rubens 
Photo by New York Scugnizzo

The tale has Saint Anthony and his pet pig traveling to hell in an attempt to rescue souls entrapped there. When confronted by the devil and his demons, his pet pig became unruly and causes havoc. During the distraction Saint Anthony stole fire from hell and brought it back as a gift to mankind. In some versions it is Anthony that causes the distraction and the pig that actually steals the fire. Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to mortals, but was punished severely by Zeus for his act. He was chained to a rock for eternity. An eagle tore out his liver every day, only to have his immortality heal it overnight for his cycle of suffering to begin anew. In another story the hero/demigod Hercules, in a later age, slays the eagle and frees the titan. Saint Anthony sought martyrdom, but it was denied to him. It could also be said that Prometheus was to be martyred for his gift of fire to mankind.

Some might wonder why we care so much about a fire ritual in a small town in Europe and what it has to do with modern people. In response I say turn out all the lights, engines, and electricity in your town during the new moon. Anyone who has experienced a blackout in a major city will comprehend the connection I speak of. We have an instinctual reaction to the darkness, and for very good reasons. The light of the torches does more than drive away evil spirits; it illuminates our territory, exposes predators and enemies, and empowers us to defend ourselves and those we love. The torches symbolize our resistance to the darkness, and our refusal to submit to any threats within it.