I Sepolchri
- May 5, 2006
- Rated 4 of 5 by
Tulipano from Bari, Italy
This celebration, held the Thursday before Easter, consists of going around to various churches throughout the older part of the city and saying a little prayer in each one. The idea is to reenact Mary Magdalene's search for Jesus' body. The tradition also holds that you must always visit an odd number of churches, never an even number. This means that most people visit three, but others will visit many, many more.
This night is also an opportunity to see the insides of many extremely old and beautiful churches that are never opened the rest of the year.
However, as with most things in Italy, this tradition has become more of an excuse to walk around with friends late at night and run into people that you might not otherwise see the rest of the year. In any case, the visits to the churches are still done, and the prayers always said—it's just that it's done in a positive and happy atmosphere, rather than one that might be more appropriate to a search for a dead loved one.
From journal Bari