Blessed Relic of Saint Anthony Celebrated in Boston’s North End

A Blessed Relic of Saint Anthony was presented in the North End this weekend as the Boston Friends of Montefalcione, Avellino welcomed Don Paolo, pastor of the Cheisa Di Sant’ Antonio in Montefalcione, Italy. On Sunday, September 15, 2013, a special viewing was held with the Saint Anthony Society and Saint Leonard Parish including a celebratory mass and a short procession of the Relic of Sant’ Antonio through the streets of Boston’s North End.

Montefalcione, Avellino is the birthplace of many immigrants who settled in the North End of Boston during last century. As they did in their homeland, a small group of these immigrants began the annual celebration of the Feast of Saint Anthony in the historic neighborhood in 1919. Today the North End’s Saint Anthony’s Feast is the one of the oldest and largest street festivals in the United States. The Festa in Montefalcione has been celebrated for nearly 400 years by the people of that town. The two feasts are held simultaneously on the weekend of the last Sunday of August.