San Antonio. La Recoleta Church (Quito, Ecuador). photo © Lorraine Caputo
On this rainy night, the eve of the feast day of San Antonio de Padúa, hundreds of kilometers from Los Crepúsculos, I imagine I hear the strains of his serenade.
¡Ay, mi padre San Antonio
Donde está que no lo veo
Que vine a cantar con él
Y me voy con los deseos!
Qué queréis con San Antonio
Que lo ‘tas llamando tanto
San Antonio está en el cielo
Junto con los otros santos
Señores los bailadores
No se vayan a pegar
Los remedios ‘tan muy lejos
No hay quien los vaya a buscar
Adorar y adorar y adorar a mi padre San Antonio
Adorar y adorar y adorar a mi padre San Antonio
Ay, my father San Antonio
Where are you, I don’t see you
I’ve come to sing with him
And I’ll be leaving with my dreams!
What is it you want with San Antonio
That you’re calling upon him so much?
San Antonio is in heaven,
Along with the other Saints.
It is the eve of the feast day of San Antonio – Saint Anthony of Padua. In the middle of the street of a neighborhood of Barquisimeto, Venezuela, musicians are seated in front of a statue of San Antonio. As they sing their honoring song honoring to this saint, bottles of cocuy (homebrew liquor) are being passed.
This serenade will continue until the wee hours of the morn, when then the all-day procession commences with a mass, and ends with an evening of seven dances…
Iglesia Nuestra Señora de Guápulo (Quito, Ecuador). photo © Lorraine Caputo
Even many years after that night in Los Crepúsculos, the serenade sounds through my mind. Every time I encounter a statue of San Antonio – no matter the season – I mouth the words and sway, dancing to this great saint.
Iglesia de Sn Antonio (M’burucuyá, Argentina). photo © Lorraine Caputo
The feast day of Saint Anthony of Padua is celebrated on 13 June. San Antonio was born Fernando Martins de Bulhões, in Lisbon, Portugal, in 1195. He was contemporary of Saint Francis of Assisi (San Francisco de Asís), founder of the Franciscan order. Saint Anthony became a monk of this order, and was famous for his knowledge of scripture, being able to teach them through simple words and deeds. Thus he holds the title of Doctor of the Church. He died 13 June 1231.
San Antonio is represented by the infant Jesus cradled in one arm. Sometimes he also holds a book or a lily blossom. He is the patron saint of lost causes, lost (or stolen) items, lost people and of the poor. In France, Italy, Spain and his native Portugal, Saint Anthony is the patron saint of sailors and fishermen. In other countries, he is the patron of travelers. On his saint’s day, small loaves of bread are passed out after the mass. This symbolizes San Antonio’s devotion to the marginalized peoples of these lands.
San Antonio is fêted throughout the Americas, from Mexico to Argentina. Today, we shall witness the traditions in two distinct parts of this region: in the deep countryside of Nicaragua, and in the barrios of the city of Barquisimeto, in Venezuela.
Iglesia San Francisco (Quito, Ecuador). photo © Lorraine Caputo
Many moons ago, when I stayed a mighty spell in Estelí, I was invited to accompany Padre Juan and some of the Rugama family to Terrero, a small settlement in the mountains of northern Nicaragua.
A FEAST DAY IN THE COUNTRY
Campesinos climb the rocky road
up to the brick chapel
With four guitars & two basses
their song fills the valley
of these greened hills
Rockets fire into the air
In his glass case carried
in two men’s work-worn hands
San Antonio sways
Mothers & children enter the church
Fathers gather outside
smoking cigarettes
talking about crops & cattle
The Saint rests to one side of the altar
in front of the moss-covered apse
studded with plastic-petalled carnations
made by women of this parish
A large cloth-covered basket
of fresh-baked bread
is placed atop him
On horseback on foot
the late arrive
One tethers his mare
to a guanacaste tree
Tattered curtains of Spanish moss
floating the blue-white sun breeze
In the distance two women
comedown the camino
They hold the hands of their children´
a baby in arms
Outside Padre Juan confers
with the mass assistants
&the musicians
More & more ascend the slope
to the sanctuary
Another rocket rises into the sky
where light clouds move & form swiftly
The white line of its smoke
the pop of its explosion
The priest & the choir enter the chapel
Men put their discussions aside
&pack into the back
Faces of those unable to fit inside
peer into the open doors & windows
Some compadres remain perched
on the scattered lava boulders
cowboy hats, baseball caps on knees
One holds his daughter on his thigh
The bow of her yellow voile dress
flutters in the soft wind
As the mass unfolds
with the reading of the scripture
the music
with the sermon
& the testimonies of the community
with the celebration of the Eucharist
More families near the temple
children in hand tottering along
children in arms
Men hastily remove their hats
The wafers are placed on tongues
Outside a man lights the fuse
of the rockets with his cigarette
The swooshes the cracks
of each fill the late morning
The last song is being sung
Two women carry the basket of bread
All within & outside this crowded
church are fed
Amid cries bounding from one another
¡Viva San Antonio!
¡Viva!
¡Viva San Antonio!
¡Viva!
The Saint is carried away
in his glass case
the handles held by those
two sets of work-worn hands
Down the hill
down the winding road
up the next rise
into the distance
Rocket blasts reverberate
throughout the valley
published in: Baobab (2000)
Iglesia San Francisco (Puerto Ayora, Isla Santa Cruz, Galapagos). photo © Lorraine Caputo
In further south climes, this popular Saint is also being fêted. One of his largest strong hold is in Venezuela’s state of Lara, where he is the patron saint. The tamunangue music and dances of these celebrations have their roots deep in Africa. It is said to have originated with San Antonio himself, during his missionary work in northern Africa.
My first visit to Venezuela coincided with the fiestas of San Antonio. Friends around the country urged me to get to Barquisimeto, capital of Lara. Yakarí offered to be my guide through the two days of celebrations in the Los Crepúsculos neighborhood. This is home of one of the most traditional troupes, Grupo de Tamunangue Uyama.
The evening of June 12 is the velorio (vigil) to San Antonio, a serenade on the eve of his saint’s day. The next day, mass is said at the parish church in La Unión. The procession then wends through the streets, with dancing and drumming until dusk. At night, the round of dances is performed.
A FEAST DAY IN THE CITY
- El Velorio / Los Crepúsculos
The warning rockets are fired
one two three & four
with the butt of a cigarette
San Antonio stands in his case
near the door of a house
His wooden capilla
is backdropped by fan-
shaped palm leaves
Two vases of flowers
perch at the front corners
Their carnations scent the evening
a single candle flickers
People gather in the cul-de-sac
awaiting this velorio to begin
Many come & touch his head
his back & then cross themselves
The strumming of cuatros
& guitarra marruna
begins before this saint
Of a septet standing before him
the strains of Ave María Purísima
A rocket fired
&a second
rocket tras rocket
After the song
one troubadour
prays aloud
The standing people repeat
¡Viva San Antonio!
¡Viva San Antonio!
Everyone sits in silver
wrought-iron seats set
in a semi-circle before the Saint
Two troubadours in the front row
sing to San Antonio
Playing kids roam
young teen women gossip—
their mothers & grandmothers, too
Two floodlights brighten
the street, the scenario
A brindis of cocuy
is left for San Antonio
& after a coffee break
the serenade continues
More men join with
cuatros, voice and cincos
Between songs more
cocuy is poured
A grey-rooted, red haired woman
in a bright green shirt
claps with the music
swaying in rhythm
Her palms redden
song after song
These men, their eyes reddening
sing leaning into a compañero
or closes his eyes
They praise San Antonio
la-la-ing with heart & smile
or eyes wide, brows twisted with feeling
As the evening grows older
people move the chairs
into tight circles around the music
And when the velorio
ends at midnight
The musicians suit their instruments
until the next morn,
San Antonio’s feast
poem © Lorraine Caputo
On San Antonio’s feast day, the biggest celebration is in Barrio La Unión. After the morning mass at the parish church, tamunangueros dance through the streets, carrying the beloved saint from house to house. This procession with its accompanying drumming (and copious amounts of cocuy) continues until dusk. After the sun sets, the seven sones (rhythms) of tamunangue are danced by couples armed with garrotes (sticks).
Yakarí and I spent the day being one with the procession. That night, we returned to Los Crepúsculos. For hours we sat on the blacktop street while he explained the intricacies of each dance.
The tamunangue not only honors San Antonio on his feast day, but it is also performed to fulfill a promise (promesa) to him for granting a good harvest, a family request (for wishes of healing, a new home, studies, etc.) or for love conquered.
The tamunangue consists of the Dedicatorio or Serenade to San Antonio, which includes the Batalla (Battle), performed by two men. This is to ask the Saint for permission to present the dances promised to him.
This is then followed by a round of seven dances performed by couples:
- El Yiyevamos – The opening dance, with the singer directing the dancers with his calls
- La Bella – An honoring of women
- La Juruminga – Based rhythms and forgotten African words
- La Perrendenga – A dance between woman and man, with garrotes
- El Poco a Poco – Three humorous passes compose this dance
- El Galerón – The couples dance holding hands
- El Seis Figurado (Seis Corrido) – Three men and three women dance a total of 32 movements, acting out the picaresque calls of the singer
These are just two of the ways San Antonio is fêted in Latin America, in the countryside and in the city, by campesinos and by African descendants. The pueblos of this region wear many other faces, including indigenous. Many roads, there are, yet to wend to continue honoring this saint.
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