About

Saint Ubaldo

Saint Ubaldo of Gubbio (Italian: Ubaldo; Latin: Ubaldus; French: Ubalde) (ca. 1084—1160) is venerated as a saint by the Catholic Church. He was bishop of Gubbio, in Umbria. Saint Ubaldo Day is still celebrated at Gubbio in his honor, as well as at Jessup, Pennsylvania.

Born Ubaldo Baldassini of noble parents at Gubbio, Ubald lost his father while still very young. He was educated by the prior of the cathedral church of his native city, where he also became a canon regular. Saint Sperandia was a relative of Ubald.

He felt a vocation to become a monk, and entered to the Monastery of St. Secondo in the same city, where he remained for some years. Recalled by his bishop, he returned to the cathedral monastery, where he was made prior. Having heard that at Vienna Blessed Peter de Honestis some years before had established a very fervent community of canons regular, to whom he had given special statutes which had been approved by Paschal II, Ubald went there, remaining with his brother canons for three months, to learn the details and the practice of their rules, wishing to introduce them among his own canons of Gubbio.

This he did at his return. He earned a reputation for piety, poverty (for all his rich patrimony he had given to the poor and to the restoration of monasteries), humility, mortification, meekness, and fervour, and the fame of his holiness spread in the country, and several bishoprics were offered to him, but he refused them all.

Ubaldo is said to have prevented Frederick Barbarossa from sacking Gubbio as the emperor had sacked Spoleto in 1155.

However, the episcopal See of Gubbio becoming vacant, he was sent, with some clerics, by the population to ask for a new bishop from Honorius II who, having consecrated him, sent him back to Gubbio. To his people he became a perfect pattern of all Christian virtues, and a powerful protector in all their spiritual and temporal needs.

He died after a long and painful illness of two years.

Copyright: Wikipedia.com

Festival of Ceri

It is not easy to “tell the story” of the Festival of the Ceri. It is one of the oldest, if not the oldest Italian folklore display. The festival has always played a fundamental role in the heart of the Eugubina community. An in-depth study of the festival’s origins and numerous meanings is something that we are happy to leave to scholars. Its origins are obscure, it is enough to know that there are two basic hypotheses: one religious and one pagan.

The first, which is well-documented and set, out sees the festival as a solemn act of devotion on the part of the Eugubini towards their Bishop Ubaldo Baldassini which started in 1160, the year of his death. Since then, every 15th May, the eve of the day of mourning, the devotional offering to the patron Saint is a fixed appointment for the people of Gubbio who are said to have taken part in a great mystical procession, carrying candles all around the town and up Mount Ingino (where since 11th September 1194 the body of Saint Ubaldo lies, in the church which bears his name). Certainly, the Eugubini dearly loved their important townsman, especially from 1154 onwards, when Gubbio conquered no less than 11 allied cities. The victory seemed miraculous, and was also thanks to the intervention of Bishop Baldassini.

The wax candles, offered by the Arts and Crafts corporations, probably became difficult to transport with the passing of time, and towards the end of the 16th century were substituted by three wooden structures, which were agile and modern. They have been replaced a number of times. They have kept their original form up until today and on the same date; they follow the same route to the same place.
The second theory, which is more suspect and hypothetical, sees the festival as being a continuation of a pagan festival in honour of Ceres, goddess of the harvest, reaching us after having come through the glory of communes, renaissance power, papal domination and the battles of the Risorgimento.

Copyright: Certi.it

St. Ubaldo Day in Jessup

In Jessup, St. Ubaldo Day is always held on the Saturday of Memorial Day Weekend.

The Saints are actually small statues (approximately 30″ tall) that are fixed upon two wooden structures. The “stanga” is a wooden “H” shaped platform that is utilized horizontally and carried on the shoulders of the “ceraioli” or runners. The “Cero”, is an octagonal wooden structure that fits vertically into the stanga. It is fixed to the stanga with a tight fitting “pin”. Each statue, when fully assembled and carried, is 15 feet high and weighs approximately 400 pounds!

The Cero is carried by teams of 10 Ceraioli. The “Capodieci” (Chief of Ten) or steerer as a more American translation, is the captain of the team. As the Ceri move along, the participants switch in and out in order to go far distances. Poor switches are fervently avoided, sometimes causing the Saint to fall, as a result.

Copyright: stubaldoday.com