A well-known tourist resort, it bears the name of the martyr Marina, but has Saint Joseph as its patron. He accompanied the community from the distant past to modern times.
His celebration, between tradition and novelty, lives again in the new parish church dedicated to him.
Santa Marinella is a town overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea north of Rome. For tourists it is the Pearl of the Tyrrhenian Sea, but it has very ancient origins, rich in history and archaeological finds. In the pre-Roman era and during the domination of Rome it had the name of Punicum, which seems to indicate the pomegranate tree (Ad malum puniticum) which was near a horse changing station.
After the fall of Rome, around the year 1000 AD, a community of Basilian monks, originally from the Middle East, moved up the Tyrrhenian Sea from southern Italy, settling on the promontory where the Odescalchi castle stands today, building the village, the monastery and a small church annex dedicated to Saint Marina (Margherita) of Antioch; thus they introduced the cult of the eponymous saint of the city, whose devotion they propagated.
The small church of Santa Marina was incorporated into the Odescalchi castle as a palace chapel. In 1435 Pope Eugene IV granted ownership of the Santa Marinella estate to the canons who ran the Roman hospital of Santo Spirito in Sassia, but in 1887 the estate was sold by the hospital to Prince Baldassarre Odescalchi. The Pacelli family also purchased a villa along the Via Aurelia in front of the current Bambino Gesù Hospital where, since he was a child, Eugenio Pacelli, who became pope with the name of Pius XII, spent his holidays. Precisely through the intervention of Francesco Pacelli, brother of Eugenio, the royal family of Savoy following the Lateran Pacts donated their villa in Santa Marinella to the current Bambino Gesù Hospital, which in the post-war period would become a center of excellence in the area, especially in pediatric field. It was from the XNUMXs that Santa Marinella became the Pearl of the Tyrrhenian Sea, sometimes also called Pearl of VIPs, summer destination of the Romans.
The story of Saint Joseph in Santa Marinella begins at the end of the seventeenth century. When the Odescalchi family did some work in the small chapel of Santa Marina, it became dedicated to the foster father of Jesus. In 1703 the small church was erected as a parish for the care of a hundred souls. With the tourist development of the area, the church was enlarged between 1911 and 1915 together with the parish house, under the care of Don Augusto Ranieri. That first church of San Giuseppe (now returned to the first invocation of Santa Marina with the decree of the bishop Monsignor Gino Reali) remained the parish church until 1958, the year in which the new monumental church of Via della Libertà was built by the parish priest Don Ostilio Ricci.
Let's move on to tell something about the feast of Saint Joseph, which enjoyed great popularity in past decades. The patron saint Joseph was honored with popular celebrations, with horse races, sack races and the maypole. But the culminating moment was the solemn procession through the streets of the city with the statue of the Saint carried on the shoulder. The windows and balconies overlooking the route were adorned with multicolored blankets, wooden structures covered in flowers, plants and lights. On some windows sat children dressed as angels, figures who, with the flickering flames of candles and candles, created a surreal atmosphere. And then there was a large crowd, with the children of the First Communion and Confirmation wearing their ceremonial clothes and flanking the statue of the Saint. There were many lay brotherhoods with their banners, the Authorities, the musical band and then the parish priest under a finely decorated canopy supported by four rods. The bells were rung by hand and festively accompanied the entire ritual.
But the most exciting moment, at least for the little ones, (we are around the 1950s) was the passage of the procession in front of the house of Pasqualino Percuoco, a well-known figure at the time, who started the fireworks with thunderous bangs.
The participation of the people was great. Everyone wore their party clothes, made with bright fabrics for the occasion. Everything seemed like an immense polychrome palette. And then there were the scents that flooded the streets from the houses; the festive lunch ended with St. Joseph's pancakes, an ancient recipe preserved in the memory of the grandmothers and mothers of the time.
Today, unfortunately, nothing remains of all this. There is still the procession, attended by hundreds of faithful who increase along the route, sometimes halved so as not to hinder car traffic. There are still stalls with sweets, sandwiches and clothing. The rides with the deafening music are stormed by swarms of young people, to experience a few thrilling moments. Late in the evening there is a musical and fireworks show. What's left of all this? The next day is another day... Is there any nostalgia left? Yes, to us who experienced the feast of St. Joseph the "frittellaro" in those distant years.