|
|
RUNNING
OF THE BULLS MARKS REVIVAL OF TOWN'S PATRON SAINT
Who is San Sebastian? San Sebastián was a Christian saint and martyr who was executed by Roman emperor Diocletian during the persecution of Christians in the 3rd Century CE. According to legend, he was born in Narbonne, Gaul in c.256 CE to a wealthy Roman family and was brought up and educated in Mediolanum, ancient Milan. In c.283 CE, despite his growing devotion to the Christian faith, he took a commission in the army of Imperial Rome, a position from which he believed he might be able to covertly encourage conversion to Christianity. According to tradition, Sebastián convinced imprisoned deacons Marcus and Marcellian not to abandon their faith and went about converting a number of others, including the son of the local prefect. It is said that his enthusiasm for conversion resulted in the wife of Nicrostratus, another local official, regaining her speech after six years as a deaf mute as soon as she made known her desire to convert and 78 people were instantly convinced to adopt the Christian faith. Sebastián was appointed as a captain of the Praetorian Guard under Diocletian and Maximim, who were both initially unaware that he was a Christian. Diocletian, who embarked on one of the most severe persecutions of Christians in the Roman era, soon accused Sebastián of betrayal and he commanded that he be led to a field and tied to a stake before being shot in the chest by arrows from Mauritanian archers and left to die. However, when Irene of Rome, the widow of Saint Castulus, went to retrieve the body, she discovered that the arrows hadn’t killed him so she took him back to her house in Rome and nursed him back to health. Once recovered, Sebastián stood on a step and castigated Diocletian as he passed by on his litter; the emperor responded by having him beaten to death with clubs and his battered body thrown into the sewer. San Sebastián was martyred in c.288 CE. He became the patron saint for archers, athletes (because of his physical endurance) and soldiers (because of his determination to defend Christian confessors) whilst he is also appealed to for protection against plagues. And it is here that the link is made with Jávea. Why Jávea Celebrates It is unclear when San Sebastián became the patron saint of Jávea but it is almost certainly since medieval times when the village was facing the horror of the ‘Black Death’ that was devastating the population of Europe. It is said that the terrified population likened the random nature of infection to being shot by an army of nature’s archers and thus they sought salvation from a saint associated with archers. They prayed to San Sebastián for special protection and it appeared that the village was saved from illness. San Sebastián was almost forgotten when the image of Jesús Nazareno arrived in the mid-16th Century and supposedly protected the village from an outbreak of cholera. (The festivities honouring the Nazarene began in 1856 and continue to this day, starting in late April.) However the memory of San Sebastián was maintained by the devoted few and until this year, his day was celebrated on January 20th with a simple parade to honour his image and a special mass. In 2012, on the occasion of Jávea 400th anniversary of being awarded the title of 'Villa Real' by Felipe III, Jávea revives the celebrations of its patron saint with, amongst other events, the running of the bulls in the centre of town. Since he was shot with arrows, his image is often depicted with arrows piercing his chest. There are two shrines in town dedicated to its patron saint: one in Calle San Sebastian behind the Correos and a second close to the bottom of Calle Major and both depict San Sebastián’s bodies pierced with arrows. The Fiesta FIESTA PROGRAMME 2012 Friday
20th January - SAN SEBASTIÁN The runnng of the bulls events are sponsored by the Associació Cultural Taurina Xàbia. The public is reminded that it is not permitted for the under 16s or those under the influence of alcohol to enter the arena. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
