Among the hermits in the history of the Church he is certainly one of the most revered. The cult of him knows no boundaries of space and time and has generated endless devotional celebrations which in many cases superimpose Christian worship on pagan beliefs.
Sant'Antuono, so called above all in the south to distinguish him from Sant'Antonio da Padova, he was venerated in a particular way by the people. He was appealed to, against the plague, against contagious diseases and against the so-called "shingles" for this he is invoked against all skin diseases and dealing with fire even against fires. The popular "pietas" has attributed to him thaumaturgical powers of protection to pets and this is why hens, geese, rabbits, oxen and horses are often shown in his images. But above all the pig is the recurring animal in his iconography both because the pork lard was used by his monks to cure herpes zoster both because the pig is accompanied on his journey to hell to recover damned souls by messing the attack of tempting devils.
And still today a Naples for January 17, day of his feast, an ancient tradition survives in the most popular neighborhoods they use to light large fires, the “cippi” or “fucarazzi” also fed with what people lower with baskets from the windows containing objects no longer used to fuel the fires with a propitiatory gesture because all those who have to do with fire, in fact, are placed under the protection of the Saint.
But the fact that Santo Antuono has also been elected patron saint of pizza makers and on the occasion of his feast, which coincides with the day of the Pizza Day which is celebrated all over the world, the AVPN True Neapolitan Pizza Association organized a 24-hour marathon live streaming on Facebook and Instagram with a course of 22 masterclasses that will take place in 15 countries and 12 different languagesnts, a non-stop to tell about one of the most widespread and well-known products in the world.
Monday 17th morning we start with the lighting of the "fucarazzo" ritual of Sant'Antuono, at the Capodimonte headquarters in Naples by the managing director of the AVPN, Paolo Surace.
The first master class will take place in Australia at 00:30 (Italian time) and then via Korea, East and West Coast of the United States, Japan, Russia, Egypt, Dubai, La Réunion, Turkey, Germany, France, Spain, Poland , United Kingdom, Brazil until returning to Italy at 15 pm, for the conference and the assignment of the "Sant'Antuono Awards", an award sponsored by Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio's Univerde Foundation, to those representatives of the world of journalism and the media which, over the years, have particularly distinguished themselves in the promotion of the culture of Pizza.
The AVPN projects and the latest news scheduled for 2022 will also be presented, such as the introduction in the specification of rules aimed at Pizza "On the road" and fried pizza, an increasingly iconic Made in Italy product.
We will then continue with France and Spain and then again the United States, Brazil and Italy, where at 21:30 (Italian time) the pizza maker Antonio Starita flanked by the Vice-President Massimo Di Porzio will deepen the theme of fried pizza with a dedicated masterclass.
The live demonstrations will conclude in Australia, before returning to Naples for the final greetings.
Those who want to participate and try their hand, following the great master pizza makers, must obtain half a liter of water, 1 kg of 00 flour, fresh brewer's yeast, salt, peeled tomato, fiordilatte or mozzarella, extra virgin olive oil, basil and follow the advice of the most important interpreters of pizza in the world.
“After the success of the first edition – underlines AVPN President Antonio Pace – we have decided to relaunch with an even richer edition than the previous one, with more masterclasses, more countries involved, in many languages, such as Arabic, Korean, Turkish. The 2022 “Vera Pizza Day” will be a global event that will celebrate what many say is the most loved and most universal food product.”
It will be a special day, like the year ahead, full of appointments, with the hope that the pandemic situation will soon find a solution. AVPN is ready to resume its journey around the world to promote and disseminate a product that involves millions and millions of enthusiasts all over the planet.
The live broadcast and the masterclasses can be followed in real time by connecting to both the AVPN Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/verapizzanapoletana) but also to the Instagram one (https://www.instagram.com/pizzanapoletanaverace).
