Saint John's Eve
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The evening of June 23, St John's Eve, is the eve of celebration before the Feast Day of St John the Baptist. The Gospel of Luke (Luke 1:36, 56–57) states that John was born about six months before Jesus, therefore the feast of John the Baptist was fixed on June 24, six months before Christmas. This feast day is one of the very few saints' days to mark the supposed anniversary of the birth, rather than the death, of the saint commemorated.
The Feast of St John coincides with the June solstice also referred to as Midsummer. The Christian holy day is fixed at June 24, but, in some countries, festivities are celebrated the night before, on St John's Eve.
Ireland
St John's Eve (or Oiche Fheile Eoin) is celebrated in many parts of Ireland with the lighting of bonfires. This ancient custom has its roots in pre-Christian Irish society when the Celts honored the Goddess Áine, the Celtic equivalent of Venus and Aphrodite. She was the Goddess Queen of Munster and Christianised rituals in her honour (as Naomh Áine) took place until the nineteenth century on Knockainy, (Cnoc Áine – the Hill of Áine) in County Limerick.
During the festival, people would say prayers, asking for God's blessing upon their crops. They would also take ashes from the fire, and spread them over their land as a blessing for protection for their crops. It was also common to have music, singing, dancing, and games during the festival. The fire was used for destroying small objects of piety (rosary beads, statues, etc.) without disrespecting God. It was also common for people to jump through the flames of the bonfire for good luck.
In Thomas Flanagan's The Year of the French, the ancient festival of St John's Eve takes place. The book is set during the Irish rebellion of 1798. Here is an excerpt from The Year of the French:
Soon it would be Saint John's Eve. Wood for the bonfire had already been piled high upon Steeple HIll, and when the night came there would be bonfires on every hill from there to Downpatrick Head. There would be dancing and games in the open air, and young men would try their bravery leaping through the flames. There would even be young girls leaping through, for it was helpful in the search of a husband to leap through a Saint John's Eve fire, the fires of midsummer. The sun was at its highest then, and the fires spoke to it, calling it down upon the crops. It was the turning point of the year, and the air was vibrant with spirits. –The Year of the French
Some regions of Ireland follow a custom seemingly inspired by the activity from which this saint takes his title, Baptist (more accurately, Baptizer). They head to the ocean and immerse themselves in its waters. In this, they imitate the original form of baptism practiced by St John, as well as by the early Christians.
Outside of Ireland
The feast day of Saint John the Baptist was a very popular event in the ancien régime of France, and it is still celebrated as a religious feast day in several countries, like Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
The tradition landed in Canada with the first French colonists. According to the Jesuit Relations, the first celebrations occurred on the banks of the Saint Lawrence River on the evening of June 23, 1636 with a bonfire and five cannon shots.
Historically, this date has been venerated in the practice of Voodoo. The famous Voodoo priestess Marie Laveau was said to have held ceremonies involving Voodoo ritual on the Bayou St John in New Orleans, commemorating St John's Eve. Modern day practitioners of Voodoo have kept the tradition alive.
Similar festivities take place in Scandinavia. Bonfires are lit and effigees burned on the evening of June 23. People jump over the bonfires to prove their courage. Traditionally, three jumps cleanses one from sin and disease. One of the centers of the festival is in Ciutadella; but many different cities and towns have their own unique traditions associated with the festival. In recent years, public celebrations have begun cordoning off the fires for safety reasons.
The Johnsmas Foy festivities on the Shetland Isles (north of Scotland), where the people are still proud of their Nordic roots also take place in the week building up to the 23rd/24th June. These may also have their origins in the Scandinavian St John's Eve fetivities.
Brazil has the largest St John's festivities in the globe, ("Festas Juninas") with parties all over the country. The Northeastern region of Brazil concentrates the most elaborated parties, more specifically in the cities of Caruaru-Pernambuco, Campina Grande-Paraiba, Salvador-Bahia and in smaller cities like Cruz das Almas, Ibicui, Jequie and Ilheus also in Bahia.
In the evening on June 23, Catholics all over Brazil light a big fire, symbolizing a Catholic tale: During a conversation, John's mother, Elizabeth, agreed to light a big fire to notify her cousin Mary (mother of Jesus) that she had given birth, that she might get post-partum assistance from her cousin.
In Catalonia, Valencian Community, the Basque Country and Galicia, ancient pre-Christian traditions related to fire festivities are still among the most popular. Bonfires are lit in the streets or on the sand of the beaches, the rituals are jumping over the fire, touch the water that is blessed in the night or asking for some wishes, and there are fireworks too. Special meals are also served on this occasion.
On the island of Puerto Rico, originally named San Juan Batista, after the saint, by Christopher Columbus, a weekend-long celebration is held. There are parades, food, and many parties. After sunset, people travel to a beach or any accessible body of water (e.g. river, lake or even bathtub) and, at midnight, fall backwards into it seven times. This is done to cleanse the body from sin and give good luck for the following year.
Many, however, simply go to the beach to immerse themselves, in the same manner as the Irish. This feast, occurring at the start of summer in a tropical climate, it would also seem to be an activity which brought relief to the early colonists from the oppressive heat, in addition to its spiritual significance.
In Poland the festival is known as 'sobótki'. Traditional folk rituals include groups of young men and women singing ritual songs to each other. The young women may wear crowns fashioned from wild flowers, which are later thrown into a nearby pond or lake. The boys/young men may then swim out to claim one of the crowns. Bonfires (and bonfire jumping) are also part of the proceedings.
In Latvia the festival is known as Jāņi.
The town of Midsomer Norton, in Somerset, England, is said to be named after the Feast Day of St John the Baptist, which is also the parish church.
See also
- Midsummer
- St Mark's Eve
- Golowan
- True and Untrue
- St. John's Eve (short story), a short story by Gogol