Today is a great feast in Positano for San Vito, the blessing of the dogs was repeated

The long-awaited event was held at noon in the churchyard of the Church of Santa Maria Assunta which welcomed adults and children accompanied by quadrupeds, dogs of all breeds and sizes, ready to receive their blessing. Before the ceremony began, each owner was given a yellow cape for their little dog, accompanied by the priest’s blessing with holy water.
The joy of this celebration is even more alive in 2022, after two years of the pandemic, especially given the anti-covid regulations.

According to tradition, the patron saint San Vito martyr was born in Sicily to a pagan family. Orphaned by his mother and entrusted to the care of the nurse Crescenzi and the teacher Modesto, he approached the Christian faith from an early age that from that moment, despite the disagreement of his father and the tortures of Diocletian, he will never abandon during his life.

Like San Pantaleone, the patron saint of nearby Ravello, San Vito has considered one of the 14 auxiliary saints or one of those saints invoked above all to heal from particular diseases. San Vito is venerated both in Italy and abroad and it is curious to know that the patron saint of Positano, a village that fascinated great dancers such as Massine and Nureyev, is also considered the protector of dancers.

The bond between the Saint and man’s best friend is sanctioned by the legend that tells that Emperor Diocletian tried to torture the young Vito and, among all things, threw at him one or more dogs suffering from rabies that not only did not they bit the young man but were healed by the latter. From that moment, therefore, the image of San Vito would be associated with that of man’s best friend, the dog.