Our tour of the United States takes us this time west to the Centennial State: Colorado. Here, too, there is a vibrant community that celebrates Italy, gathered around a successful magazine that for exactly 10 years has been led by a young Italian American, Jenna Capra.  We thank her three times: because with the magazine she directs, Andiamo! she...

They've been a tradition since the late 1800s, when Sicilian immigrants settled in New Orleans, and they're still going on, pandemic aside. Elaborate St. Joseph's Altars are unveiled every March 19, as Catholics mark the feast day of the saint who provided relief during a famine in Sicily. There are some changes: Fewer meals will be served, and mas...

Let me start by saying that I have no animosity towards the Irish. Even though my first wife was Irish, I hold no grudge against all of those from the Emerald Isle. I even think that Lucky Charms are magically delicious. However, I am not Irish even on St. Patrick’s Day. When I was a kid, every year, the good sisters of Saint Joseph told all these...

Italians and Americans have plenty of things in common, but there is one they don’t share: Father’s Day.  To be truthful, it’s not only the US and Italy that celebrate their dads on different times of the year, because Father’s Day — unlike children’s undying love for their papà —   is not the same everywhere: in the United States, it falls on the...

Volunteers who have been building a St. Joseph’s Altar at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church for more than two decades recently announced that this year’s celebration honoring St. Joseph has been canceled due to continuing concerns about the possible spread of the coronavirus. Rosie Moak, who has chaired the erection of the altar and the ext...

St. Joseph tables are often seen in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph on and around the March 19 Solemnity of St. Joseph. Below is a list of some tables and other events occurring for the feast; details on the history and symbolism of the St. Joseph table (along with other St. Joseph related content) can be found on the Year of St. Joseph webpa...

This exhibition explores the cultural-religious tradition of St. Joseph’s Tables, which are among the richest expressions of Italian American cultural identity and embody a living tradition that has transcended ethnic lines. St. Joseph is among the most venerated saints in Christianity; he is the patron saint of immigrants, workers, unborn children...

On Monday March 16th Arthur Brocato and staff came in on their normally closed day to build their annual St. Joseph’s Altar. Just as they were finishing, the city announced restaurants and bars would be closed to inside dining. Arthur made a decision to move the altar from the back of the gelato parlor to the front window of the store. A customer p...

IN THE MIDDLE AGES, THE story goes, a great famine ravaged Sicily. Peasants starved. The rain refused to come. In desperation, villagers prayed to Saint Joseph, the Biblical carpenter whom Christians believe to be Jesus Christ’s earthly foster father. If the Saint would intervene on their behalf, the Sicilian people promised, they would honor him w...

The Italian American Museum of Los Angeles is featuring an exhibition – "St. Joseph's Tables: Expressions of Devotion, Charity and Abundance" - that features Pueblo in its exploration of Italian American cultural identity in a centuries-old tradition. The exhibition, which opened last week and continues through May 17, traces the history of St. Jos...