TRIDUUM OF FEASTS – A wee bit of history

The Triduum of Feasts that St. Benedict’s celebrates every year started in 2006 when Fr. Kevin Willis, the first full time FSSP priest sent to St. Benedict’s Chapel, arrived in February 2006.  (Prior to Fr. Willis, Fr. Damian Abbaticchio, OSB was the part time chaplain on Sundays and Holy Days. He came for 1 or 2 years and stayed 13 years, dying at age 89 just 4 months after the arrival of Fr. Willis.  May he rest in peace. Hence our email address tie in.) Fr. Willis promptly organized our first “parish” gathering on Laetare Sunday of 2006 at St. Gregory the Great Cafeteria.    It was to be in honor of St. Joseph and there in that cafeteria we had our first primitive attempt at a St. Joseph Table.  It was at that gathering that St. Anne’s Sodality was formed with the election of the officers.  There also began the tradition of our Children’s Raffle and Dinner Raffle.  There, too, Father announced that after reviewing our situation in our little chapel, we would immediately pursue buying or building a new church.  To entreat heavenly favor and help, Fr. Willis began our tradition of the St. Joseph prayer at the Sunday Masses.And so began our “odyssey” which culminated in our new church being dedicated on March 5, 2011. The first mind numbing, bureaucratic half –getting the Bishop’s permission, raising the money, finding an architect, hiring a builder and a securing building permit took two years.  Just before the bulldozer arrived Fr. Willis went to a new assignment in Oklahoma and Fr. Nichols arrived in July of 2008. He steered us through the second hair pulling half of construction. In 2010, Fr. Nichols expanded our Laetare / St. Joseph celebration to include our patron saint, St. Benedict and of course, St. Patrick, the great Church Builder of Ireland.  Thus, our Triduum of Feasts was born. All three saints’ feast days are within a few days of each other: St. Patrick, March 17, St. Joseph, March 19, and St. Benedict, March 21.  The St. Joseph Table remained the centerpiece albeit a work in progress.  Every year we move forward in restoring all the aspects of the traditional St. Joseph Feast. For example, this feast is now “meatless” emphasizing the long-standing tradition of abstinence. Our St. Joseph’s Feast Table is adorned with beautifully crafted homemade bread shapes.  Each year we try to add something new to enhance the honor due to St. Joseph. In recent years we added the tradition of the Tupa Tupa (very young boy and girl who will represent the Blessed Mother and St. Joseph) and a beautiful St. Joseph’s cake.  (A little side story- a St. Joseph medal was buried in 2006 in the field where the new church now stands at the spot where the altar now sits.  After six building permits were rejected, we had the permit in hand on the seventh!  Using a metal detector, the medal was found in less than five minutes and given to Fr. Willis.) So, it is hoped with this wee bit of background you will enter into the spirit of our Triduum of Feasts – thanksgiving for favors granted, support for the good works of the Sodality and joyful anticipation of our Risen Lord in the company of your Catholic family here at St. Benedict’s Parish.  
Other Countries’ St. Joseph’s Traditions & Traditional St. Joseph Table Recipes
Den Svatého Josefa - Czech St. Joseph Day Traditions - Traditions transplanted to the United States..."the taverns serve red beer, the bakeries sell red bread, and the village is decorated with red flowers." The feast of St. Joseph also marks the beginning of spring in many countries. One Czech proverb, Pekne-li na Svatého Josefa, bývá dobrý rok...  Or, If it is nice on St. Joseph's Day, it will usually be a good year...
St. Joseph's Day and Swallows Day at San Juan Capistrano - In the United States, the State of California holds a unique ritual every St. Joseph's Day. March 19th marks the annual festival of the swallows returning to Mission San Juan Capistrano.
Starkbierzeit - Strong Beer Festival - In Germany, the monks celebrated St. Joseph's Day with a special strong beer brewed to supplement the diet of Lenten fasting. The modern celebration in Munich fills two weeks and usually falls around the feast of St. Joseph...
RECIPES
One of the lesser known facts about St. Joseph is his status as the patron saint of pastry cooks.  The St. Joseph Table usually abounds with a variety of pastries in shapes such as fruit and flowers and especially symbols of the Holy Family.

Minestrone (serves 4)1/4 cup olive oil 1 cup onion, finely chopped 1/2 cup celery, with leaves, chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 28-ounce can of tomatoes, with juice 1 large can white beans (Cannellini beans or Navy beans) 5 cups beef or vegetable stock 1/2 cup flat parsley, finely chopped 1 cup finely sliced, then roughly chopped Swiss Chard (or spinach or cabbage, or some combination) 2 zucchini, unpeeled and cut into little cubes 1/2 cup small pasta (like ditalini) For garnish: freshly-grated Parmesan cheese Sauté the onion and celery in the oil till wilted, toss in garlic and stir for a minute, then put in cut-up tomatoes and cook down for about 10 minutes to concentrate flavors. Stir in beef stock, reserved tomato juice, and beans and bring to a boil. Add half the parsley, lower heat, and cook for about 30 minutes. Add Swiss chard (or spinach or cabbage), zucchini, and pasta and cook at a gentle boil until pasta is tender. When ready to serve, stir in the rest of the parsley. Season to taste and grate in some black pepper. Ladle into bowls and serve with the parmesan and a crusty bread.

Zeppole di San Giuseppe(Makes about 12 (2-1/2-inch) zeppoles Fillings for ZeppoleYou can fill zeppoli after they are fried and cooled. Put the filling in a pastry bag with a plain tube with a 1/2-inch opening.Push the tip into the side of each zeppoli and squeeze some of the filling inside.Alternately, you can cut the zeppoli almost in half and spoon some of the filling into the center.Ricotta Filling:3 cups ricotta cheese1 cup sugar2 teaspoons vanilla extract1 tablespoon grated orange zest1 tablespoon grated lemon zestCombine all the ingredients with an electric mixer.Refrigerate for 30 minutes before filling zeppoli.Limoncello Cream Filling:Use the filling recipe in Zeppoli di San Giuseppe above, but ... omit the rum, orange zest, and vanilla, and add lemon zest and limoncello instead. You can add the whipped cream or omit it.

Pasta di San Giuseppe (pasta with breadcrumbs that symbolize sawdust) Note: This recipe came from my parish's website, and was said to be in tribute of "Mamma Giglio." I don't know who Mamma Giglio is, but I don't want to omit the dedication to an Italian Mamma!

Sfinge di San Giuseppe (St. Joseph’s Cream Puffs)Put water, butter, granulated sugar, lemon rind, and salt in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, and as soon as the butter has melted, remove from heat. Add the flour all at once, stirring constantly and with vigor. Return the pan to the heat, and stir constantly until the mixture forms a ball and comes away from the sides of the pan. Cook just a little longer, until you hear a slight crackling, frying sound. Remove the pan from the heat, and cool slightly. Add the eggs, one at a time. Be sure that each egg is thoroughly blended into the mixture before you add the next. Stir until smooth and thoroughly blended . Add the Cognac or vanilla. Cover the dough and let it stand for 15 to 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400º F. Drop the dough by heaping tablespoonsful on a buttered cookie sheet or onto parchment-lined sheet (better!), leaving 2 inches between the sfinge. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool.Filling: Mix the ricotta, confectioners' sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, chocolate, and pistachios. Just before serving (so they don't get soggy!), cut off the tops of the sfinge and fill; place top back on after filling. Arrange on platter, sprinkle with powdered sugar to make them pretty, and garnish platter with lemon rind.

St. Joseph’s Day Bread (Makes 1 loaf – approx. 18 inches in length)Stir the yeast into the warm milk and allow to rest for 10 minutes.Pour the yeast mixture into the bowl of an electric mixer.Add 1 cup of flour, sugar, salt, and melted butter.Beat the mixture with the paddle attachment for 2 minutes.Add the eggs, anise seed or extract, and another cup of flour.Beat for 2 more minutes.Change from the paddle attachment to a dough hook.Add the remaining flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until the dough starts to come together.You may not need to add all of the flour.Then allow the dough hook to knead the dough on medium for 3 to 4 minutesTransfer the dough to a greased bowl. Cover and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.Punch the dough down and divide it into 2 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 20 - 22-inch rope. Place the 2 ropes on a parchment lined baking sheet. Loosely twist the ropes together, tucking the ends under. Cover and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 – 40 minutes.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.Brush the loaf with the egg wash and sprinkle liberally with sesame seeds.Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden brown.Transfer to a wire rack to cool.