is not the day
that a light is allowed to burn everywhere.
Due to the corona virus,
some safety regions do not recommend
going through the doors.
In other places the children do go singing lanterns along the doors, hoping to collect a lot of sweets.
But what are we actually celebrating on this holiday?
and who was Saint Martin?
Just a fairy tale or reality?
The real story about Saint Martin:
Saint Martin of Tours, was born in 316 in Savaria, Hungary.
Martin joined the Roman army.
Legend has it that he found a beggar at the city gates of the French city of Amiens.
Maarten felt sorry for the man.
He drew his sword,
cut his red cloak in two,
and gave half to the beggar.
This beggar is said to be the embodiment of Jesus
and said, ‘I was naked and you clothed me.’
Martin became a christian
and founded the first French monastery in Poitiers.
In 371 he was elected bishop of Tours.
On November 8,397, he died in Candes-Saint-Martin
After his death he became more and more worshiped
in the Middle Ages he was a very popular saint
The 11 November is the official Feastday of Saint Martin
It is annually celebrated.
Saint Martin is celebrated in (parts of)the Netherlands,
Flanders, Northern France and parts of Germany.
Each region has its own customs
It is a fixed tradition that children go door to door with lanterns and sing Saint Martin’s songs,
after which they are rewarded with sweets.
Other traditions include lighting bonfires and organizing processions.
The party seems to be growing in popularity again in recent years.
In Amsterdam, for example, the party had not been celebrated for hundreds of years, until it suddenly appeared in the suburbs.
At the beginning of this century,
the first lanterns reappeared on the canals
and now ‘Sint Maartenloop’ is once again a living tradition in Amsterdam, a special walk on Saint Martin’s Day 11 November.
© Sylvia Frances Chan – All Rights Reserved
Wednesday 11 November 2020