HOLY SATURDAY FOOD BELSSING IN YOUR AREA?

If there are parishes in your area that perform the Holy Saturday blessing of Easter baskets, where does the blessing take place? Indoors or out? Are baskets placed in the aisle, kept in the pew, taken up to the altar or set on a special table? In Poland they are mostly placed on specially set-up tables indoors or out, depending on the weather.

What do typical baskets contain?

This is just about a thing of the past in America. At one time many years ago when there were still Polish churches in most big cities, it was a common sight to see people going to church for the basket blessing. With the changes in the old Polish neighborhoods due to minority intrusion, people were afraid to go to church and moved to the suburbs. Without a congregation the Polish churches were closed.

Dyngus is just a memory still remembered by the remain older generation

In some places (Metro Detroit for example), the food-blessing has moved to the suburbs. Even non-Polish parishes introduce it if a group of parishioners request it. Non-Polonians exposed to the custom generally find it interesting and some start bringing their own baskets for the blessing. I don't know whether this is the case in other metropoltian areas.

REPOST:

If you want traditions, keep them. If they have been lost in only the last generation or so, ask your parents why they didn't observe their traditions to pass on to you.

I saw plenty of baskets in in the Polish areas of Chicago today. We take the basket to the church, but the blessing is done in the school gym. It's been that way for at least 40 years.

Dyngus Day is still big in a few areas. South Bend, Indiana and Buffalo, New York in particular. In the South Bend area, there are bus trips that go to several pubs in the area.

The Polish church in Mississauga (outside of Toronto) does the blessing in the cultural center adjacent the church. You line up with a gajillion families with baskets and when the door opens, you rush into the room to find the tables set up in the shape of a "U". Place the baskets on the table, the priests come in and say a few words, then they bless the baskets (and if you are lucky to be close enough) you get blessed too. This goes on for hours, multiple blessings - must be a Polish tradition....

The church that our kid's school is affiliated with does it a little different. One blessing (was today at 10:30), in the church, drop your basket off on the stairs leading to the altar, take a seat, say a small prayer, priest comes in and says a few words and blesses all the baskets. End of. Pick up your basket and go home. That's the one we did today.

I remember as a kid I hated taking the basket for the blessing. There would be several of us kids walking to church, but not talking, even if several of us were "escorting" one basket. We were scared our fathers would find out we didn't take it seriously. This was 25-30 years ago. I'm 41 years old. Yesterday, I'm talking to a buddy of mine. He's 80 years old. It was the same way when he was a kid. It was hilarious. He had the same funny stories I had. That basket had better come home in the exact same condition your mother packed it. No talking. The gossip ladies in the neighborhood would report your every move and mannerism back to your parents.

Here in Denver, Colorado the Święconka tradition is alive and well. Today St Joseph's Polish Church had 4 different service times to have your basket blessed, and the church was full. We fill our basket with kiełbasa, a small ham (szanka), eggs, salt, horseradish, a babka, cheese, a candle, some greenery, butter and a lamb-shaped cake.

After a brief service describing the symbolism of each thing in the basket (all in Polish of course), the priest came down the aisle to bless the baskets with holy water.

Polonia in Denver is a vibrant, growing and active community. My children attend Polish School on Sundays and dance in the Polish Folk Dance group Krakowiacy on Friday nights. The church, rectory and school is in a section of Denver that used to be the eastern european immigrant section of Denver 100 years ago, but is now hispanic. However, the church is probably larger now than ever in it's history as Poles continue to drive in from the suburbs each week. Since the church is probably 90% first/second generation Polonia, it is like walking into Poland on the weekends.

It's good to hear the food blessing custom is alive and well. Otherwise, for many Easter would be little more than the worship of the mythical egg-laying hare of the Germanic goddness of spring, Eostre, in all its jelly-bean and choco-commercialised manifestations.

I see you're from East Chicago. How is East Chicago these days?

I had no idea we invaded Denver as well. Would it be safe to assume that most of them are highlanders?

The catholic church in my suburb also had a small, basket blessing event, so the locals would not have to drive to other suburbs or to the city.

It's fine for my wife and I. My wife and I don't have children (she has a daughter and grand daughter in Gdansk) so we don't have to be directly concerned with poor schools, drugs, etc. There are still plenty of Polish people here in town, although many, but not all are senior citizens. On our street there are several Polish speakers, icluding an immigrant family. There was a Doma shipping store a block from the house that just closed. There are a few Polish stores in the area, but none in East Chocago. Munster has a lot of Polish immigrants, as does the Crown Point area. I'm of the opinion that these new immigrants are well educated, or skilled tradesmen. They don't need the mill jobs, not that there are any. On an aside, as mill workers age, and most are close to retirement age, there will be plenty of mill jobs. Many of those jobs, believe it or not, require some college. Perhaps the city can couple with the mills, and draw people back to the city.

Overall, East Chicago's decline from the late 1970's has continued. The mills and steel industry in general only employ a fraction of the people they once did. I'm not sure how much you know of East Chicago; in addition to the decline in industry, the bars and social clubs have also declined considerably. I know that South Bend has maintained clubs and the like. The casino industry has killed off the social clubs that at one time were hubs of the community.

Several churches still offer Polish mass. The most surprising one to me is St. Hedwigs in Gary.

What's your connection (if any) to East Chicago?

EastChicago is where my my father's side of the family settled to after immigrating from the old country.

I remember taking the South Shore to my grandmother's sister's house when I was small.