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A Holy Week procession (Settimana Santa) is an event taking place in Holy Week, most often in a country with traditional Roman Catholic culture. This tradition goes back a long way, to a Christian use in medieval times and in some cases there are testimonies dating back to the XVI century. The Easter period is an incredibly important time in the calendar of this largely Roman Catholic nation, and events are used to mark the occasion throughout Italy. One of the most important of these occurs in Rome on Good Friday, when the Pope leads a procession past the Colosseum and the Roman Forum right up to the ancient Palatine Hill. Then on Easter Sunday the Pontiff holds Mass and gives a blessing to the crowd from the balcony of St Peter's Basilica.
Around of the country Italians celebrate the Easter period with processions and plays depicting Christ's final hours. Easter feasts are also a part of Italian celebrations; typical fare includes spring lambs and lots of sweet bread, cakes and special chocolates.
In today's world where the festivals can often be taken for granted as just a great party, it is the novena, and the other religious aspects that keep the true link to the past alive. Our secular society is often at odds with the value systems that brought about these religious festivals and yet it seems that the younger generations still enjoy participating. The older generations often lament the loss of faith in the young people and wonder how religious festivals can survive without losing their soul. However, the fact is nothing in human culture is static and every generation celebrates in their own way, often against the wishes of the elders. Some of the larger festivals have become annual tourist attractions, bringing in needed revenue to the old Italian American communities that hold the events and often benefiting the city as a whole.
