Until Next Year: The Feast Of Saint Blaise Solemnly Closes

The closing ceremony of the 1049th Feast of St. Blaise began with a pilgrimage to Gorica Sv.Vlaha accompanied by trombonists, flag bearers, festivities and clergy where they celebrated the Holy Mass.

As Maja Nodari tells DuList, according to legend, in the 11th century, the people of Dubrovnik built the votive Church of St. Blaise on the hill of Gorica, making it possibly the oldest church dedicated to St. Blaise outside the city walls. Numerous sources testify to this church, the oldest from 1255. Today’s church was rebuilt on the old foundations in 1857 and has only recently been archaeologically researched and thoroughly renovated thanks to the benevolence of the Society of Friends of Dubrovnik Antiquities.

After the Mass, the procession of pilgrims headed out to the City, where they were welcomed by the rector Don Hrvoje Katušić, in front of the church of St. Blaise as they, with the echo of the trombone and the singing of the anthem, lowered the patron’s flag from the pillar officially ending this year’s Feast.