In praise of Saint Sara
Gypsies converge in southern France to honor their patron
By: Leah Larkin"Vive Sainte Sara. Vive Sainte Sara. Priez pour nous (Pray for us)" they chant in sing-song unison as they march behind a tiny statue surrounded by cowboys riding white horses. In between the chants, they sing sacred songs as they make their way through crowded narrow streets to the sea. Visitors are given song sheets with the words so they can join in this curious Gypsy ritual, a blend of religion and revelry.
The procession of St. Sara, the patron saint of Gypsies, takes place every May 24 as part of the pilgrimage festival in her honor in the town of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, a beach town in southern France's Camargue region.
The Camargue, a vast wetlands delta, is known for its rice paddies and salt production, as well as pink flamingos, black bulls, famous white horses - and saints.
Last year some 25,000 Gypsies and visitors converged on Saintes-Marie-de-la-Mer for the religious event which is actually a two-day festival, May 25 reserved for honoring the "Maries" or Marys, Mary-Jacobe and Mary Salome, for whom the town is named.
Parking lots surrounding the town swell with campers, many set up complete with canopied terraces, whose residents settle in to worship, socialize and sing during the festival. Camera laden tourists also abound, trailing behind the more colorful festival goers who are decked out in long colorful skirts topped with frilly blouses, shawls and jewelry.
"Saint Sara helps us, blesses us, protects us," said Marie Offman, a Gypsy from Clermont Ferand, who joined the pilgrimage with her husband, three children and dog in the family camper. Visiting with her at the campsite was Angeline Winaud, also from Clermont, who called herself "a person of travel," and said she has been coming to the festival every year for the past 35 years. It was the 11th festival visit for a group of Belgians, who were having a picnic and drinking wine in front of their trailer. They like to socialize, they said, but they also come to pray to St. Sara. "We do a lot of pilgrimages. St. Sara protects people who travel," remarked one of the jovial group.
No one really knows the origins of St. Sara. According to one theory, she was the servant of Mary Jacobe, the sister of the Virgin, and Mary Salome, the mother of the apostles James Major and John. The Marys, accompanied by other refugees who were escaping religious persecution, set sail from Jerusalem in the year 40 in a boat without sail, oars or supplies. Sara was left behind, but she cried out and one of the Marys threw her coat onto the water. Sara stepped onto the coat which bore her to the boat.
The group drifted at sea until they reached the shore of the Camargue where they built a small oratory. Sara is said to have traveled through the Camargue begging for alms for a small Christian community which is why early writers called her a gitane or Gypsy. The three women were buried in the oratory and their tomb became a cult object, a pilgrimage attraction for the past 19 centuries.
Notre Dame de la Mer, a fortified church, replaced the oratory in the 9th century, but it's the dingy underground crypt below the church that draws the crowds. There in a corner stands the small, but revered statue of St. Sara, whom the Catholic Church does not recognize as a saint, hence the statue is not permitted to touch holy ground and must remain underneath the church.
Pilgrims wait in line to stoop down into the crypt where thousands of candles burn around the statue whose tiny black face peers above layers of cloaks that drape her body. According to some theories, Sara was Egyptian which explains why she is depicted with black skin. The devotees reach out to touch her, to kiss her. They leave behind papers on which they've written their petitions. They light more candles which add to the heat in the stifling vault. Some even break down and cry at the sight of Sara.
On her name day, May 24, the Sara statue is brought from the crypt and is permitted to enter the church where a Mass is held before the religious parade begins. The church can't accommodate the crowds, so they gather around outside, even on the church roof, waiting, some for as long as three hours, for their chance to see the statue then follow it through town. The atmosphere is more party than holy, as if a rock star were about to appear.
"It's a nice gathering of people from all over the world," said a man crouched on a fence in front of the church. He said he was originally from the area, but had left many years ago and gone to Africa. "The story of Saint Sara is not true," he added, but it doesn't matter. "She's the patron of travelers and Gypsies."
The crowd is pushed back to make room for the gardians, the cowboys wearing black hats and carrying long staffs, who arrive on their white Camargue horses to guard the curious effigy as it emerges from the church. The crowd cheers and shouts, pushes and shoves, almost in a frenzy. Everyone wants to get closer.
Slowly the gardians clear a path and lead Sara, followed by throngs of fans, to the seashore where she is carried into the water. The beach is a mass of humanity, all straining for views of the pageant. It's as if they expect something miraculous to happen. Many even follow the statue into the sea. But her foray into the water is brief, and she then is paraded back to her underground home.
I had read that in the evening after the procession the Gypsies gather in the streets to play violins and guitars and sing and dance. Last year, however, I saw only a few guitarists. One played as two young girls pathetically attempted a sexy dance. Groups of young hung around. Lorraine Rawls, a woman from Oregon who said she was doing research for a book on the gardians, told me that every night during the festival there are murders as rival Gypsy gangs do battle during the festival. A tourist office spokesperson acknowledged that there are fights, but said there were no murders. I saw no violence.
Following Sara's festival day is the day to honor the Marys. There is also a procession leading the two statues to the water with the same fervor and fever of the preceding day. In addition to the gardians flanking the icons, the Marys are followed by Arlesiennes, women wearing the traditional costume of the area, many carrying parasols.
"It's like a meeting place," said Rawls "They (the Gypsies) come to connect with one another. For some it's a religious experience.There are a lot of layers of culture here."
For more information on Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer and the Saint Sara festival, see www.saintesmaries.com
