The cult of San Silverio from the island of Ponza to New York

The cult of San Silverio in Ponza is linked to the events of his troubled pontificate and a life that ended in exile, after being forced to leave the papal throne. Silverio was deported to the island of Ponza where he died of starvation. The proclamation as patron saint of Ponza and protector of sailors dates back to the end of the 1700s when the church dedicated to him was built.

New Year’s Eve celebrations from Ponza Island to New York

Every year, in June, the celebrations in honor of San Silverio are celebrated and, the religious celebrations attract all the people of Ponza and
residents outside the island. The statue of San Silverio is placed on a gozzo, a typical Ponza boat full of red carnations and carried in procession accompanied by civil, religious and military authorities with the performance of the local band. During the journey the devotees throw notes praising the Saint, the streets involved in the passage of the procession are decorated with myrtle festoons. On the way back, after the procession at sea, the ritual throwing of carnations to the crowd takes place in the churchyard which, symbolically, wants to reach the Ponzesi scattered around the world.

At the beginning of the 900s, hundreds of Ponzesi emigrated to New York and settled in the Bronx. They worked in all sectors, especially in construction and commerce. Within a few years they created a “Little Ponza” that stretched from East 149^ Street to 156^ Street, along Morris Avenue and Park Avenue. More than a thousand families called “Little Ponza” their home for three generations and counting. Here they built a church dedicated to San Silverio, later transformed into a sanctuary and founded the club of the “S. Silverio Shrine association”, with a picnic shelter, playground, swimming pool, tennis courts and baseball field and named the streets after Ventotene, Palmarola and Zannone. Every year many faithful come to New York from all over the United States and Canada to participate in the feast dedicated to St. Silverio.

On June 20, the traditional Ponza procession is reproduced, with the saint enthroned on the boat carried on the shoulders of the faithful. In those situations, a strange language is spoken between Ponzese, English and Italian. The procession is opened by the Italian, American and Pontifical flags. One
another ‘stars and stripes’ flag is carried by hand by the children of the First Communion, dressed in blue dresses, long trousers, and, on the arm, a white sash with a bow. The appearance of the statue in the churchyard is greeted by the reproduction of the sound of the sirens of the ships at anchor in Ponza, of course there is no lack of firecrackers.

The Sanctuary remains the focal point for the heirs and descendants of those heroic Ponzesi who unfurled the sails from that small rock in the middle of the sea to live in a new unknown land, shaping generations of new lives, in the true sense of a miracle of San Silverio. Every year the statue of S. Silverio participates in Columbus Day in New York parading through the great streets of Manhattan accompanied by the colors of Italy and red carnations.