Brava: Community of Furna celebrates feast of patron saint Nossa Senhora dos Navegantes

Speaking to Inforpress, Lídia Baptista, a member of the commission that organizes the religious activities, said that the feast of Nossa Senhora dos Navegantes is celebrated with a procession at sea and in addition to fishermen, people from different locations on the island will participate and then the popular lunch.

Jorge Pina, a fisherman with some knowledge of this tradition, told Inforpress that this day arose from a promise that a man who was traveling made to this saint.

According to this fisherman, the traveler suffered a shipwreck and promised Nossa Senhora dos Navegantes that if she put him ashore alive, he would build a chapel.

And in fact, according to the same source, he managed to save himself and upon reaching Furna, he built a small chapel, which stayed there for many years.

Afterwards, he said that the Capuchin priests arrived on the island, who expanded this chapel and started this tradition and the procession at sea.

Over time, they began to take the saint out of the church around nine o'clock in the morning of the day the mass is celebrated, they make a procession to the fish beach, put the saint in a boat that they will sink at the tip of Cadjetinha.

“The boat is sunk, around three o'clock, people arrive from all over the island, to accompany Our Lady in the procession and all the fishing boats, accompany the boat that takes the saint, the priests and the people who go praying and singing”, said Jorge Pina.

According to the same, they call this ritual a procession in the bay and after making three or four turns, they return to the pier and four boys, dressed in blue, take the saint, carry out the procession from the pier to the church, and once there, the priest makes the Eucharistic celebration.

Right after the religious rituals, he highlighted, there is 'eat and drink' served to everyone in the area.

However, he remembered and regretted that in the past it was a “no kidding” crowd, but that tradition is slowly being lost.

“Every day we go out to work, we ask her to intercede for us, to guide and protect us along the way so that we can return home safe and sound. We have faith in her and she has never let us down”, emphasized the fisherman.

“This saint is a saint of protection and help for those who live at sea, so much so that, he said, fishermen, when they are at sea and something happens or they face some bad weather, put their hand up, praying and asking for protection of the saint.