Saint Stephen the First Martyr is the patron saint of Motovun. The church on the upper square is dedicated to him. He is celebrated the first Sunday after August 3, which is the actual date of the feast. Last year this date fell on a Sunday, and it was thus celebrated on that particular day, while this year it fell on last Monday. But a quick search on the World Wide Web shows that Saint Stephen is celebrated on Boxing Day, which falls on December 26, across much of the Christian world in the west, and on December 27 in the east. However, the magical date is August 20 in Hungary, and Saint Stephen is a major saint there in connection with a famous king of that name. Just like in Motovun, it is celebrated on August 3 in several other Croatian towns, such as Opuzen close to the Neretva River in southern Dalmatia. Whence so many dates, though? The simple answer is that not even the Catholic church could hope to keep its fickle flock in line on such a simple thing as the saint’s date. Add the Orthodox and Protestant churches, and the problem gets even more complicated. In fact, it is a miracle Saint Stephen’s Day is not all over the calendar by now. After a few more millennia, it surely will be.

Addendum (August 3, 2024)

As it happens, today is Saturday, and Saint Stephen will be celebrated in Motovun on both weekend days, for the feast has been pushed aside by the erstwhile film festival (“The Twenty-Fifth Motovun Film Festival,” July 31, 2023). Remembering this piece of writing, earlier today I searched for the fabulous saint on the World Wide Web one more time. This time around, I was a bit more careful, too. As it turns out, today’s date commemorates the finding of the relics of Saint Stephen by a priest named Lucian. According to several credible sources, this used to be the second feast of the First Martyr, but it was later removed from the calendar of the Catholic church. For all my efforts, I could not figure out what was the reason for this belated removal. One way or another, Motovun will be lively this weekend. The only fly in the ointment is fickle weather. After a long and grueling heat wave, there has been sporadic rain the last few days. But that only means that there will be many more tourists in the hilltown, for they tend to stay close to the sea while the sun is shining and wonder around the Istrian peninsula’s interior whenever ominous clouds cover the sky. Three cheers for the patron saint of Motovun!