S. Lackovits Emőke: Az egyházi esztendő jeles napjai, ünnepi szokásai a bakonyi és Balaton- felvidéki falvakban (Veszprém, 2000)

Festivals, holidays and customs of the ecclesiastical year

with the Host in the procession. The members practised under the direction and organisation of the pirger captain before Corpus Christi, and under his leadership took part in the ceremony. On the evening of Corpus Christi, the pirger ball was held, where only „wives and men" i.e. married people could be present. The pirger custom developed from the practices of former young men's gilds, and by the end of the 1940s had been discontinued everywhere. Our pictures were taken in Barnag and Vöröstó between 1930-1940. XVII. Feasts of Mary The ecclesiastical year from advent to advent is interwoven with feasts and special days in honour of Mary. The exceptional love and respect due to the mother of Jesus Christ is expressed in the particular richness of popular religion in connection with the Virgin Mary. The veneration of the Virgin Mother became deeply rooted in the religion of the Hungarian people at the time of the struggle against the Turks, and the influence can still be felt today. Between the feasts of Mary, two whole months are dedicated to the Mother of God: May and October. Throughout May in most villages even today, May litanies are held daily in the evenings in honour of the Holy Virgin, her altars covered with a sea of flowers. Even in the communities where there was no local priest, the litany was always held. In Kiscsősz, a peculiar variant of these May prayer gatherings has come into being. Half of the village holds the litany every evening in the church under the direction of the prayer leader, whilst the other half gathers by the crucifix in the lower village. Throughout the month, the women decorate the cross and the statue of Mary at its foot with flowers, and place cut flowers in vases around the ledge of the crucifix. Benches are positioned by the crucifix every evening, on which the participants may sit, and after the litany they are taken into the house behind. After the animals have been fed and the housework finished, the devotions begin at 8 o'clock in the evening under the direction of the prayer leader. They pray the Rosary and sing songs to Mary. Between the two world wars the May litanies were held in the same way, but when they were over, only the women went home. The men stayed outside to talk, and the old men to smoke their pipes. These occasions were opportunities for the young people to meet and enjoy themselves. XVIII. Holidays in the course of the year The rich festival and tradition world of the ecclesiastical year has also made room for holidays of lesser significance. These were worthy of attention from the point of view of agriculture and everyday life, and important for individuals and communities, for whom the conditions of existence were signified by the guarantee of life and produce. In the interests of this, besides magical practices, they did not cease to ask for the mediation and help of the saints, by carrying out cere-