Ethical management and socio-cultural impacts of the Rites of Holy Week. A case of study in the Puglia region (Italy)

In some cities of the Puglia region, as in many parts of Italy, Spain and Portugal, Holy Week is characterised by significant expressions of devotion linked to the celebration of religious rites, performed in a manner that is highly moving for the onlookers, in a sort of collective mourning marked by the hushed involvement of the crowds. An important role is played in these by the “confraternities”, public associations of worshippers, initially created to promote worship and acts of charity, penitence and a form of evangelism that was not disconnected from the culture of the ordinary people. The success and the distinctiveness of the rites in Taranto lie in the slow step of the hooded penitents, the costumes of the confraternities and above all in the musicality of the words (spoken in the local dialect) used for the individual moments, symbols and participants of the rites. After a brief description of the religious event, this paper analyses the role of the Holy Week rites in Taranto and its social economic impacts and ethical management.