I'm thrilled to offer you this 20 week long in-depth exploration of Benedicaria, the Blessing Way of Southern Italian Folk Medicine. Indigenous European traditions not only still exist, they are thriving. It is my privilege to share what I know of them.
A new round of this training begins February 12, 2025. Registration is now open for that class. Upon registration, you'll be sent an email with confirmation. A week before the start of the class you will receive instructions for accessing our private class forum.
Each Wednesday at 11am I will present a live, hour long class on zoom and then post a link to the recording of that week's class offering on our Benedicaria forum. You can watch the class at any time that is convenient for you and as many times as you wish, within the week.
"Benedicaria is a term that links religious faith, from the dawn of time, to our physical well-being."
I first learned about "Doing a Little Holy Thing, or Fa Lu Santuccio" from my family of origin - my mother, aunts and grandmother. We had no special name for these practices at the time, it was simply the way things were and what we did. In recent years, I've been greatly influenced and taken deeper into this ancient indigenous tradition by elder woman in my ancestral village in Southern Italia who still practice the old ways. I have been blessed to spend an average of 3-4 months under their tutelage each year, since 2004.
I've created this program to be inherently experiential...I want you to shake loose ancestral memories. I want to help you open the portal into connection to our collective inheritance - bloodlines, language, culture and spirituality.
Benedicaria The Blessing Way of Southern Italian Folk Medicine is specifically designed for those of you with Southern Italian roots, many of whom have longed for reconnection to ancestral ways and have asked for such a course of study. However, it is not necessary to have roots in Southern Italia to benefit from this class, as it is, at heart, both a cross cultural exploration of Old World European indigenous spirit medicine and a deep dive into personal spiritual/ancestral terrain. As we say in Italia, "this is not solely Italian history it is human history."
Below you'll find the bare bones outline of the course. At the start of each week I will post the class outline as well as the homework/research/inner work assignments and writing prompts that are suggested for each week's lesson and will also include resources/links and print additions, as and if applicable. Active participation in the forum is strongly encouraged but not required.
Each week’s class audio file is at least an hour long and may run longer. They are full and generous lessons, with information pulled from countless sources, highlighted with my own experience and learning over a life time and flowing with precious, ancient prayers and rituals.
During the training we will employ art, rhythm, prayer, poetry, mold clay and work on several Intentional Creativity projects to enhance integration of what we are learning. There is also an additional, entirely optional Painting Integration Process that takes place alongside this class for those who are interested in participating.
NEW! Integration Painting Process
Here is the Benedicaria Class Outline:
Lesson one
ORIGINS
Our Lineage as Healers
The Flower of Josephine
Naples and the Sirens: Ancient Myths and Stories
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (Regno della due Sicilie)
The Brigante
The Diaspora, the New World and the Loss of
Culture, Language and Tradition
The Importance of Reclamation & Reintegration
The Sibyl of Cumae
Lesson two
ANCIENT CULTURE
A Personal History
Tribal and Goddess Culture
Other Goddesses, Tribal Deities and Totems
Introduction to the Healing Temples and the Cult of Asclepius
The Crescent Moon Bear / Orso della Luna Crescente
Lesson three
THE BENEDETTI
The Blessing Way – Fa Lu Santuccio
We are the Benedetti
The Practices: Novenas, Incense, Healing Tools and Rituals
Death and Dying
An Introduction to Italian Traditional Herbs and their Uses
Lesson four
MEDITERRANEAN MEDICINE
The Cosmic Tree
Four Temperaments Theory
The Salerno Medical School
The Flower of Medicine / Flos Medicinae
The Four Humors
Tissue States
The Garden of Minerva
The Snake Goddess
Lesson five
DREAM AND HEAL
Preparation Rituals
Dream Interpretation and Diagnosis
Dreams, Divination and Clairvoyance
Herbs for Dream Enhancement
Rituals for Entering and Engaging in the Dream Space
Lesson six
MAGNETIC MYSTERIES
Baltic Amber in Antiquity and its use as a Protective Substance
Negative Ions, Health and Protection
Red Coral – Magnetism, Ley Lines and Power Points
Sacred Spaces, Sacred Geography
Holy Water – Healing and Protective Stones
Iron – Magnetic Poles
Power Points – Pilgrimage
Choosing a Place for Prayer and Ceremony
Lesson seven
RITUAL AND CEREMONY
Ritual, Ceremony and Sacred Connection
Finding Sacred Space
Prayer
Constructing a Ritual
Lesson eight
PRACTICUM
Spirituality, Religious Practice and Culture in Italian Folk Medicine
Rituals Amulets / Brevi
Formula Prayers and Chants
Herbs and Animal Substances – Practice and Application
Folk Remedies from the Calabria Region
Sacred Days of the Catholic Calendar
Specific Cures Associated with the Feast Days
Weaving Together Religion, Earth-Based Spirituality and Pre-Christian Ritual
Health and Spirituality: The Power of Suggestion
The Janare
Lesson nine
PROTECTION AND SPIRIT HEALING
Malocchio: The Evil Eye
Charms and Amulets
Hand Gestures – Magical Tools and Prayers
Healing and Cleansing Practices
Pulire, Purificare, Limpido
Other Forms of Protection
Creating a Brevi Bag
Lesson ten
LEARNING TO SPEAK
OUR ANCESTRAL LANGUAGE
Drumming, Singing and Dance
Tarantismo
Argismo
Tammurriata and the Madonna
Zampogna
The Bear Mother
Lesson eleven
THE MADONNAS
The Divine Feminine and Biognosis
Interconnection and Hidden Knowledge
The Great Mother, Goddess Tradition, Tammurriata and the Madonna
Madonna Montevirgine
Madonna della Neve: Our Lady of the Snow
Madonna dei Cerri
The Black Madonnas
The Sorrowful Mother
The Rosary
Madonna di Canneto / The Goddess Mefitis
Lesson twelve
THE REBEL SAINTS
The Rebel Saints
Prayers, Patron Saints and Canonization
San Padre Pio
Santa Lucia
Sant’Antuono
San Cono
Sant’Anna
San Rocco
San Ciro
San Michele
San Biagio
Santa Rita
Santa Monica
San Giovanni
Santa Hildegard von Bingen
Santa Teresa di Lisieux
Santa Giovanna D’Arco
San Giuseppe
Traditional Food Offerings to the Saints
Holy Cards
The Virgin Martyrs
Lesson thirteen
HOLY SPIRIT OF THE HEARTH
Vesta, Goddess of Home and Hearth
The Vestal Virgins
Cleaning as Spiritual Practice
Domestic Tools as Sacred Objects
Plants, Icons and Mary Gardens
Lesson fourteen
SACRED CELEBRATIONS
The Wheel of the Year
Winter Solstice
Epiphany
Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Giorni Della Merla
Candelora
Menerva’s House Blessing Day
St. Joseph’s Day / La Festa di San Giuseppe / Fathers Day
Spring Equinox Celebrations
Beltane / May Day
Summer Solstice / Mid-summer’s Night
Corpus Christi
Lammas
Celebration of the Assumption
Fall Equinox
All Hallow’s Eve to All Souls Day
The Nativity / Natale / Christmas
The Four Archangels
Lesson fifteen
RECLAMATION
Bringing it all Back Home
Reclaiming and Reintegrating our Many Centuries Old Prayer
Magico / Religious
Dream, Dance, Music, Herbs, Foods and Healing Traditions
Back into our Daily Lives
Reclaiming our Original Languages
Sharing our Heritage,
our Inheritance, our Ancestral Traditions
Please note that some lessons are part 1 and part 2.
Testimonials:
I took this class because I wanted to know more about the Benedicaria tradition because my family line is from southern Italy. I also wanted a way to better connect with my ancestors, especially my grandparents who died before I was born.
At the end of the class I was struck by how each person talked about a need having been met. All different needs. Gail is preserving and curating a bridge to an ancient yet also modern sense of Self. If you take this class, you will discover healing traditions, prayer, history, art, an insider understanding of the southern Italian and ancient pre-Christian traditions of the Madonna, and more.
Gail has an incredible depth and presence as a healer. She is also an artist and a mystic with an original mind and a scholarly bent. To experience this all at once was a pleasure. This class brought me to a place of private prayer and insight, and is helping me to better honor those who have gone before me, as well as those who are still with me. The part that is staying with me is like this new room in my devotional self where I am also connected to the land where my ancestors came from. I feel it every day. I feel like I am holding hands with a group in spirit. Molto Grazie! D. Dunbar
Gail, I cannot thank you enough for how hugely meaningful this journey has been for me. This class fleshed out for me the specifics of Southern Italian culture that I just did not have. I have a renewed connection to the ancestral Madonnas, to the oak tree, to indigenous devotional practices and most importantly to myself. I feel a sense of belonging and self acceptance that was missing in my life before I took this class. I loved what you brought to us and my life has been fundamentally changed because of it. I hope to study with you again. J. Salerno
Cancellation Policy: There are no refunds after the course begins.
Upon registration, you'll be sent an email with confirmation. A welcome letter with all the instructions you will need, class protocol, guidelines and necessary links will be sent a week before our training is to begin.