Virgin Update

I know you have all been sitting on the edge of your chairs waiting for my update on the Virgin of Guadalupe.  I mean what else is there to do four days before Christmas.  So, as you may remember we finished up nine days of celebrating the patron Saint of the village --San Andres-- in early December.  After a relaxing break of three days, we then commenced celebrating the Fiesta of the Virgin of Guadalupe for nine days.  I am such a religious illiterate that it took me this long to get the correlation between novena and nine days.  Nine is the magic number.  So, for nine loud and lusty days the Virgin was feted with daily processions, bottle rockets, fireworks and street dances.

I could have done exhaustive research to provide you with the full background on the Virgin and why she is so revered in Mexico but I've decided to plagiarize instead.  Our friends Jim and Chris know all about this kind of stuff (like religious stuff) and helpfully sent out an email which I will now freely avail myself of (dangling participle I know).

 

I had mentioned before that I didn't understand why Aztec dancers kept showing up in religious festivals.  Aha!  Now I know.  It turns out that an Aztec named Juan Diego (I don't know but that seems an odd name for an Aztec) was up on the top of a temple on Tepiak Hill in what is now Mexico City when the Virgin appeared to him.  But, hold on, THAT'S NOT ALL.  She was pregnant, looked like an Aztec (not Euro) and spoke to him in Aztec.  Well, he went and told the bishop who said, "Pshaw, impossible".  There may have been some ethnocentric bias in his unwillingness to believe but Juan just went away.  But the Virgin would not be put off.  Juan tried to avoid her but she showed up again -- this time with a helpful tip.  She said something like: "Here.  Take these roses and put them in your tilma and NOW go see the bishop."  A tilma is like a loose shirty thing.  So he did.  The bishop only let him in so he could yell at him and get him to quit pestering him with all this Virgin stuff.  But then, Juan remembered about the tilma, dropped it open and the roses fell to the ground.  Followed quickly by the assorted clergy dropping to their knees.  This was because not only do roses not bloom in Mexico City in December (oh I didn't mention it but he first saw her Dec.12th) but also because there was now an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe right on his tilma!  Wowzers!  So, they built a church over the Aztec temple where the priests had performed human sacrifices and that is why the Aztecs got to like the new priests better than the old priests.  I think that is why.  I think I may be hearing from Chris and Jim about my take on this whole thing.

So, anyway, if you are so inclined you can go to Mexico City and see the 500 year old tilma (made of cactus fiber which obviously holds up well) at the Our Lady of Guadalupe shrine.  Along with two million other people if you pick December 12th to visit.  I'd go off season.

But back to the village celebration. It fit the usual pattern in most ways with bells ringing morning, noon and night and bottle rockets etc.  However, there was a procession every night for nine nights.  And not a little one as you can see by the pictures.  Muchos Aztec dancers, a float with the Virgin, guys carrying the image of the Virgin on a wooden platform, a band, dancing horses and bottle rockets bringing up the rear.  As the procession proceeded, villagers would tag on to the end with their numbers growing with each block covered.  On the final night there was a huge street fiesta outside the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Guadalupe where mass was held.

Street altar to Our Lady of Guadalupe

Miniature Juan Diego with Our Lady of Guadalupe on the front of his costume

The anticipation of waiting for the procession

Another Juan Diego (a little older) with mustache

The much anticipated float leading the procession with the tableau of Our Lady of Guadalupe & Juan Diego

The Aztec dancers with colorful feathered headdresses 

Note the hand carried cup with burning incense on the right & the conch shell being blown on the left

Note the woman in the center dancing on the cobblestones in bare feet --- ouch!

Somebody's obviously enjoying the procession

The Aztec men are much fiercer looking than the women

The boar's head headdress is quite impressive

A side view of the boar's head

It is quite an honor to carry the picture of the Virgin

No procession is complete without the band

The people follow at the end of the procession

At the very end is the cohetero who lights the cohetes (rockets)

We do not recommend you try this at home --- this is a job for a trained professional!

So now it's over.  However, there was only a brief intermission between this Fiesta and the beginning of the Posada.  Every night for about a week, children dress as Mary and Joseph and go from house to house looking for shelter.  Trailing in their wake are the children of the village.  Why you might ask?  Because at the house they end up at, they are invited in and candy is provided to all.  We have yet to witness this, and unless we get our act together, we are going to miss it entirely.  It is not that simple though.  See the first night (like 5 nights ago) they started from the Church.  Now, every night they start from the last house that they were at.  Except, since we didn't go, we don't know what house that is.  I asked Nancy about how we could find out.  "Well, you just go outside around 4:30 and follow any children who are waving a wand with tinsel on it."  Okay.  I will report how this strategy plays out in the next blog.

Leaving the restaurant this evening, we saw this posada (captured on the iPhone)

You can see the children wa;king into the Church

The children & adults walk through the street to the Church

The young & young at heart all come out for the posada

In the meantime, Michael and I hope that you all have an absolutely wonderful Christmas (if applicable) and a healthy, happy 2013.  And I apologize for any electronic card mishaps -- again.  All the best to all of you.