“Semana Santa” is the Spanish name for “Holy Week”, the week before Easter Sunday

In 2011, Semana Santa is from Sunday, April 17, until Sunday, April 24

Runs from Palm Sunday (Domingo de Ramos) until Holy Saturday (Sábado de Gloria)

Brought to Guatemala by the Spaniards in colonial times

Shares some traditions with Spain Guatemala and other Central

American countries have added their own flavor to the celebrations

First Semana Santa celebrations held in Santiago de los Caballeros (old name for Antigua Guatemala)

2008 – Guatemala declared the Semana Santa celebrations in Antigua Guatemala a National Heritage site

Cobblestone streets are repaired Entire city of Antigua cleaned Homeowners give houses a fresh coat

of paint Extra police are brought in to ensure

safety

Every Catholic church holds Mass (Misa) every night during Semana Santa

Churches host the processions Figures of the saints are loaned to the

hermandades to use in the processions Large alfombra is often made in front of

the altar of the church

Groups (male and female) that belong to specific church

Create elaborate floats (andas) and processions

Responsible for all aspects of the Semana Santa processions

Participate in fundraising, float preparation, recruit cucuruchos, and organize details

You can see processions in any large town in Guatemala, and in many small towns

Antigua, Guatemala is by far the major center for Semana Santa processions

Foreigners and Guatemalans alike flock to Antigua to see the festivities

Guatemala City also has very impressive processions, though not as well-known

Floats for the Semana Santa procession usually very large

Many times weigh 7,000 lbs or more Built of wood, with handles on either

side for the cucuruchos to lift Have detailed carvings of flowers and

birds as well as detailed scrollwork along the edges

Float designs change every year Figures of Jesus and Mary stay the

same, but with new clothing Scenes can be very several feet tall on

top of the float, with fake boulders, cellophane waterfalls, even bushes and trees around the figures

Bright lights often used, as well

Statues of Jesus and Mary Loaned to the hermandades by the

churches for their processions Many figures are hundreds of years old Range from Christ, resplendent in robes,

to a battered Jesus on a cross with pained expression

Some are quite graphic and bloody Mary sometimes portrayed as radiant

mother, other times as sorrowful

Various saints make an appearance in the processions

Can be on the same float as Jesus, or on smaller floats carried by 4-6 people

St. John and Mary Magdalena always accompany Mary, carried on a separate float behind her

The number of saints depends on the size of the town and how many figures are available

“Cucurucho” now refers to the men when carry a float

Originally referred to the type of hat that the men wore

Cucuruchos pay for the privilege of carrying the floats Considered to be a form of penance

Cucuruchos are measured at the shoulders and assigned a “turno” or shift

The shifts last one block – floats can weight 7,000 lbs each

Floats can have anywhere between 40-140 men carrying them Carriers have to be balanced and replaced

frequently Clothing was influenced by St. Francis of

Assisi Very similar to those of 500 years ago

Normal garb is purple robed Good Friday clothing is white

Groups of women who carry floats No specific dress code, though they

typically dress in white or black, depending on the day

Las Dolorosas carry Mary, who is behind the main float

These men are dressed as Roman centurions

Wear helmets, swords, and armor, as well as short leather skirts

Costume depends on the area and church Walk with the processions, moving people

from blocking the way Members of the hermandades that do not

carry the floats

The Palestine Squad also accompanies some of the processions

Dressed in red capes and pointed hoods

Carry palm branches or crests on poles Do not carry the float

Used in all processions through Cuaresma and Semana Santa

Amount used increases the closer Holy Week gets

Children walk ahead of the procession with incense burners

Scent stays in the air for months

Marchas funebras/funeral marches are unique to Guatemala

Nearly all are written by Guatemalans Bring a solemn air to the proceedings Santiago Coronado is considered the

father of the funeral march in Guatemala There are hundreds of songs in existence

The processions can go 12-18 hours without ever repeating songs

Alfombras (carpets) are abundant in the streets of Antigua during Cuaresma and Holy Week

Originally, in the 1500’s, made from flowers and feathers of birds like the quetzal, parrots, guacamayas, and hummingbirds

Traditions is a mixture of customs from Tenerife and the Canary Islands, as well as Mayan traditions

Alfombras are a form of welcoming Jesus into the town, just like people did with palm branches during His time

Before the procession, people create elaborate alfombras from colored sawdust, plants, food, flowers, etc

Block traffic for hours on end Mayan influence can be seen in the

geometric patterns Most alfombras long and rectangular

Some L-shaped alfombras go around corners, covering two blocks

With multiple processions passing over the same streets, multiple processions are made

Cleanup is immediate in order to make room for the next alfombra

No one walks on the alfombras This is one unwritten rule that is well-heeded

Alfombras can cost anywhere from Q5,000-Q10,000 ($600-1200 USD) depending on the materials

Aserrin (sawdust) is the main ingredient in alfombras

Sawdust is tinted with brightly colored dyes and sold in the market

Simple alfombras take a couple of hours, and more elaborate ones can take up to 12 hours to complete, with many people working on them

Stencils are used to form the perfect design, then carefully laid on top of the sawdust to properly layer the design (see next slide)

Ventas (sales) refer to the salespeople who wait in the plazas in front of the churches

When the procession enters the church, there are usually thousands of hungry and thirsty partcipants

Common food – cotton candy, chupetes (suckers), empanadas, churros, molletes, ice cream, and any number of drinks

Some people that live on the streets where processions take place will charge a small fee to let desperate participants use the bathroom in their house

Cuaresma (Lent) refers to the 40 days leading up to Holy Week, finishing with Easter Sunday

The common practice of giving something up for Lent is not popular in Guatemala

Instead people will sign up to be a cucurucho or to design an alfombra as an act of penance

Cuaresma has its own processions Usually every Sunday, but often during

the week, as well It can be hard to know where the

processions are if you are not from Guatemala, but the locals always seem to know

Ash Wednesday is a big deal in Guatemala Churches open all day Some schools even take their students to

church to have them blessed by the priest The ashes that form the cross on a

believer’s forehead are from the palm branches used in the previous year’s Palm Sunday

There are several processions type of Lent, but the main processions in the capital are the following: Jesús de Consuelo – the Saturday before Palm

Sunday Jesús de los Milagros y de las Palmas – Palm Sunday Jesús de las Tres Potencias – Holy Monday La Reseña y Jesús de las 3 Gracias – Holy Tuesday Jesús del Rescate – Holy Wednesday Jesús de Candelaria – Maundy Thursday Jesús de la Merced – Good Friday (early morning) Santos Entierros – Good Friday (afternoon)

The Viacrucis are the Stations of the Cross People set up stations with visual

representations and the processions visit each one. There are fourteen stations of the cross in all: Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus is betrayed by Judas and arrested, Jesus is condemned by the Sanhedrin, Jesus is denied by Peter, Jesus is judged by Pilate, Jesus is scourged and crowned with thorns, Jesus takes up His cross,

Jesus is helped by Simon to carry His cross,

Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem,

Jesus is crucified, Jesus promises His

kingdom to the repentant thief,

Jesus entrusts Mary and John to each other,

Jesus dies on the cross, Jesus is laid in the tomb.

During Cuaresma, special Misas, or Masses, are held

Usually related to the viacrucis

Velaciones, or vigils, are held through Lent, each one at a different influential church

Biblical scenes are set up at the front of the church

An alfombra is made in front of the altar A Misa is held in the afternoon Usually a concert of funeral marches, as

well

Semana Santa, or Holy Week, start the Friday before Palm Sunday and goes through Good Saturday

There are many processions and significant events that make up this tradition time

“Maundy Thursday”, as it is known in English, has many special processions Themes vary, depending on church and

hermandad “Jesus es Encarcelado” – in select

churches, Jesus is put in jail (behind any barred door), representing his arrest and incarceration

One of the most famous processions in Antigua is “La Sentencia”

At 3 a.m., Roman centurions ride out of the church on horseback to proclaim Christ’s sentence

They read the sentence at every street corner

Jesús en Su Camino al Calvario At 4 a.m., after “La Sentencia”, the

procession leaves following the Romanos Theme: Christ’s journey to Calvary

The figure of Christ carries His cross, which is usually quite heavily adorned

“Jesús Sepultado”

Final Procession with Jesus during Semana Santa

The floats show the body of Jesus in a glass coffin

Each station of the cross is represented on the float

La Virgen de Soledad In this procession,

the Virgin Mary is dressed in dark or black clothes

A knife through her heart shows her pain at losing her son

Only female carriers carry her float (Las Dolorosas) and are dressed all in black

Procesión de Niños (Children’s Procession) Date depend on the

town Wednesday of Semana

Santa in Antigua Children carry a smaller

float Have all the same roles

as adults in the other processions, such as Romans

All the figures are smaller

Interestingly, Semana Santa in Guatemala focuses almost entirely on the death of Christ

Easter Sunday is very low key Some say that this is because the

resurrection had no parallel in Mayan culture, so it never really caught on when Christianity was introduced

It is customary for people in small towns around Guatemala to make a Pilgrimage to Antigua – Peregrinaje a Antigua – during Holy Week

Traffic is very slow during Holy Week, due to so many travelers

In some areas of Guatemala, an effigy of Judas, called “San Simón” or “Maximón” is displayed during Lent

It is later dismembered and burned

Maximón rules over the church while Jesus is “dead” then leaves the church when Jesus is resurrected

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