Figures of Christs four centuries old were “veiled” early this Saturday morning in the town of San Miguel Hidalgo, Jalisco, by dozens of families who see this tradition as a way to strengthen their faith and venerate the death of Jesus Christ.
The night of Good Friday in the village becomes a celebration in which the feast and Catholic devotion are combined.
Believers and tourists swirl around the so-called “Lying of Christ”, altars whose attraction are 57 images of Jesus Christ that are considered a relic and artistic heritage and that were inherited from generation to generation.
Families invite their loved ones to the “vigilance”, a day that begins on Good Friday at 15:00 in the afternoon, at which time, according to the Bible, Jesus died on the cross, until 05:00 on the morning of the following Saturday when guests pray, sing praises, give thanks for the miracles received and share food.
FAMILY TRADITION
Alfredo Guerrero, who for 70 years has dedicated Holy Week to preparing the “laying”, told the EFE agency that he started helping one of his uncles, who inherited in 1951 the image of the so-called Christ of the Mezquite, a sculpture made of mesquite tree wood dating from 1747 and which has a deep-rooted legend religious behind.
When his relative died, Guerrero became “the man” of the image, that is, the one responsible for taking care of it, placing the new “cendal” or loincloth on it, organizing that the “laying” has all the necessary elements, inviting friends and family, directing prayers and praises and providing food for the guests and curious.
The people's chronicler, Sergio Zepeda Navarro, explained to EFE that vigilance is the symbolic way families have to wait for the moment Jesus is resurrected.
“It is a manifestation of faith by families in the face of this very important event within the teachings of the Catholic Church, in the sense of being able to have the presence of the body of Jesus and particularly of caring for and preserving (the images) while they wait for this moment that they hope is the resurrection of the Lord,” he said.
RELIGIOUS TOURISM
The streets of San Martín de Hidalgo were once again filled with tourists who want to learn more about the tradition of the “lay of Christ”, which reflects a syncretism between the beliefs of the Catholic religion and the customs of the indigenous communities that inhabited this town four centuries ago.
The 57 houses that protect the images of the Christs are flooded with aromas of copal, rosemary and burnt candles. From Friday afternoon, families organize and prepare the lines in the most visible part of their homes.
In the most visible part, families set up the “lines” with various natural and religious elements, whose meaning evokes aspects of Jesus' passion and death and were used to evangelize the indigenous people, Zepeda Navarro said.
He explained that the tendidos have oak and willow tree branches at the head that represent the Garden of the Olives where Jesus retired to pray; cloves like those that were put on his hands and feet to climb him to the cross, as well as doves that symbolize the Holy Spirit and whose sound emulates the cry of the virgin Mary.
Christs are put on a “duffel bag” or palm carpet on which the indigenous people used to make the shroud before a burial. Around it are laurel leaves and a dozen candles representing the apostles that are lit during the “wake”.
At the center are sculptures made of various sizes and materials such as cane or corn leaf, ceramic, oak wood, pine and mesquite that have been named according to the history or legend of their origin.
Marcela Guerrero is one of the women who protects the so-called “Christ of the Coyotes” who came to her family seven generations ago. He assured that the origin of the image has two versions in the family, but the most told is that some men left it to the great-grandmother with the promise of returning later for the pay.
The men did not return and it is believed that they were Catholics fleeing the military during the Cristero War — who were against the government's decision to ban the participation of clergy in politics — and that they were killed in some of the nearby hills.
For the family, protecting this image has a religious significance but also of family union.
“For us it is a great satisfaction and a pleasure because it is much more than a tradition, having a Christ is always a family union, anecdotes and beautiful moments”, he stressed.
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