This year, Holy Week in Ponferrada had a powerful tout: Bernardito Auza, the apostolic nuncio in Spain and the Vatican’s ambassador to the country. And Monsignor Auza went to the podium, edited the newspapers and immediately decided to denounce the fact that Holy Week had turned into a “big theatrical performance.”
“Reducing Holy Week practices to tourist spectacles would mean the bankruptcy of spiritual heritage and the abandonment of valuable institutions,” he continued. We cannot help but make it clear: “Those who try to convince us that making money is a cultural manifestation only want to glorify man and alienate him from God.”
These may seem harsh words, but Auza was merely confirming what we have known for a long time: Tourism is destroying Holy Week.
A bit of a detour. To see this clearly, it’s best to take a step back from the week itself. After all, the situation is complicated during Easter days, and one might think that fraternities and sororities cannot do much if they attract tens of thousands of tourists during their season of penance. Fortunately, there are situations where all of this is seen much more clearly. One of them was the same last year.
Let’s talk Magna. In October 2023, the National Congress of Penitent Brethren was held in Granada, and on the occasion of this event, the Royal Federation of Brethren of the City of Granada decided to organize Magna. A parade that brings together 22 fraternities, 30 bands, 1,500 carriers and huge debates.
Because while the media and politicians announced the millions of euros and hundreds of thousands of visitors that the event would bring to the city, not all fraternities of the federation were willing to participate. According to many (and the Bishop himself), “a national convention is not reason enough for an extraordinary procession.” So there were “not sufficient pastoral reasons” to participate in such a thing.
On the other hand, the philanthropic brothers assured that “the people will worship the pictures on the street” (one of the main aims of the sects) and that they will “cooperate with the rich generations through tourism”. […] This too can be framed within the philanthropic mission of fraternities.”
And this is just an example. It’s obvious, but it’s just one example of something that has worried the brothers for a long time. In fact, there have been discussions on sister forums for years about the effects of tourism, gentrification and social changes during Holy Week.
A clear example is the “procession of the disabled” of the Sagrario Sacramental Brotherhood of Seville, which brings communion to residents of the center who cannot go to church for health reasons on the second Sunday of Easter. The problem is, as the Muslim Brotherhood explains, despite the influx of people (“80% foreigners” according to Diario de Sevilla), the reality is that there are no longer any “disabled” people to whom they can take anything. .
This is a folk achievement in itself, an event stripped of its pastoral purposes.
It’s nothing new… As Esther Almarcha, director of the Center for Castilla-La Mancha Studies, explains, “The processions have been a destination for tourism since the 19th century. There are many stories of foreign travelers commenting on what the processions were like in Spain, and this is something that says, ‘From the State,’ in the 1920’s.” “In the 1960s, especially during Holy Week in Seville or Valladolid, they began to make brochures for tourists, and at that time they began to express the vision of the parades as more of a spectacle, and this became the determinant of the conversation about tourism.”
…but the situation becomes even more extreme. It should not be forgotten that tourism “broke all records” in 2023 and occupancy figures exceeded predictions. This ‘explosion’ is noticeable at almost every level, but above all it compromises the self-regulating mechanisms of the celebration.
“Economically speaking [todo esto] It may be positive, but it is negative in terms of activity,” Almarcha explained, “The declaration of Tourist Interest does not protect traditions, the declaration of territorial interest is obtained at the age of 15 and does not require any control or protection of the territory. elements. patrimonial “The national thing is not a difficult thing either.”
That is, we do not have effective mechanisms to protect the country’s intangible heritage (and often from the pressure of tourism and material pressures). The example of the Magna of Granada and the fraternities redefining their capacity to “attract tourism” in pastoral terms is clear in this sense: changes are taking place not only outward from the fraternities, but also inward from the fraternities.
Image | Channel Sur Media
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Ashley Johnson is a science writer for “Div Bracket”. With a background in the natural sciences and a passion for exploring the mysteries of the universe, she provides in-depth coverage of the latest scientific developments.