On Easter in my home country the US a giant rabbit hides chocolate eggs around the house or backyard. Then the kids look for them. They might even find a plastic basket full of colorful plastic straw: Easter hay.
Another thing to do is poke two pinholes in an egg, blow out the contents, and then paint it in pastels. Or is it boiled first? I can`t remember.
So if you think that´s normal, don´t be surprised that in some parts of the world a teenager gets dressed up as Jesus, drags a big heavy cross up the mountain while getting whipped by his friends, and is then crucified.
Semana Santa (holy week) is the week before Easter in Latin America. Here in Mexico it`s a vacation – for many a time to travel, to hit the beach, like Spring Break. But prices are inflated and roads are congested. For the religious or the curious you can stick around your local small town and check out all the festivities.
This year (2012) I was in Temoaya, about an hour from Toluca, an hour or two from Mexico City and the capital of the State of Mexico. It`s a dry, dusty, cactus and agave dotted altiplano. Toluca is in fact the highest city in Mexico, and Temoaya is even higher.
Interesting things happen all week in town, like parties, dances, and town dinners. But I came on a Thursday, jueves santo, the night of the last supper.
In the mountain air of Temoaya at night, youths from town dressed up and reenacted the last supper in the town square. It was a little cold, a little long, and a little hard to hear, but interesting nonetheless. Another Thursday activity in the cities is when people visit seven churches to represent the seven falls of Jesus.
But the real action was on Friday, viernes santo (holy Friday) in Mexico, Good Friday to us north of the border. I wonder which name Jesus would prefer. This was the day he was betrayed and crucified, after all.
At around 11 am the town square was full of costumed participants and surrounded by scores of watchers, including noisy hawkers of snacks and bon-ice. After a lot of pushing around of Jesus, interrupted by short sermons from the local priest, the final judgment was made. The big heavy wooden cross was hoisted onto Jesus` shoulders. The long walk uphill began, aided by frequent whippings from the Romans – friends and neighbors of Jesus in real life, no doubt.
We followed behind in the big, slow moving crowd, walking to a small hill/sand quarry outside Temoaya`s center.
Still whipped along, Jesus dragged the cross all the way up, followed by the two criminals who were to share his fate. One of them was my girlfriend`s cousin, so afterward I could pick his brain about all this. He seemed to have really enjoyed it. He remarked that the view from up there was really nice. You could see all the way to Toluca and the bigNevado de Toluca volcano beyond. But their backs were pretty torn up.
I couldn´t help but remember the final scene in Monty Python´s ¨Life of Brian.¨
They stayed up there crucified a good half hour, the microphone passed between them as they acted out their roles while the big crowd watched below.
Then they came down and in came the paramedics.
At night on Friday is la procesión del silencio (the procession of silence), which is like a funeral for Jesus. The townspeople dress in black, carry candles, and walk through town at night.
Then Saturday is el sábado de gloria (Saturday of glory), which is the big party. Not only is this the day that Jesus was resurrected, cause enough for celebration, but everyone who gave up eating meat, drinking, smoking, or whatever else can do it again. Party!
These types of shows happen all over Mexico and the Catholic world. In Iztapalapa in Mexico City they use metal whips and real nails, and the guy who plays Jesus prepares for a year beforehand!
But at least he isn´t carrying around a basket full of chocolate eggs, dressed as a rabbit.
