From My
Balcony
The virgen of Zapopan
By Nacho Cadena Owner of La
Petite France
It was my turn to be in the heart of the matter during the pilgrimage of October 12th, day of the virgin of Zapopan or: "Our Holiest Prelate Maria of O of Zapopan" as sh is called properly. She is also known as the female general. What a power of convocation having more than three million eight hundred thousand people walking behind the virgin, venerating her, praying to her, begging her, thanking her. It was her turn to return home, during the whole year she had been traveling, visiting her faithful flock in all the parishes and that day, that is also the day of the human race, she covered the last section of her own pilgrimage, on the go, moving herself, walking without tiredness, without expecting to be visited, being it her who is visiting her faithful flock, bringing peace, hope, faith, strength and an appetite for life. That day she traveled the section from the Metropolitan Cathedral to her own home, the Basilica of Zapopan where she will rest for a while before starting her annual itinerary and thus provoking that it rains miraculously to fill the Lake of Chapala or that there will be a good corn harvest on the fields or that diseases will be soothed in the communities.
From the religious point of view it is striking to contemplate the faith of everyone, the hope with which she is looked upon, the charity with which she is greeted. From other points of view it is also impressive to see the beautiful car in which she is transported, being decorated and her small image, preciously dressed and shielded within a crystal box protecting her but at the same time allowing seeing her which causes great rejoicing in the multitude. There is the sound of the drums playing a marching rhythm, after all she is the female general, behind her the bird fanciers with their cages on their back. There are cenzontles, canaries and cardinals who seem to pull up a smile from the image of the virgin with their warbling and beautiful songs. There are dancers who have been practicing for a year to offer this ephemeral homage to the one they adore and venerate. There are musicians who cheerfully make the procession more pleasant, there is the endless parade of families, of girls being adorned for the occasion. When the procession ends, the religious acts begin, the Eucharist celebration and later the fair, the party, the walk, the drowned rolls, the sugarcane, the freshly prepared soft drinks in all colors, the sale of hats and belts and unfortunately we cannot get rid of the sale of contraband articles and illegal copies of videos and CD's.
Traditions
If we measure our country from this point of view than we are rich and we are very fortunate, too. What a beauty to be a country of traditions, to know how to remember, to have memory and to relive year after year our celebrations, some of them religious, others social, still others rooted in holidays. but always traditions. We are a people with a foundation, with a basis, with memory and this makes us solid and indestructible.,
Here in Puerto Vallarta the celebration of our top tradition is approaching: the pilgrimages to our temple in order to visit and venerate the Virgin of Guadalupe. We will talk about this in another chapter.
Of all our traditions I like the festivities that the Mexican people celebrate in honor of their Patron Saint. It is a form of manifesting their beliefs, but it is also a good formula to achieve cohesion and unity amongst the citizens, amongst the settlers, amongst the Mexican people.
Now, we must accept that this costume is a heritage, a legacy from the Spaniards, one of the many good costumes that we received from our Mother Country. I am not defending everything that came from our discoverers, first the conquerors and later the evangelists.
There, in Spain , we admire the festivities of San Fermines, of Santiago de Compostela, the fair of the Virgin of la Paloma , of Pilar in Aragón and Easter Week in Sevilla.
I am pleased that Columbus discovered America with the support of the Catholic Kings, that the conquest was commanded by Herman Cortez and that the evangelization was conducted by Fray Bartolomé de las Casas, Fray Bernardino de Sahagún, and others, like Father Kino who was born in Italy and carried the Jesuits emblem of San Ignacio de Loyola.
Well then, I am pleased that we celebrate the day of the human race on October 12th.
Long live the Human race.
Nacho Cadena
E-mail: nachocadena@lapetitefrance.com.mx * From My Balcony
is an independent column of Mr. Ignacio
[Nacho] Cadena, owner of La
Petite France Restaurant
in Puerto Vallarta and source of this information.
To contact Mr. Ignacio Cadena please email
to: lapetitefrance@prodigy.net.mx
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