Yesterday being Sunday, Rick and I went to church in Granon. It is a little rural Spainsh town. The church was full of old people - nothing new there! But all the ladies were at the front and all the men were at the back! Rick and I came in late and snuck into the ´gents seats´At communion time, we had to ask our neighbour if we could go up to communion because we kept waiting for the gents to move, but they stayed firmly in their seats! Finally we fled up the aisle to get to the priest in the nick of time - the last of the ladies was before us.
I´m not too taken with these Spainish churches. The golden altars - usually three to each church - are very gothic and over-the-top. But its a couple of other features that really get me! The Madonna is always the altar centre-piece and here I´m talking about a china doll dressed in lace Spainish costume. She sits in the middle of the golden altar like some recepticle for superstition and sentimentality. She is surrounded by hundreds of different saints and cerubs.
Then there is the Dead Jesus. He is a full-sized statue of Christ in the tomb complete with wounds, lying in a glass coffin. One of our fellow pilgrims solved the problem of why Jesus was lying dead in the back of most churches we went into, when they discovered that the glass coffins had handles. Clearly he is there for some sort of festival procession.
Last night we enjoyed prayer in the choir loft of the same church we had had Mass in during the day. Night prayer was led by the hospitalier of the parish refugio we were staying in for the night. He and his fellow hospitalier are volunteers who spend 2 weeks of their holiday to clean, cook and welcome pilgrims. The prayer was simple, short, relevant to pilgrims and to life generally, and international. Each of us read a section in our own language. We finished by holding hands and saying the Our Father in our own language.
Tonight we are in a parish refugio again and it will be interesting to see what form night prayer takes here in Tostanos.
I think it is a shame that you must denigrate the beliefs and the Church of the country in which you are a guest! Why go at all if you are so offended by their "superstition and sentimentality?"
ReplyDeleteI had completely the same reaction to all the gold in the baroque churches, and the 'dead Jesuses' as you. We are simply not accustomed to such sights and I found them quite shocking. I loved my time in the Granon albergue as well though, with such a hospitable hospitalero, and the shared meal. I am glad you got to experience the prayers in the choir loft.
ReplyDeleteAnyhow, time for me to get dressed and head off to work, while you sleep your night away!
PS There never used to be internet in the Tosantos albergue...
Have you ever heard of respecting the culture of the places that you are a visitor in? Who cares what you think.... in any case you are merely a culture-free antipodean...Its not for you to query the host culture in terms of whether you like it or not, it would be better for you to learn a little humility...When I was in New Zealand I found many things bland and utterly uninteresting, a bit of a cultural and intellectual backwater actually, but I did not consider it appropriate to voice my opinions to my host nation..
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ReplyDeleteOk...a day (LOL a year!!!) late and probably always a dollar or so short...but from the Western side to the great pond..and only half way to where you guys are in NZ...Time for my 2 cents!! Great blog and shame on those who won't even put their name to their comments. I too find some of the practices in some churches a tad odd..and that would include my own very very Polish Parish here in the states!!! But simply commenting on them...I do believe the Inquisition is long over folks..we are allowed to think our own thoughts and have our own opinions!! Go Kiwi Clan!
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