Easter week still a ritual in more secular Spain
The drum beat rises on a packed Seville street as Jose Maria Segura opens his mouth and begins the wail of the “saeta,” a pained, mournful ode to Jesus Christ in death.
His voice carries along a line of “nazarenos,” or penitents, with tall conical hats, monkish robes and facial hoods. The members of the El Cerro brotherhood are shouldering a sculpture of the Virgin Mary out of a church.
Millions of Spaniards take to the road in the days leading up to Easter, traveling to see family or for a holiday break. For many, seeing traditional processions with painted religious icons that can weigh over a ton is a cathartic annual ritual, a time to reflect on past sorrows and current ills.
A procession by the La Sed brotherhood this week passed Seville's San Juan de Dios Hospital. Medical workers stepped outside to receive the tribute, some with tears pricking their eyes. It was the first Easter week since 2019 when masks, or any sign of the COVID-19 pandemic, were virtually absent.
Spanish Civil guards, left, and members of the "Hermandad de Jesús en su tercera caída" brotherhood walk towards a procession during Spain's Holy Week in Zamora, Spain, Monday, April 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Devotes carries flowers before taking part in the Holy Monday procession in Logrono, northern Spain, Monday, April 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos)
Starting on Palm Sunday, when children gathered with fronds in hand to take part in a procession in Zamora, northwestern Spain, to the blockbuster weekend of processions ahead, people in this increasingly secular country still turn out in droves for Easter.
The daily parades also are a major tourist attraction, with some televised nationally.
The celebrations date back to when Spain was a bastion of Roman Catholicism. Nowadays, the hooded nazarenos in black, white, purple and red come from all walks of life, many with no religious inclination.
Others take their acts of penitence to the streets. A barefoot woman in Tarazona, northern Spain, dragged a chain around her ankles down a chilly street.
In Seville, many penitents wept openly at the sight of the virgin, some clutching photos of absent family members.
What many had prayed for in this country with a strong reliance on agriculture — rain — did not come. Spain's drought is on the minds and lips of many. With reservoirs of drinking water running low, appeals to Christ and the Blessed Virgin are likely to continue.
The priest Antonio Bueno confesses to a penitent of the brotherhood of "Los Estudiantes" before starting the procession through the streets of Seville, Spain, Tuesday, April 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
A penitent of "Santa Genoveva" brotherhood holds a baby as they watch at the Virgin Mary before taking part in a procession in Seville, Spain, Monday, April 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
A portable dais platform which supports a statue of the Virgin Mary, is carried by "costaleros" during a procession in Seville, Spain, Sunday, April 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Penitents from "La Candelaria" brotherhood walk across the Seville cathedral as they takes part in a procession, Spain, Tuesday, April 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Devotes known as "Las Manolas", hold candles while taking part in the Holy Monday procession in Logrono, northern Spain, Monday, April 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos)
Members of the "Las Siete Palabras" brotherhood place the "Cristo de la agonía" as part of the preparation for a Holy Week procession in Zamora, Spain, Monday, April 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Penitents of "Los Estudiantes" brotherhood gather in one of the courtyards of the University of Seville before starting the procession, Spain, Tuesday, April 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Penitents of the "Dulce nombre de Jesus" brotherhood take part in the "Miserere" procession in Baena, southern Spain, Monday, April 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Members of the band practice prior to the procession at the Veracruz church in Aguilar de la Frontera, southern Spain, Tuesday, April 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Masked devotes take part in the Holy Monday procession in Logrono, northern Spain, Monday, April 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos)
A " Costalero" from the " La Vera Cruz" brotherhood prepares to carry over his back the portable dais platform which supports a statue of the Virgin de La Vera Cruz, in a procession in Seville, Spain, Monday, April 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Laura Leon)
A baby dressed as a penitent sleeps before the start of the "Hermandad de Jesús en su tercera caída" procession during Spain's Holy Week in Zamora, Spain, Monday, April 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Worshipper Jose Maria Segura sings a "saeta" as the Virgin Mary is carried out of the church during the procession of "El Cerro" brotherhood in Seville, Spain, Tuesday, April 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Penitents from the 'Cristo de la Buena Muerte' brotherhood carry a wooden image representing Jesus Christ as they take part in a procession in Zamora, Spain, early Tuesday, April 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Penitents from "La Redencion" brotherhood carry a portable dais platform which supports a statue of the Virgin Mary during a procession in Seville, Spain, Monday, April 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Worshippers watch as the Virgin Mary is carried out of the church during the procession of "El Cerro" brotherhood in Seville, Spain, Tuesday, April 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Penitents from the 'Cristo de la Buena Muerte' brotherhood take part in a procession in Zamora, Spain, early Tuesday, April 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Text from AP News story, AP PHOTOS: Easter week still a ritual in more secular Spain, by Emilio Morenatti and Jennifer O’Mahony
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Photos by Emilio Morenatti, Bernat Armangue, Laura Leon, Alvaro Barrientos and Manu Fernandez