Berkley Center

Spain is a Catholic country—in culture, in history, in identity, in faith—but not necessarily in practice. These past two months in Madrid, I have observed very few remnants of what was once a strongly Catholic state. Churches seem to be frequented more often by tourists than by parishioners, and those who do attend mass are usually immigrants or the elderly. On Ash Wednesday, when at Georgetown half the people I greet bear crosses dusted on their foreheads, here I did not see even one person wearing this reminder that “you are dust and to dust you shall return.”

Instead, days after, on the weekend following Ash Wednesday, I experienced the Spanish tradition of Carnaval. With raucous Carnaval celebrations continuing after Ash Wednesday and into Lent, it seems that what was once a religious celebration has lost its Christian meaning and is much more a celebration of the tradition and culture of Andalucian Spain. This seems to be a pattern in many of the “Catholic” practices one can observe throughout Spain; though they may have originated from religious belief, they are now more of a cultural than a religious expression. Though Catholicism is so ingrained in the culture, rather than an active participation in the faith, most Spaniards I have met will passively say that they are Catholics or were raised as such, and that they rarely, if ever, practice the faith.

Carnaval, the Spanish equivalent of Mardi Gras, is a precursor to Lent, a last hurrah before Catholics enter in to the period of discipline and self-sacrifice in order to pray and walk with Jesus during his forty days in the desert. Some say Carnaval evolved from ancient pagan rituals welcoming in the spring, such as the Roman solstice festival of Saturnalia. This pagan celebration was later utilized by Christian rulers as an approved period of excess before the austerity of Lent.

Carnaval in Spain eventually became a major yearly celebration, with floats, song, dance, costumes, and revelry. Later, under Franco’s dictatorship, the Carnaval celebrations were banned, though some carried on in secret or at different times of year. With the end of Franco’s regime, Carnaval came back in full force, and has become world-renowned for its unique traditions and for the enthusiasm with which Spaniards celebrate. There’s no question that Carnaval is an incredibly important tradition in Spain. However, whether the holiday maintains its religious ties is certainly debatable.

A group of us from the Georgetown in Madrid program traveled to Cádiz to experience Carnaval. One of the biggest celebrations in all of Spain, the Cádiz festivities are over a two week period, with the final events on the weekend following Ash Wednesday. Despite Lent already having started, we found ourselves among huge crowds of revelers, all in costume and enthusiastically celebrating the holiday with parades and music. It was essentially a giant street party, and, without a doubt, one of the most fun experiences I’ve had in Spain. Cádiz, a charming waterfront town, is transformed during this time into a crazy destination for visitors from all over Spain. However, the only signs of religion we ever saw were the many cheeky nun costumes all over the city. We even ran into a big group of locals parading through the streets in priestly robes and singing religious songs, but carrying Bibles that they would flash open to show pictures straight from the pages of Playboy!

Carnaval is, of course, a time for irreverence, and for poking a little fun at religion before entering that somber period of Lent, but I wondered whether any ties to the holiday’s religious origins really still exist at all. Spain is no longer the fervently Catholic country it once was. As the country’s population becomes ever more secular, will only the religion disappear, or will these traditions and celebrations disappear too? I hope that even if the Catholic Church continues to lose its foothold in Spain, the Spaniards make an effort to preserve the unique traditions that paint the Spanish identity. I’m confident that with the pride and enthusiasm that the Spanish people manifest in these celebrations, they will manage to do so.