How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?

By: Zoey Krulick

February 12, 2014

Perhaps one of Spain’s most famous events, in Seville more than anywhere else, is Semana Santa, or Holy Week. Semana Santa features a week full of floats containing images of saints or the Virgin Mary, slowly proceeding down the street, flanked by members of religious brotherhoods wearing slightly spooky penitential robes and hoods. These floats make their way to the cathedral and back, sometimes taking up to 14 hours to make the trip. Although I haven’t yet experienced Semana Santa, I can imagine that it will be quite the spectacle. What I have learned about Andalusia is that religion here is extremely important, with around 70 percent of Spaniards declaring themselves as Roman Catholics (compared to about 24 percent in the United States). But, at the same time, the extent of their devotion might go against their own Catholic faith. This issue is extremely complicated, and for this reason I really want to write about it to try and make sense of it all.

I started thinking about this issue when I visited my friend’s hometown of Lora del Río, which is a typical Andalusian town close to Seville. In Lora, like in most towns in Andalusia, the citizens are resolutely devoted to the patron virgin of their city. The statue of Lora’s virgin (the official name is the Virgin of Setefilla) usually stays in a sanctuary dedicated specifically to her, approximately 12 kilometers outside of the city, and in antiquity it was brought to the town only for emergencies or special events. Nowadays, she spends a strict five years in her sanctuary and two years in the town, with an important procession leading from one place to the other. I learned a staggering amount about the Virgin of Lora because she has several rooms in the town museum dedicated specifically to her, including books written, relics coveted, and old and current designer outfits she has worn during processions.

It seems that the reverence for the virgin here borders on obsession. My friend told me that there are people in her town, who while they don’t believe in God, do pray to the Virgin of Lora when they pray at all. And this phenomenon is not unique to Lora. Andalusia has an incredible popular cult to the virgin, which manifests itself in several ways. My roommate's phone background picture depicts one of the local virgins. Also, my friend’s name? María Luisa. María Luisa’s best friend is named María Dolores. One of my roommates is named María Isabel. I can say with certainty that there is at least one “María something” in each of my classes. For those who remain unclear about this connection, María is the Spanish way of saying Mary, aka the mother of Jesus. Other religious names include Inmaculada (Immaculate), and Concepción (Conception), but it is true that, by far, the most popular religious name is María.

So, what could possibly be the problem? Well, as I learned in one of my classes here, a class on religion in Spain, this devotion to the virgin actually contradicts the rules of the church. According to Catholic doctrine, saints deserve veneration, and the Virgin Mary deserves a special veneration. But only God himself deserves one’s adoration, and only to Him should one direct one’s prayers. It’s extremely interesting that the Spaniards have more passion towards their religion than I have experienced even at a Catholic school, and yet through that passion, they are breaking one of the edicts of the religion to which they are so devoted. I am not religious myself, so I have no idea what other Catholics or Catholic authorities might say about this phenomenon. However, personally I think this devotion to the virgin can be great on many levels: it inspires passion, keeps traditions alive, and gives people something to believe in.

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