Seville, Spain's Holy Week blends faith, tradition and spectacle
Seville, Spain's Holy Week blends faith, tradition and spectacle
Penitents from the La Paz brotherhood parade in the Palm Sunday procession in Seville, Spain, on March 29. Many of the participants in Semana Santa processions wear traditional costumes that include pointy hoods, which, especially for Americans, may be reminiscent of the Ku Klux Klan. But this Catholic garb far predates the American hate group. Cristina Quicler/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
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Cristina Quicler/AFP via Getty Images
SEVILLE, Spain — Each spring, for one week, Seville transforms. The scent of orange blossoms mixes with heady incense. Booming drums and soaring brass bands echo down narrow streets. Gilded floats topped with life-like statues and vibrant floral arrangements are carried across cobblestones in elaborate processions.
These parades unite pageantry, penance and tradition in a display so beautiful that it touches the hearts, even of those who don't believe in their underlying message. This is Seville's Holy Week, known as Semana Santa.
Penitents of Santa Genoveva brotherhood wait before taking part in a procession during Holy Week (Semana Santa) observances on March 30 in Seville, Spain. Marcelo del Pozo/Getty Images hide caption
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Marcelo del Pozo/Getty Images
The brotherhood of San Gonzalo crosses Isabel II bridge on their way to the cathedral on the second official day of the Holy Week celebrations in Sevilla, Spain, on March 30. Macarena Perez Herrera/Anadolu via Getty Images hide caption
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Macarena Perez Herrera/Anadolu via Getty Images
Members of the Brotherhood of Los Negritos wear the pointed hoods traditionally worn in Semana Santa processions. To the American eye, they recall Ku Klux Klan costumes but date much farther back than the American hate group. Joaquin Corchero/Europa Press via Getty Images hide caption
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Joaquin Corchero/Europa Press via Getty Images
From Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday, the city's historic center strains at the seams. People bus in from surrounding neighborhoods and towns. Tourists are drawn to the spectacle from other parts of Spain and abroad. Over this week, 61 Catholic brotherhoods snake through the city along the official parade route to Seville's Gothic cathedral and then back to their home churches.
For many city residents, these processions are deeply sacred. "Holy Week means an expression of faith," said Maite Olivares. She expresses her faith in a way unique to Spain and typical of this region, with the saeta. It's a passionate flamenco song, sung a cappella and often improvised, dedicated to Jesus and the Virgin Mary.
Penitents from the La Paz brotherhood parade in the Palm Sunday procession in Seville on March 29. Cristina Quicler/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
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Cristina Quicler/AFP via Getty Images
Penitents of the Los Estudiantes brotherhood take part in a procession during Holy Week in Seville, Spain, on March 31. Cristina Quicler/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
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Cristina Quicler/AFP via Getty Images
The Hermandad de San Gonzalo (Brotherhood of San Gonzalo) procession crosses the Guadalquivir River during holy week on March 29, in Seville, Spain. Fran Santiago/Getty Images hide caption
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Fran Santiago/Getty Images
"It's something so intimate and so explosive," Olivares said, describing the wild mix of emotions she feels while singing saeta. "It's an implosion of everything in a single expression."
Olivares is one of a shrinking number of Spaniards who identify as Catholic. Fifty years ago, just after the dictatorship of Francisco Franco, about 90% of residents were Catholic. Now, that number is 46%, according to the most recent government-funded survey on the topic.
The brotherhood of San Gonzalo crosses the Isabel II bridge on their way to the cathedral on the second official day of the Holy Week celebrations at Sevilla, Spain on March 30. Macarena Perez Herrera/Anadolu via Getty Images hide caption
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Macarena Perez Herrera/Anadolu via Getty Images
A woman wearing a traditional shawl known as a mantilla stands outside the Basilica de la Macarena church during Holy Week in Seville, Spain, on Thursday. Cristina Quicler/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
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Cristina Quicler/AFP via Getty Images
Costaleros carry the heavy religious floats that are paraded around during Holy Week in Seville. Marcelo del Pozo/Getty Images hide caption
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Marcelo del Pozo/Getty Images
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