Cartagena, The night of silence, shame and sorrow at the betrayal of Christ

Cartagena Spain, Semana Santa, the procession of Silence, Jueves santo

Once again, the streets of the region were filled with the silent tread of moving feet and ragged breath of the portapasos carrying their enormous tronos through the watching crowds as Semana Santa continued its inexorable path towards the day of resurrection.

Last night was the atmospheric procession of silence, in which all lights are extinguished and penitents file past slowly in darkened streets, ghostly figures lit only by the light of their staffs.( A photographers nightmare!)

The procession of silence commemorates the night that Jesus was sold out for political compromise, sacrificed by one of his own who was terrified of what one man was doing to rock the status quo, bowing to the pressure of the establishment to conform, and not to disrupt the way things were.

There were no bands, no trumpets, no display last night, just the tap of staffs on cobblestones and the tinkling of bells on the enormous throne of Christ crucified, glowing blue in the darkness, accompanied by the muffled grunts as the portapasos struggled to manoeuvre the unwieldy tronos around the tight back streets of Cartagena.

A lone voice broke the silence on one corner each time the pasos stopped, singing a saeta, the songs of the passion of Christ,  the shame of the human race expressed in a song of mourning for what we had done, ringing out from a velvet draped balcony, a lone spotlight on the voice that spoke for the thousands who watched the penitents file past.Its an experience beyond description. The paso swaying as the portapasos struggled beneath its weight, tinkling bells and the clink of crystal lights, and the purity of the saeta cutting the silence.

Arriving back at the Iglesia de Santa Maria de Gracia, the choir of the Californias welcomed the pasos back into the church, singing the Miserere at the entrance, and as the figure of the Virgin Mary, resplendent in green velvet robes , embroidered in thread of gold by patient hands for many thousands of hours, stood gently swaying at the entrance, thousands of voices joined to sing the salve of Cartagena, a moving display of pride and emotion which left many in tears.

Finally, to ecstatic applause she moved inside, to rejoin the tronos for the big procession of Viernes Santo, the most important parade of the week.

Tonight is the big one in all towns and cities across the region, the stunning biblical parade in Lorca in which over 700 horses will participate, the full chronological order of floats in all the towns, showing the order in which the scenes of passion unfolded, with lengthy processions.

Tomorrow there are still processions, the day of mourning for the death of Christ, and on Sunday , the day of resurrection, the streets are decked in white and flowers, the light of the resurrection glowing bright and joyful as the participants celebrate the joy of Christ arisen.

Go if you can, this week is the essence and soul of where we all now live and to be part of it all is a privilege beyond words.

Dont just book a chair and stay in one place, walk through the back streets, follow the procession, see it from the different corners, enjoy a bit of tapas and a beer with the thousands who pack the narrow corners and squeeze into the churches to see the tronos before they sally forth.

Stand in the crowd as they sing to the Virgin Mary and participate, be part of this incredible week.