Zonia Montano, a longtime parishioner and volunteer coordinator at St. Elizabeth of Hungary Catholic Church in Altadena, can’t wait for Christmas to arrive.
The list of parish celebrations marking the supper of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the liturgical season of Advent and the birth of Jesus Christ at Christmas is long, yet Montano’s enthusiasm overflows as he describes how he will be united with more than two dozen ministry leaders. to help bring the posadas to life, a centuries-old culture that highlights Joseph and Mary’s search for a home before Jesus was born, so that the ecclesial network can benefit from it.
“I’m really excited to be able to participate in the posadas because you can see that the chain appreciates it,” said Montano, who helped organize the St. Louis posadas. John’s Elizabeth for about five years. ” We can see that it brings happiness and unity. “to the parish. “
Montano is among thousands of Catholics worldwide who will celebrate posadas from Dec. 16-24, a nine-night novena leading up to Christmas that often prompts participants to reflect on how they can prepare to welcome the Christ Child into their hearts and their communities.
“Posada” is the Spanish word for “posada. ” The birthday party would be rooted in a culture that began with St. John of the Cross in Spain, spread to the Americas through missionaries and took root basically in Mexico, said Humberto Ramos, director of parish life at Epiphany Church in the south. El Salvador. Mountain.
Although the formats vary, the posadas come with a rosary, a procession, a mass and a network reception.
During the procession, two other young men representing St. Joseph and the Virgin Mary lead a crowd dressed as shepherds, angels and pilgrims as they ask for shelter from door to door using verses from Spanish songs passed down from generation to generation.
After being rejected by several “innkeepers”, just like the Sagrada Familia, the crowd is nevertheless welcome at the last door. Inside, a birthday party takes place that includes a piñata and classic Mexican delicacies, plus pan dulce, tamales, and “champurrado,” a thick hot chocolate drink.
This Advent, parishes in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles will host posada-related events as organizers begin to reactivate gatherings that have been scaled back in recent years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
At St. Elizabeth, posadas are held after the evening mass on the parish grounds. Each birthday party is sponsored by another ministry and comes with hot chocolate, sweet bread, and “aguinaldos” (“candy bags”) for the children.
In the parish of Ramos, the festivities will begin on December 16 with a “pastorela”, a Christmas play that dates back to the Middle Ages in which the shepherds make a stop next to the baby Jesus, but encounter conditions along the way. which reflect the seven fatal sins. .
The play will be followed by evening posadas organized by parish teams with a rosary, a procession and a culminating celebration.
At St. Patrick’s Church in North Hollywood, the posadas begin with a giant parish-wide birthday party and continue with late-night gatherings in other local neighborhoods. Parishioners are encouraged to invite their friends and neighbors to participate in a street procession, the “carols. “(“Christmas Carols”), Mass, and much more.
While posadas can take on a cheerful air, they are also full of symbolism.
Participants hold lit candles as they run in the dark, symbolizing that we are called to be the gentiles of the world, Ramos said. The candy flowing from the damaged piñatas symbolizes the graces that flow into the net when someone overcomes sin, he said.
And the Holy Family’s quest for help calls us to reflect on our own willingness to assist others in their time of need, he added.
“It’s a big Advent birthday party,” Ramos said. “It is an expectation to open our hearts to Christ as Christmas approaches, but also to Christ who will come at the end of time and to Christ who lives well among us. “
Posadas can also serve as a way for the faithful to connect with the Nativity story on a personal level, and to spread the gospel in the communities in which they live.
Montaño said the posadas are a tangible reminder that Christmas is coming, building momentum and anticipation among parishioners.
“You get attached to him when you listen to the songs, you get attached to him when you see the photographs of the Virgin and St. Joseph,” he said. “You get attached to it when you see the nativity scene fall into place. Mentally and spiritually, it’s helping you prepare for Christmas.
In San Patricio, the posadas are more than a cultural or folkloric experience, said the pastor, Father Nicolas Sanchez Toledano. They are a missionary or evangelistic tool that can be used for the family circle to help participants become more informed about Jesus, and provide a way for non-believers to join the Church outside its walls.
“This is a pastoral act of the St. Patrick’s ecclesial community,” he said. “It’s the Church that ventures into the neighborhoods and takes over the places where other people live. “
In the U. S. , posadas are especially popular in Latino communities, especially among Mexican immigrants who are nostalgic for their culture and need to share the culture with their children, Ramos said.
Holy Family’s search for housing will also likely resonate with some Latino immigrants seeking to forge a new life in a foreign country.
“I think for many Latin American Catholics whose lives have been affected by immigration, it’s a reminder of the hospitality that they themselves have earned to some degree, as well as the welcoming spirit that Catholics are called to offer to newcomers,” said Jofre, an assistant professor in the Department of Theological Studies at Loyola Marymount University.
In the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, the components say, posada culture is indeed gaining traction among first- and second-generation Mexican-Americans, but it is also a component of Catholic practice and popular culture in general.
For Montano, who was born in Guatemala and came to the U. S. as a child, helping to organize her parish’s annual posadas gave her a new outlook on the culture, as it didn’t celebrate its development.
Montano first experienced posadas as an adult while visiting her husband’s family in Guanajuato, Mexico, and after years of attending and planning those gatherings, she now feels privileged to be able to incorporate them into her church’s network each December.
“It is a very beautiful tradition,” she said. “If you come to this country as a child and you didn’t learn about these traditions in your country of origin, but to have the opportunity to learn about them and experience them here it helps both you and the next generation.”
Christmas, Las Posadas
Theresa Cisneros is a freelance journalist with 24 years of experience in the news industry. She is a fourth-generation resident of Southern California and lives in Orange County with her husband and four children.