Las Posadas

Las Posadas is a nine-day celebration commemorating the trials Mary and Joseph endured during their journey to Bethlehem

Why is it important?

Las Posadas commemorates the journey that Joseph and Mary made from Nazareth to Bethlehem in search of a safe refuge where Mary could give birth to the baby Jesus. When they were unable to find lodging in Bethlehem, Joseph and Mary were forced to seek shelter in a stable, where the Christ Child was born.

Las Posadas is celebrated in Latin America, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Cuba, and by Hispanics in the United States between December 16 and 24. Latin American countries celebrate the holiday with very few changes to the tradition.

History and Significance

The Origin

There is evidence that Las Posadas originated in colonial Mexico. The Augustinian friars of San Agustin de Acolman, near Mexico City, are believed to have organized the first posadas. In 1586, Friar Diego de Soria, the Augustinian prior, obtained a papal bull from Pope Sixtus V to celebrate what was called Misas de Aguinaldo or 'Christmas bonus masses' between December 16 and 24.

A Winter Solstice festival connection?

In Mexico, the winter solstice festival was one of the most important celebrations of the year that came on December 12 (according to the Julian calendar used by the Spanish until 1582). According to the Aztec (pre-Columbian) calendar, Tonantzin (the mother of the gods) was celebrated on the winter solstice, while their most important deity, the sun god Hu─½tzil┼ìp┼ìchtli , was born during the month of December. The parallel in time between this native celebration and the celebration of Christmas lent itself to an almost-seamless merging of the two holidays.

A "Christmas Pageant"

Many Mexican holidays include dramatizations of original events, a tradition which has its roots in the ritual of Bible plays used to teach religious doctrine to a largely illiterate population in 10th- and 11th-century Europe. Seeing the opportunity to proselytize, Spanish missionaries brought the religious pageant to Mexico where they used it to teach the story of Jesus' birth.

source: Wikipedia.org and Britannica.com

The Celebration

The Posada celebrations were originally held in the church, then in haciendas (large ranch or establishments), and then in family homes, gradually taking the form of the celebration as it is now practiced by the time of the 19th century.

Now, neighborhood committees often organize the posadas and a different family will offer to host the celebration each night.

The Re-enactment

Two people (often children) dress up as Mary (riding a real donkey) and Joseph and certain houses are designated to be "inns"; the head of the procession carries a candle inside a paper shade.

The actors travel to one house each night for nine nights. At each house, the resident responds by singing a song and the pair are recognized and allowed to enter; the group of guests come into the home and kneel around the Nativity scene to pray.

The Procession

Other individuals may play other attendant parts such as angels and shepherds joining along the way, or pilgrims who may carry images of the holy personages instead, while children may carry poinsettias.

The procession is followed by musicians, with the attendees singing litanies such as pedir posada.

At the end of each night, Christmas carols are sung, children break open star-shaped piñatas and everyone sits for a feast.

source: wikipedia.org

Las Posadas derives from the Spanish word posada (lodging, or accommodation) which, in this case, refers to the inn from the Nativity story. It uses the plural form as the celebration lasts for a nine-day interval (called the novena) during the Christmas season, which represents the nine-month pregnancy of Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ.

Piñata

A piñata is a container that is decorated, filled with candy, and then broken as part of a celebration. Piñatas are commonly associated with Mexico.

The piñatas used during Las Posadas are traditionally star-shaped and made out of clay.

Did you know?

The idea of breaking a container filled with treats came to Europe in the 14th century, where the name, from the Italian pignatta, was introduced.

The Spanish brought the European tradition to Mexico, although there were similar traditions in Mesoamerica, such as the Aztecs' honoring the birthday of the god Huītzilōpōchtli in mid-December (see "The Origin" above).

According to local records, the Mexican piñata tradition began in the town of Acolman, just north of Mexico City, where piñatas were introduced for catechism purposes as well as to co-opt the Hu─½tzil┼ìp┼ìchtli ceremony.

Today, the piñata is still part of Mexican culture, the cultures of other countries in Latin America, as well as the United States, but it has mostly lost its religious character.