AGUASCALIENTES, México (AP) — There’s a nook in central Mexico the place a lot revolves round a revered saint. The neighborhood’s title? Saint Mark’s. The title of the native Catholic church? You guessed it, St. Mark’s.
It is no surprise then that the realm’s most famed occasion is the Honest of Saint Mark — a monthlong celebration that begins yearly in mid-April, attracting tourists for its bullfighting and musical events.
Final yr, 10 million visited the town of Aguascalientes, about 500 kilometers (310 miles) northwest of Mexico Metropolis, the nation’s capital. However the crowds on Friday had been there for one thing extra than simply the honest. They got here to honor Saint Mark, also referred to as Mark the Evangelist and celebrated in Christianity as considered one of Jesus’ 12 unique disciples.
Rev. Abel Carmona, who leads Lots and processions on April 25, when Catholics observe St. Mark’s Day or the Feast of Saint Mark, says that “even when the honest’s unique objective was industrial and agricultural, a spiritual sense was later added to it.”
He says the honest now promotes data about St. Mark, whose relics are stored in Venice, Italy, the place the landmark St. Mark’s Basilica is positioned.
The neighborhood was based in 1620 because the settlement of “Indios de San Marcos” (St. Mark’s Indians) by Spanish missionaries who constructed a small church.
A good was first held in November 1828 in a close-by village, primarily for farmers to supply their merchandise. However after a fantastic backyard was constructed near St. Mark’s church 20 years later, authorities determined to host the honest in St. Mark’s, forward of the saint’s feast day.
Jodie Altamira, 35, grew up within the neighborhood and now helps manage processions and a bazar on the church throughout the honest, which she says it has been a part of her identification, each as a resident of Aguascalientes and a Catholic.
Over time, Carmona and Altamira grew involved in regards to the fairgoers’ extreme alcohol consumption and now are working to spark a special, more healthy ambiance. This yr, the neighborhood hosted three lectures about St. Mark’s and the church’s historical past.
Carmona mentioned this yr was particular as a result of the group additionally marked what is called “the protection of the temple.”
It commemorates a fraught time within the Twenties, when then-President Plutarco Elías Calles deliberate to arrange a Mexican “schismatic” church, unbiased from Rome. In February 1925, St. Mark’s church was taken by monks loyal to Calles however the native residents staged a rebel and ultimately bought their beloved temple again.
“It was a heroic protection,” Carmona mentioned. “And it was important as a result of it led to Calles giving up on his thought of founding a Mexican church.”
Carmona celebrated Mass all through the day on Friday. Afterward, a live performance was to comply with and a procession earlier than sundown.
“Our procession is a public manifestation to say that ‘Saint Mark’ isn’t just a pagan honest,” Altamira mentioned. “It’s how we have a good time the saint who introduced us to Jesus Christ.”
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Hernández reported from Mexico Metropolis.
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