Posadas

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject.
Please help recruit one or improve this article yourself. See the talk page for details.
Please consider using {{Expert-subject}} to associate this request with a WikiProject

It has been suggested that Los Posadas be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)

For the city in Argentina see: Posadas, Misiones. For the city in Spain see: Posadas, Córdoba

Posadas is a nine-day holiday beginning December 16 and ending December 24 ("Noche Buena" (Holy Night)). This holiday is a yearly tradition for Christian Latin Americans. It is symbolic of the trials that the Virgin Mary and Joseph had to endure to find a place where Jesus could be born.

1 Meaning
2 Ritual
3 Mexico
4 External links
5 See also

[edit] Meaning

It represents the difficulties that Joseph and Mary, the mother of Jesus, faced in finding a room when traveling to Bethlehem. In it, groups of children (or sometimes adults) go from house to house singing a traditional song requesting lodging (posada). In each house, the owner responds with refusal (also in song), until they reach the designated site for the party, where the owner recognizes Mary and Joseph and allows them to come in. Latin American countries have continued to celebrate this holiday to this day, with very little changes to the tradition. It is nine days long!

[edit] Ritual

These Posadas are a re-enactment of the search by Jesus' two parents, Joseph and Mary for lodging prior to Jesus' birth. Typically, each family in a neighborhood will schedule a night for the Posada to be held at their home, starting on the 16th of December and finishing on the 24th.

Every home will have a Nativity scene, and the hosts of the Posada act as the innkeepers. The neighborhood children and adults are the "pilgrims" (Peregrinos), who have to request lodging by singing a traditional song about the pilgrims. All the "pilgrims" carry small lit candles in their hands, and four of the children carry small statues of Joseph leading a donkey, on which Mary is riding. The head of the procession will have a candle inside a paper lamp shade, or "Farolito" (little lantern).

The "Pilgrims" will symbolically ask for lodging at three different houses, but only the third one will allow them in. That will be the house where the Posada will be held for that evening. Once the "innkeepers" let them in, the group of guests come into the home and kneel around the Nativity scene to pray (typically, the Rosary). This is followed by the singing of traditional Christmas songs and a party for the children, including a piñata.

Traditionally, it is expected to meet all the invitees in a previous procession.

[edit] Mexico

In particular, in Mexico the tradition consists of a group of hosts (may be one family in one home or a number of families in the neighbourhood) that prepare a typical dinner to "host" the rest of the neighbors (usually a block or section of the neighborhood). Each one of the nine days a different family (or group of families) offer to be the hosts, so that the whole neighborhood or section participates during the ten days.