Religion or Identity

The Semana Santa in Malaga is one of the biggest yearly celebrations and attracts massive crowds from all over the country and world. After standing on Alameda Principal and Avenida de Andalucía, shoulder to shoulder with other people, the question popped into my head. “Why are there so many people in what seems to be a religious celebration”? During the past academic year I had learned that the Catholic Church had lost a considerable amount of worshipers since the dissipation of Franco’s dictatorship. I have seen charts measuring the massive drops in attendance and how many Spaniards have a distrust and dislike of the Church. With all of this in mind I arrive to a Malaga in Semana Santa with the streets full and thrones passing bye with the Virgin or Christ aloft. I here stories of women weeping and men yelling out “guapa, guapa” to these religious figures. Although a religious celebration the Spanish seem to have found a reason to make it into a street party as well. The street is full of youth and adults alike, many holding little plastic cups of mixed drinks or cans of Cruzcampo beer. For many of these people who slowly but surly become intoxicated over the course of the night it is hard to say they are here for purely religious reasons. For Malagueños Semana Santa signifies not only the religious devotion they feel towards Christ or the Virgin, but the pride of their city. The incredible amount of decoration and the extravagance of these processions are unmatched in almost all the other cities of Spain (Sevilla possibly being the only exception). This is a time when Malaga and Andalucía become the center of attention in Spain. The religious theme has remained at the center, but at the same time the processions have transformed into a celebration of Malaga and its people.