Diocesan Posadas celebrate the Holy Family's journey

IC photo/Laura Vallejo

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Bishop Oscar A. Solis and Deacon Guillermo Mendez are shown at the Dec. 16 posadas with the children who represented Mary, Joseph, the shepherds and the angels seeking shelter on their way to Bethlehem.

SALT LAKE CITY — The Posadas, a Latin American tradition that celebrates the birth of Christ, started its annual novena in the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City on Dec. 16, when the first of nine traditional Posadas took place at the Cathedral of the Madeleine.

Each day between Dec. 16 and Dec. 25, a parish or a mission in Utah is assigned to celebrate one of the nine diocesan Posadas.

For the event at the cathedral, four parishes join forces to celebrate the tradition. The parishes of St. Ann, Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Andrew and the cathedral, directed by the diocesan Office of Hispanic Ministry, organized the event, which started with the traditional song sung at the door in which Joseph asks for a room. The song is sung in Spanish; the lyrics, sung by those portraying Joseph include “Please don’t be inhumane; show us charity and the God of heaven will reward you,” but those inside the church reply, “Leave now and do not bother us, or else I will get mad and hit you with a stick.”

Outside the door, Bishop Oscar A. Solis accompanied some children representing Mary, Joseph, angels and shepherds as they sang the verses asking for shelter. Inside, parishioners sang the responding verses.

At the end of the song, the parishioners opened the doors to welcome Mary and Joseph, singing, “Blessed the house that houses today the pure Virgin, the beautiful Mary!”

People then proceeded to their seats as the children representing Mary, Joseph and the angels took their place in front of the altar.

People started narrating the story of Jesus’ birth as the three Wise Men appeared on scene, presenting the symbolic gold, frankincense and myrrh.

“For me it’s a joy; it’s a great moment to be able to celebrate the journey that Mary and Joseph went through to have Jesus born,” said Guillermina Brito, a parishioner of Our Lady of Guadalupe, whose daughter participated in the Posadas as an angel.

Having her child participate was important because she wants her to learn more about Jesus and to pass on her tradition, “so her faith keeps on growing and she becomes a good Christian,” Brito said.

At the end of the event, Bishop Solis told the attendees that he was happy and grateful for their presence.

“This day helps us keep preparing for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior. The Posadas is an occasion for us to recognize that Jesus is here with us; this prepares us to open our hearts to welcome Him,” Bishop Solis said.

After the event in the church ended, people were invited downstairs to continue the celebration by the breaking of piñatas and sharing some sweet bread and hot cocoa.

The popular religious devotion of Latin America is “a precious treasure in the Church, in which we see the soul of the Latin American peoples,” according to Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI (Evangelii Gaudium 123).  

For Jesus Palestino, a Knight of Columbus from the Cathedral of the Madeleine council, celebrating the Posada brought back lots of memories.

“This is a great tradition that my parents and grandparents passed on to me,” he said. “They used to tell me that posadas was remembering when Joseph and Mary were seeking for shelter, and for me celebrating here in Utah makes me remember my culture, my origins and my family.”