Guatemala’s Holy Week Processions: What Are They and How To Experience Them

Guatemala's processions start during Lent and take place during Holy Week. They commemorate the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, but the events are more than just religious observances. In 2022, Guatemala’s Holy Week was added to UNESCO’s list of events and practices considered pieces of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

But what are they? Processions are, essentially, parades of participants from various Catholic religious groups who carry 82-foot-long (25-meter-long) andas—wooden floats topped with statues of Jesus, the Virgin Mary, Saint John, or Mary Magdalene that are painted in bright colors and decorated with silver or gold foil. These parades can last up to 18 hours, winding their way through entire towns or (in large cities) down multiple streets. The andas are accompanied by members of various religious groups as well as groups of local musicians.

These spectacles have a penitential purpose: cucuruchos—the men and women who volunteer to carry the floats on their shoulders—believe that being a part of a procession and publicly showing their repentance can help them cleanse themselves of past sins. But, while the celebrations are based primarily on the Catholic beliefs introduced to Guatemala by the Spanish, they also include elements of pre-Columbian culture. The platforms that carry the andas are reminiscent of the palanquins used to carry Mayan rulers, and the decorations that adorn the parade routes are similar to those that once marked the paths of Mayan nobility.

Holy Week processions were brought to Guatemala during the colonial period and were used to introduce a mostly illiterate populace to Catholic religious ideas. The first processions were small, with only 6–8 cucuruchos carrying fairly small andas. Initially, they only took place in the country’s former capital, Santiago de los Caballeros—known today as Antigua. However, after a series of earthquakes destroyed the area in the mid-15th century, and the capital was moved to its current location of Guatemala City, other municipalities also began to hold their own celebrations. Today, Guatemala City hosts 150 processions, and there are approximately 300 more across the country.

The processions themselves are not the only elements of these festivals that draw visitors and celebrants. A variety of other traditions surrounding the spectacles create a festive atmosphere across the country.

Food and drink

Guatemalans enjoy a variety of traditional foods as part of the festivities. Moles; torrejas (a French toast–like dessert of sweet bread soaked in milk and eggs and then fried); molletes (another, similar type of sweet bread); and sweet chickpeas in honey are some of the most traditional options. You can also find churros, tamales, the Guatemalan hot dogs known as shucos (topped with mashed avocado and boiled cabbage), and dulce de leche–based sweets.

In the beverages department, there’s chinchivir, a ginger-based drink with lemon, cinnamon, and other local spices that some people trace back to the ancient Maya. Some legends say that chinchivir has magical powers—that if you bathe with it, you'll become more creative, and that if you wash your ears with it, you'll hear things you couldn’t before. They even say that if you combine it with other ingredients, you could kill someone with it.

Decorations

To prepare for the processions, people of all ages come together to create colorful, highly elaborate “carpets” to embellish the streets along the route. The designs are made with colored sawdust, corozo flowers, roses, palm leaves, and/or other organic materials—and each one is unique.

Traditional costumes

The cucurucho costume is an essential part of the processions. Men who participate wear a purple or black tunic or a black suit, and women don black or white dresses. (The tunics were adapted from the uniforms worn in convents in the 9th century in Europe.) The participants who follow along behind the andas—the members of local religious groups and musicians—also wear their own particular costumes.

Guatemala’s largest anda is the Recumbent Christ of Calvary, which is about 82 feet (25 meters) long, has the space for 140 people to carry it, and weighs approximately 2,500 pounds (1,133 kilograms). The procession of this anda —which also has the distinction of being the longest-lasting procession in the world—takes place in Guatemala City during Holy Week and lasts 18 hours. Another important procession takes place on the fifth Sunday of Lent (which begins on Ash Wednesday). It departs from the village of San Bartolome Becerra, in Antigua, and includes an anda in the image of Jesus of Nazareth of the Fall.

You can also see processions in the city of Antigua, including one that begins at the School of Christ and another that leaves from the village of San Felipe de Jesus, on the outskirts of the city. Other regions also have their own processions—such as Quetzaltenango’s procession of the Buried Lord of the Temple of San Nicolas—on various days during Lent; visitors should check with local sources for details.

While the processions are designed as expressions of faith, the procession season is also—perhaps most importantly—an opportunity for many Guatemalan families to connect with each other and participate in long-held traditions that are passed on from generation to generation.

Laura Pérez’s family has been participating in the Jesus Nazarene of Miracles procession for years, and she herself has carried the Virgin’s image annually for roughly two decades. “Every time I carry her, it’s impossible for me not to shed tears, because seeing the look in her eyes is what gives me peace and tranquility to cope with the life that I have here in Guatemala,” she says.

Another celebrant, Christopher Luna, has carried the anda twice, despite only being 16 years old. He has dedicated past years' efforts to his grandfather, who had been a cucurucho for years and just passed away. “I feel peace in my heart when I come to see Jesus and have the fortune of carrying him,” he explains. “It helps me to be grateful for everything I have in life.”