Mexico: Urban, Middle-Class Posadas Take On Features of U.S. Culture - Anthropologist

Traditional Mexican Piñata with Seven Cones
representing Seven Deadly Sins

Today is December 16th, the first day of the Mexican tradition of Posadas—'Inns', or more specifically, the pilgrimage of Joseph and Mary asking innkeepers for shelter. Posadas mark the nine days leading up to Christmas Eve on December 24th.

At the heart of Posadas are families and neighbors who gather to commemorate Joseph's and Mary's journey to Bethlehem in order to fulfill the Roman decree and await the imminent birth of their Child. The religious core of Posadas is the novena—praying the rosary together each day for nine days, each day representing one month of Mary's pregnancy.

The festivities begin by a re-enactment of the pilgrimage. Two children dress as Mary and Joseph; others dress as angels and shepherds. Knocking at different doors, the pilgrims recite the traditional request for lodging. Twice they are ritually turned away by the person designated to be the 'innkeeper' at that door. 

At the third door, the 'innkeeper' agrees to give shelter to Mary and Joseph, and the fiesta begins. Everyone os offered atole (sweetened corn drink) and three kinds of pozole (hominy soup): red (carne-beef), white (pollo-chicken) and green (green chiles). Yes, red, white and green are the colors of the Mexican flag. 

The children then enthusiastically take part in striking a piñata. The traditional style piñata has seven cones, each marked with streamers and represent the Seven Deadly Sins (pecados): greed, gluttony, sloth, pride, envy, wrath and lust. 

Four years ago, when we'd just moved to Mexico City, I wrote a post about our experiences with Posada in Pátzcuaro, Michoacán, including the Mesoamerican roots (hint: piñatas) of this very Mexican tradition. The post ends with this comment: "Today many Posadas have lost their religious roots. We're curious to learn how they are celebrated in our new urban home, Coyoacán in Mexico City. Stay tuned!"

Our apartment is in a seven-story condominium building. To our chagrin, we have indeed learned first-hand "how posadas are celebrated in urban settings". So the title of this piece that appeared today in La Jornada newspaper immediately caught my eye. Enjoy! 

 La Jornada: Emir Olivares Alonso

The chill of the early hours of a December night are no obstacle. A good jacket is enough to take to the streets and enjoy the evening. In colonias [communities], barrios, vecindades [two names for neighborhood], and pueblos [villages], the people, particularly the smaller ones, anxiously await these nine days. Among candles, lanterns, chants, prayers, procession, buñuelos [honey-laced, cinnamon fritter], ponche [fruit punch] and, of course, the piñata "game", the neighbors celebrate the traditional posadas.

Today, particularly among the middle class [and especially in the major cities], this celebration has been diversified by abandoning traditional Mexican features and adopting such influences from U.S. culture, including ornaments with figures of Santa Claus, reindeer and snowmen; Christmas trees and twinkling lights on house façades. In some places, posadas have ceased being a celebration for children and have become adult parties with drink, food and dance.

Andrés Medina Hernández from the Institute of Anthropological Research at the National Autonomous University of Mexico [UNAM] and a specialist in the posada tradition, points out that the middle-class is "most sensitive" to U.S. cultural propaganda [Medina's word], but the cultural heritage survives in working-class neighborhoods, pueblos [villages] and indigenous communities.

Traditionally, posadas were festivities with a religious tinge. Historical data relating the early years of the Spanish Colony recount that in 1587, Brother Diego de San Soria, of the Augustinian order in charge of the Convent of San Agustín Acolman, asked Pope Sixtus V for a papal document. The Pope gave his Aval [Backing] to celebrate bonus Masses annually between December 16 and 24 in several churches.

Across the centuries, the tradition was transformed and became a popular street festival that could take place in the atriums of neighborhood churches, in streets that neighbors took over for a few hours, in the great houses of the wealthiest people, or in neighborhood plazas. But the religious element was always kept intact, with festivities beginning with the procession of pilgrims and the so-called "request for shelter", "petición de posada" [Joseph and Mary asking the innkeeper for shelter].

In recent years, however, more of a consumer element has crept in:

"The entire U.S. cultural current—part of neoliberalism—promotes individualism. The posadas are a collective celebration, but abandonment of the collective spirit is encouraged in the middle-class sectors, which have now taken on drinking and dancing. Today posadas are an excuse to party."

Piñatas

Medina Hernández explained the transformation in both form and content of the traditional piñata—a key element of posadas. About 30 years ago, they were still made of clay and resembled stars (historical documents confirm their seven peaks refer to the Seven Deadly Sins) and were filled with piñata fruits. Now, however, they are made of cardboard and represent television personalities, sports and movie starts, and they are filled with sweets and chocolates produced by the large companies.

For Medina, other circumstances in addition to U.S. trends have influenced the diversification of posadas: the growing insecurity in some parts of the country, the loss of religiosity among many sectors of the population, and urbanization based on vertical condominiums where "relations between neighbors are not always cordial."

Andrés Medina Hernández concludes:

"[Traditional] posadas have not disappeared, but they are not reported by the media. Posada and other traditions are well rooted in Mexico City's indigenous pueblos, neighborhoods and marginal areas. [They are alive and well in Mexico City] in places like Xochimilco, Iztapalapa, Tláhuac, Milpa Alta; and in such communities as Guerrero and Aragón; and in other states. That's where they are."

Spanish original


Other Christmas posts:

• Mexico Traditions: Pastorelas;
• Mexican Traditions: Posadas;
• Mexico: Urban, Middle-Class Posadas Take on Features of U.S. Culture;
• Christmas.