San Andres Itzapa: Little Altars Everywhere

I woke up Monday morning with only a mild fever, and filled with wonder at my surroundings. The home where I was staying was simple, but the sky, the mountains, and the flowers blooming in January were nothing short of extraordinary. Mist was on the mountains. With my initial burst of morning energy, I paid tribute to the morning and then took a (warmish) shower. 

At breakfast, however, I was able to eat only very little of the scrambled eggs my host mother had prepared. She clucked concernedly. Sharon looked at my pallor and said, "Go back to bed." 

I did. Before I had quite fallen asleep, Brian poked his head in and told me he thought I had a flu. I should have recovered from amoebas, in his opinion, by then. If I didn't recover quickly, he judged it would be necessary for me to be sent back to Sister Parish HQ in Ciudad Guatemala.

I fell asleep in a state of quiet despondency. 

When I woke, I found I was in much better shape. The fever had gone, and I was even able to choke down a granola bar. After prayers, we had lunch at Don Otto and Basilia's, and we explored the town!

Don Otto and Balan; good friends. 

I also greatly appreciated Don Otto's affectionate love for his cats! 

Don Otto was such a godsend. If you don't know, my Grandfather Revell passed away the night before I left for Guatemala. I was not able to be in town for his funeral, which occured early in the week I was away. But I felt so strongly that I was meeting with something of Grandpa's spirit in Don Otto. This man is a leader in his community. He's strong in his convictions, but passionate and sincere as he describes them. He feels free to feel emotions, and he clearly loves his wife and children. I actually lost both my grandfathers in the last six months, so I cherished feeling loved by this foster father, patriarch of his family. and lover of animals. 

San Andres Itzapa Roman Catholic Church

The streets of SAI are narrow, winding, and steep. Driving in any sort of vehicle was, for our delegation, a tense adventure! We saw a lot of horses carrying loads up steep streets and thought it looked a much more stable arrangement than using an automobile.

Each delegate was settled in a different host family's home, except for Sharon and me. Because of my illness, I was transferred from sharing a bed with Carrie at Letty's home, to my own room at Otto & Basilia's. This turned out, because of the personalities of my host family, to be perfect for me. Carrie was, at first, panicked by this change. She was counting on me to interpret for her! Carrie and I are chums, and I was looking forward to bunking with her. But God sent her consolation in the form of Carlita: 

Carlita is 5 and Carlita became Carrie's teacher and companion and friend. They drew pictures (there is nothing like a child for drawing pictures) and taught each other the names of the things they sketched. Carrie was loved and cared for by her assigned family, and she has come out fairly sure that things were the way they ought to have been.

On Monday afternoon, we were privileged to have Father Miguel, the rector of the San Andres Itzapa and of another church in nearby Chimaltenango; they share him. He came specifically that day to talk about something that has proved central to our understanding of this people, and that is Christian syncretism.

It's hard for me to give the full scoop on this vital issue. Articles, books could be written. And certainly, another blog post. But the essentials to know are these:
1. The folks in SAI are mainly indigenous Mayan-heritage people.
2. From the oldest to the youngest who spoke with me on the topic (a young teen), they believe fervently that the Mayan ancestors ("abuelitos") are still a force in the world, that their spirits are all around them, and that these spirits guard them and watch out for them in everything.
3. This belief in the intercession of the ancestors is central to Mayan identity and spirituality. There are groups who have drawn folks away from the old traditions and practices (notably, the evangelical sects of Christianity which proliferate in Latin America), but most Catholic and similar forms of traditional Christianity have made their peace with a certain degree of syncretism.

What Padre Miguel told us I have been mulling in my mind ever since. He said that he does not view the practices of his parishioners as being in conflict with Christianity. They do not invoke spirits to hurt their enemies, they do not worship spirits as Gods. According to Padre Miguel, there are two main values which traditional Mayan beliefs encourage. One is care for the environment, and the second is veneration for the ancestors, neither of which, Pardre Miguel believes, are in conflict with Christianity. He encourages his parishioners to practice their traditions with whole hearts full of love for Creation, which, he believes, will make them better followers of God.

The same could be said for us all, it seems to me!

Anyway, I will continue to mull over this topic and may reflect further, later. For now, the rest of the afternoon.

After the discussion, we were able to meander a bit in the street...

a little light shopping

San Andres Itzapa

Brian & Don Otto, who always wore his hat.

And visit the shrine of a local saint, San Simon, otherwise known as Maximon. Guys... this saint is bizarre. He seems to be a saint who incorporates attributes of an ancient Mayan deity. On the one hand, the RC church does not approve of or recognize him. On the other, the people here seem to venerate him deeply. They wait in lines to commune with him and petition his prayers at this shrine. The air is full of cigar smoke, as a Mayan tradition encourages cigar smoking as a form of prayer. 

This was a Not-In-Kansas-Anymore moment for me, to be sure. 

But I want to share something mysterious and lovely. Before I left. I was paging through the Spanish Language Book of Common Prayer that I'd purchased for the trip, looking for a prayer to give words to my heart. I happened upon this prayer for "Confianza y Tranquilidad" (Confidence and Tranquility) and knew that was just the prayer for that hour. I prayed it. I took an instagram, for crying out loud. The prayer goes, 

Por Confianza y Tranquilidad.

OH Dios de paz, que nos has enseñado que en el arrepentimiento y descanso espiritual seremos salvos, y en la tranquilidad y la confianza consistirá nuestra fortaleza; Levántanos por el poder de tu Espíritu, te suplicamos, a tu presencia, en donde podamos contemplarte en silencio y saber que Tú eres Dios; mediante Jesucristo nuestro Señor. Amén.

English Translation: 


For Quiet Confidence
O God of peace, who hast taught us that in returning and
rest we shall be saved, in quietness and confidence shall be
our strength: By the might of thy Spirit lift us, we pray thee,
to thy presence, where we may be still and know that thou
art
art God; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

That was the prayer of my fearful heart before leaving. Tranquilidad! That's what I need, above all! Well, on this Monday afternoon, I waited in line to pay my respects to the Saint. Once at the shrine, Jacinta, one of the SAI Episcopal church members, prayed over us. She put some kind of substance (I suspect alcoholic) which was available at the saint's feet on us, which weirded me out a bit, but then she prayed for us, over us, and as she touched my shoulders, she murmured over and over the word, "tranquilidad." I got goosebumps. I felt like the gift I'd asked for was being conferred that moment. 

Here in this neon-lit, cigar-smoke-filled shrine, I felt answered by God. The week was full of moments like that. 

Back at Don Otto & Basilia's home, after dinner (which I ate, if insufficiently), the preparations began for our first Mayan ceremony. 

From left to right: Dona Basilia (my hostess & new abuela), Dona Lucia, and Dona Letty.

The candles had to be sorted, the strings untangled, the corn mold unpacked, and a fire started. The details of the ceremony are very important. We are preparing to commune with ancestors whom we welcome as guests. These folks believe the ancestors are still capable of enjoying things, so we offer them a variety of refreshments for their visit, including honey, corn, cigar smoke, and liquor.

Maureen jumped right in to help. Have I mentioned how much I admire Maureen?

Dona Jacinta might be the most knowledgeable about these ceremonies. 

As the women prepared the ingredients, Don Otto invoked the participation of the ancestors with the help of a couple of cigars: 

This ceremony was long, but it was so beautiful. I understood it only in part, Don Otto having gotten the ancestors' permission to conduct it in Spanish, rather than Kaqchikel.  The ancestors were introduced to us, and we were informed that they embraced us and were glad of our visit. We offered several items that the ancestors reportedly like, and were given objects to offer after having meditated upon a certain topic (relationships in our lives, things we needed to forgive, etc). One touching moment was the opportunity to send greetings to our own dead forbearers. We were asked to name dead members of our family, I think so that the Mayan ancestors would recognize us by our people. I quietly named my grandfathers (saved my mother for Thursday). And we prayed. 

The fire burned for a few hours, and we lingered long after the ceremony was over to talk and feel its peace and warmth. 

I stole this picture from Carrie, who went on a walk around Guatemala City that I wasn't able to take. But the words are from the Magnificat and pretty much speak to the joy I felt in my deliverance from sickness and fear on Monday and Tuesday. 

By Tuesday night, I was eating with much more gusto. But that's another story.