Home › Photo File › Seeing
Seeing: Chilili celebrates the feast of San Juan Neponuceno
An oral history
Photo by Steven St. JohnTribune
Tribune
As the community processes down N.M. 337, the main road through Chilili, Noe Gutierrez fires a rifle to scare off any bad spirits. A mix of Spanish, Mexican, American Indian and Catholic traditions contribute to the feast of San Juan Neponuceno, the East Mountains village's patron saint.
More Seeing
MOST RECENT TRIB STORIES
-
ABQTrib.com to remain available
08:48 a.m., February 25, 2008 -
Congressman is indicted
08:37 a.m., February 23, 2008 -
Series of attacks target Green Zone
08:36 a.m., February 23, 2008 -
Iran is defying U.N., agency says
08:35 a.m., February 23, 2008 -
Waterboarding approval probed
08:34 a.m., February 23, 2008
TRIB IN THE BLOGOSPHERE*
- Ty Murray Invitational thrills fans in Albuquerque
- Is Rome Burning?
- Ominous Skies
- The Road to Invalidation
- Albuquerque company participates in “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”
*Note: The Tribune does not create and is not responsible for the blogosphere's headlines and stories. These links to blogs talking about ABQTrib.com are automatically generated. Use them at your own risk.
STORY TOOLS
SHARE THIS STORY [?]
Small communities around New Mexico come together each year on traditional feast days. The East Mountains community of Chilili celebrated the feast of San Juan Neponuceno on Aug. 3., as related here by resident Ernest Gutierrez:
"I've lived in this community my entire life, for approximately 57 years now, and ever since I've known it, my parents and their parents before them would always celebrate a feast day, and the feast for today in this community is the feast of San Juan.
"San Juan Neponuceno is the patron saint of the community. Every year we celebrate this feast. Our belief is that he can bring us a prosperous coming year — snow in the winter, rain so our crops can grow.
"It's just a tradition, it's a tradition that our ancestors left us from a long time ago. The Matachines come and they dance to the patron saint in respect, and it all starts with the celebration of the holy Mass.
"Our little church is usually full of people all the time. We try to give this tradition so our children will continue. In the procession, there were smaller children. These are kids that are learning the tradition of the Matachin. In the background, the people who were walking were their grandfathers and great-grandfathers who had themselves been Matachines.
"In the church, they do the switching of the mayordomos, and these mayordomos are a couple that takes care of the church for the coming year.
"Everything that the church community, or the community of Chilili does is because of the church. The church is the center of our community. This church was built in the 1700s.
"It's special to my children, it's special especially to my mother and my father who have yet passed on, and that is why I do the little altar at my house. It's in remembrance of them. My sister and I do this every year to reflect on the good things, and the bad things also sometimes, that have happened to us, but mostly the good things.
"After all this is done, everybody in the community goes to a meal and they celebrate the remainder of the fiesta. After the meal, they'll have the Ensayo back at the church, where the Matachines dance for the last time for the patron saints until the next coming year. That (ceremony) gives the new mayordomos the key to the church, the key to the community.
"After that is all over, people will start going into their homes, and the homes are open to everybody all day long. People that come from other communities will go and visit and stay at people's houses.
"Then in the evening when everything is kind of settled down, then they have a big dance celebration that is held at the same community center where they had the big meal, and it's a big party. They keep celebrating, and it's just a tradition that we hope will never leave us."
