tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8304928500646903522.post7638904344205285895..comments2024-03-18T15:45:32.866-04:00Comments on bensozia: The Twilight of the SvansJohnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01037215533094998996noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8304928500646903522.post-90223733313785922522016-12-28T18:16:43.862-05:002016-12-28T18:16:43.862-05:00David, I am a lay person and so much of my knowled...David, I am a lay person and so much of my knowledge comes from living in the area as a young "gringo" woman. At that time they would still parade through our small village carrying the Virgin Mary (individual to each small chapel) on Eastern Sunday. It was always men and they would pretend to snap aspen branches against the backs of the men in front of them (I think the church had outlawed the real thing at some point). This would have been the very early 70's and within 5 years it ceased to happen. The morados where they worshiped, were a mystery to us all. Small adobes with short doors, no windows, and no markings of any kind on the outside. These too started to look abandoned around the mid to late seventies. Though I have photos of a few I took on many long journeys into the mountains.<br /><br />But the stories: That when the Catholic church removed itself back to Santa Fe during the Pueblo revolts, feeling abandoned by their church they became more violent and bloody. Self flagellation was always part of their religion but it became more aggressive, and of course the crucifixion performance but really conducted. These could always have been tall tales but from this far view it did not feel that way. Truchas/Trampas between Santa Fe and Taos on the high road where hostile places in those days, one traveled on through. The lower San Luis Valley in Colorado has numerous villages on the east side up dirt road canyons in the Sangra De Cristo mountains, all have or had their morados. <br /><br />Google of course has a million and one articles none that seem to me to capture what I have seen or heard and I would imagine the U.N.M. has some students thesis, if not then some grad student missed out on a real experience. <br /><br />I will point out that in Northern New Mexico they consider themselves Spanish from Spain with a few having green eyes and once in a while even blue (Then of course they say they are from the Basque Country. I am aware that the conquistadors raped and pillaged their way north and certainly the pueblo's women paid that price. But as for the word "Mexican" one would be run out of town. My children and I always say Spanish...so much so that my Texan son-in-law will correct us and say he is Tex/Mex!<br /><br />There was just something about the Svan's that ran a ghost of feeling through my memory. For that I thank you. I have read and shared your blog with friends for a while now so forgive my ignorance and please keep enlightening us. My regards. <br /><br /><br /> <br />Kadirahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16331893883704271751noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8304928500646903522.post-33865802519036659982016-12-27T11:49:16.016-05:002016-12-27T11:49:16.016-05:00Kadira, I'm intrigued by your description of t...Kadira, I'm intrigued by your description of the Penitentes. My (limited) reading on them has only shown me some fairly traditional Hispanic-Catholic practices (albeit with a strong emphasis on extreme penances, crucifixion performance, etc.) and a strong valuation of pure-blooded hispanismo. Certainly I've seen nothing like the Svans, or even much like stereotypical Mexican Indian-Catholic syncretism. I'm wondering if you could point me to sources, websites, etc., for Penitente pagan-catholic syncretism; this would be for purposes of teaching as much as my own curiosity.Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08993570411881726772noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8304928500646903522.post-45008640465490688782016-12-27T09:59:11.884-05:002016-12-27T09:59:11.884-05:00Very interesting and reminded me of the Spanish Pe...Very interesting and reminded me of the Spanish Penitentes of Northern New Mexico and Southern Colorado who also were cut off from their base religion and created their own mix of pagan and catholic religions which are still practiced there today though the numbers are dwindling. Kadirahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16331893883704271751noreply@blogger.com