Lorca, Viernes de Dolores, Vía Crucis

2 nights, 2 Vía Crucis, Lorca and La Unión

The last 2 nights have been spent following firstly one of the oldest Vía Crucis in the Region of Murcia in Lorca, and then participating in the newest, treading in the footsteps of thousands of penitents throughout centuries gone by, then being amongst the very first to be part of a new tradition, the creation of the Vía Crucis de los Mineros, an atmospheric journey down from the Mina Agrupa Vicenta in La Unión to the church below.

The practise of following a Vía Crucis, Way of the Cross, or stations of the cross, is believed to have begun in Spain with the Dominican Fray Álvaro of Córdoba as far back as 1421, but its popularity spread due to the activities of the Franciscans, who were granted administration of Christian Holy sites within Jerusalem in 1342,  and the influences of literature available throughout Europe written by those who had undertaken journeys of Pilgrimage to Jerusalem or visits to Italy

In the mid 15th century an English pilgrim, William Wey described having seen Pilgrims following a way of the cross, and by 1521, there was a book in print called Geystlich Strass which showed illustrations of "stations" of the cross in the Holy Land.

In this same year, the first spanish Vía Crucis began in Seville.
At this point in time the number of stations varied between 11 and 30 and was not fixed at 14 until 1731 when Pope Clement XII defined the number of stations as being 14.

A Vía Crucis follows 14 "stations" of the cross, echoing the last few hours of Christ´s life, and is a journey of reflection and contemplation.
Jesus is condemned to death
Jesus is given his cross
Jesus falls the first time
Jesus meets His Mother
Simon of Cyrene carries the cross
Veronica wipes the face of Jesus
Jesus falls the second time
Jesus meets the daughters of Jerusalem
Jesus falls the third time
Jesus is stripped of His garments
Crucifixion: Jesus is nailed to the cross
Jesus dies on the cross
Jesus body is removed from the cross (Deposition or Lamentation)
Jesus is laid in the tomb and covered in incense

The Lorquian "camino de las cruces" follows a route of 1321 steps, the distance historically believed to have separated the praetorium of Pontius Pilate from the Calvary.

The first Vía Crucis in Lorca was marked by simple iron crosses, but in the late 17th century these started to take the form of chapels, as the city began to prosper.

The Vía Crucis we followed lead from the Convento de san Francisco in Calle Nogalte, home of the Paso Morado who undertake this tradition each year, up to the Calvery at Monte Sacro, a little known jewel set high above Lorca with magnificent views out across the City. It´s an indescribable gem, constructed as were many such places in this era, as locations where Christians could meditate and pray in an aura of peace and tranquillity.

Surrounded by gardens of Olives, stately rows of pine trees lead to a Plaza and Capilla Mayor set against rugged rocks overlooking the city, crowned with a simple wrought iron cross.

The chapel itself is fortunate to have survived the ravages of the Civil war, as although it´s artworks were destroyed, the original tiled floor from 1771 survived intact, as did the wrought iron pulpit which carries the symbols of the cycle of the passion of Christ, the Arma Christi. ( We´ll produce a full article about the Calvery for the Where to go section and explain these symbols in more detail, as this little chapel has several strong references to them which we´ll explain and show you where to look for them, as it´s fascinating to understand what this beautiful little chapel actually represented.)

Inside the chapel a striking figure of Christ on the cross dominated the interior, a replacement for the original which was destroyed during the Civil war in 1935, although mercifully several original elements remained, all of which have now been restored.

The penitents wore the purple robes of the Paso Morado, and carried wooden crosses, accompanied by the sculpture of the Virgen de los Dolores , made in 1802 by Roque López, pupil of Master Sculptor Francisco Salzillo, this year of particular significance as 2010 marks the 200th anniversary of his death.

It was a very different Vía Crucis to the one in which we participated on the same day last year in Cartagena, the first few stations seemingly just a few metres away from each other in Calle Nogalte, but then it turned right up a series of back streets and suddenly we were walking up stone steps to the charming plaza, gardens and amazing views across Lorca, a location we would never have discovered as  a tourist, yet one which is so very worthwhile for visitors to enjoy, be it in a religious or non-religious sense.

Being honest, it was a strange evening, the Via Crucis initially lacking the popular tourism appeal of the Cartagena event, certainly the first stations difficult for non-spanish speakers to follow, and lacking the sense of journey as they were very close together, but the discovery of the Calvery was an absolute joy, as was the visit to the museum of the Paso Morado itself at the foot of the hill back in Calle Nogalte, both of which made it an absolute pleasure to have participated in.

Following the Vía Crucis there was time for a spot of tapas and a drink before the evening procession. This is listed amongst the biblical processions,but only contains a very few elements and just a few horses. Being absolutely honest, if you want to attend one of the less pricey nights and just experience a taste of what is to come, its worth coming along to, but personally, the Palm Sunday procession is more extensive and contains more elements. There is absolutely nothing to compare with the major biblical processions the following week, but this Thursday night is a good experience if youve never been to the Lorca Semana Sanra before.

On a  personal level, we find the time before the processions themselves the most pleasurable, mingling with the Cofradías, looking closely at the embroideries on the standards and robes, wandering into the churches and watching preparations for the processions, just being in the crowd as the events unfold.The processions are almost an anticlimax.

The only true way to know what happens this week is to go, participate, and follow the processions to see what happens. Allied with a spot of tapas, and a cool beer after the good walk of a Vía Crucis, or following the figure of Christ through the back streets of a city just to see where it´s going is half the experience of this week: try it, you might surprise yourself.