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San Pedro del Pinatar has the most complete Easter celebrations in the Mar Menor area

Semana Santa in the Mar Menor area has a very different feel from the celebrations in other parts of the Region of Murcia, combining a celebration of Catholic faith with a distinctly marine air. The events in San Pedro del Pinatar are the main Mar Menor Semana Santa processions around the lagoon, and this is still a very young celebration in comparison to some of the others – San Pedro is, after all, one of the newest municipalities in the Region – but it is rapidly gaining in prestige.

The first Cofradías (brotherhoods) formed here in the early 1950s and the number of participants continues to grow, as does the collection of religious sculptures which are paraded through the streets during Easter Week.

One of the most interesting events is the Vía Crucis on Holy Wednesday, which follows the 14 stations of the cross along the shore of the Mar Menor and features the figure of Cristo del Mar Menor carried by 40 bearers.

The most picturesque of the processions is that of the Day of the Resurrection on Easter Sunday, although the most widely attended is the one of the Santo Entierro of Viernes Santo (Good Friday), the biggest procession of the week.

The processions generally follow set routes between churches and are fairly easy to pick up as they are in the centre of the town. All of the processions start at the Iglesia de San Pedro Apóstol, so this is a good place to guarantee you won’t miss them!

Other churches featured are the Iglesia del Carmen in Lo Pagán and the Iglesia de la Santísima Trinidad.

Main events in the Semana Santa 2023 programme in San Pedro del Pinatar:

Friday March 31, Viernes de Dolores (Friday of Sorrows)

10.00: Transfer of the figure of San Juan. Route: Colegio San Pedro Apóstol, Calle Salvador Saura, Avenida del Taibilla, Calle Libertad, Calle Víctor Pradera, Avenida del Pilar, Iglesia de la Santísima Trinidad.

21.15: Procesión de Nuestra Señora de los Dolores, the first of the week’s religious processions. Route: Iglesia San Pedro Apóstol, Plaza de la Constitución, Plaza de España, Gabriel Cañadas, Maestro Falla, Cervantes, Avenida Emilio Castelar, Plaza de la Constitución, Iglesia de San Pedro Apóstol.

The pasos (or tableaux) featured include the Santísima Virgen de los Dolores (Sánchez Lozano, 1942).

Sunday April 2, Domingo de Ramos (Palm Sunday)

There are two processions with palms, one in San Pedro del Pinatar itself and the other on the coast in Lo Pagán.

11.00: The Blessing of the Palms in the Plaza de la Constitución in San Pedro del Pinatar and subsequent procession. This is a family occasion on which children bring their palm ornaments to be blessed, along with palm and olive branches, and whole families take part. At the end of the procession, which celebrates the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, Holy Mass is held at 12.00.

Route: Plaza de la Constitución, Iglesia de San Pedro Apóstol, Calle Barón de Benifayó, Calle Reyes Católicos, Avenida Dr. Artero Guirao, Victor Pradera, Avenida del Pilar, Iglesia de la Santísima Trinidad.

11.30: Procession of the Palms in Lo Pagán. Departure from the Residencia de las Hermanas Franciscanas, ending with Holy Mass at the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Carmen at 12.00.

Route: Avenida Salzillo, Queipo de Llano, Plaza de Carmen Arce, Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Carmen.

Monday April 3, Lunes Santo (Holy Monday)

21.00: “Auto Sacramental de la Pasión”. This is a Passion Play (like a nativity play but about Christ’s death rather than his birth) and is held in the Iglesia de San Pedro Apóstol.

22.00: La Procesión del Traslado, the transfer of the figures of Santiago Apóstol and María Magdalena, progressing in two processionary groups.

Group A (Santiago Apóstol and the San Javier theatre group):

Route 1: Plaza de la Constitución, Avenida Emilio Castelar, Calle Cervantes.

Route 2: Plaza de la Constitución, Avenida Emilio Castelar, Calle Serrano, Calle Maestro Falla.

Group B (María Magdalena):

Route: Plaza de España, Calle Gabriel Cañadas, Calle Marañón, Calle Belchite.

The two processions meet at the junction of Calle Belchite, Calle Dr Marañón and Calle Maestro Falla, before they both continue along all three of these streets.

The figures paraded are those of Santiago Apóstol, which dates from 2001, and María Magdalena (Juan Bautista de la Vera, 2014).

Tuesday April 4, Martes Santo (Holy Tuesday)

21.00: Procesión de Promesas, the procession of promises. This procession features the figure of the Virgen de la Piedad (Manuel Ribera Girona, 1955).

Route: Iglesia de San Pedro Apóstol, Plaza de la Constitución, Barón de Benifayó, Calle Reyes Católicos, Avenida Dr. Artero Guirao, Cabanellas, Gabriel Cañadas, Maestro Falla, Cervantes, Avenida Emilio Castelar, Iglesia de San Pedro Apóstol.

21.45: Procesión del Prendimiento, the taking of Christ. This procession features the figures of the Oración en el Huerto (Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane) (José Hernández Navarro, 1991), Jesús de Medinaceli and the Santísimo Cristo del Perdón (attributed to Capuz).

Route: Iglesia de San Pedro Apóstol, Plaza de la Constitución, Barón de Benifayó, Reyes Católicos, Avenida Dr. Artero Guirao, Cabanellas, Gabriel Cañadas, Maestro Falla, Cervantes, Avenida Emilio Castelar, Iglesia de San Pedro Apóstol.

Wednesday April 5, Miércoles Santo (Holy Wednesday)

22.00: Vía Crucis of the Santísimo Cristo del Mar Menor. This is the only Via Crucis along the shore of the Mar Menor and starts at the Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Carmen in Lo Pagán.

The route features the 14 Stations of the Cross, all of them visited by the figure of the Santísimo Cristo del Mar Menor (García Mengual, 1991).

Route: Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Carmen, Plaza de Carmen Arce, García Morato, Antonio Tárraga, Castilla, Avenida Romería de la Virgen del Carmen, Campoamor, Calatrava, Capilla de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción. At this point the Vía Crucis ends and is followed by the procession (route: Capilla de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción, Galicia, Avenida Romería de la Virgen del Carmen, Salzillo, Queipo de Llano, church of Nuestra Señora del Carmen.

Thursday April 6, Jueves Santo (Maundy Thursday)

20.15: The bands gather in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento, then sally forth to meet the pasos and the procession.

21.15 and 21.30: The Procesión del Encuentro de Jésus con su Santísima Madre, the meeting of Jesus and his Holy Mother. A complicated event which culminates in the meeting of three groups.

The Nazarenes, with the figure of Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno (Sánchez Lozano, 1961), set out from Calle Concepción Escribano, and proceed along Avenida de las Salinas to the junction with Avenida Emilio Castelar.

La Piadosa Verónica (Manuel Ribera Girona, 1953), meanwhile, departs from Calle Cervantes, while the Virgen de los Dolores (Sánchez Lozano, 1942) and San Juan Evangelista (Cuenca Santo, 1950) begin their journey to the meeting point in the Barrio del Carmen, marching along Avenida Emilio Castelar.

22.00 (approx): The meeting takes place at the junction of Avenida Emilio Castelar, Avenida de las Salinas and Calle Cervantes, and the four tableaux acknowledge each other and re-enact the events which took place during Christ’s walk to Calvary. A saeta hymn is sung to Jesús Nazareno.

After the “Encuentro” the route is as follows: Avenida Emilio Castelar, Plaza de la Constitución, Calle Barón de Benifayó, Reyes Católicos, Avenida Dr. Artero Guirao, Plaza de la Constitución.

00.05: La Procesión del Silencio. Just after midnight the figure of the Santísimo Cristo del Perdón begins another procession in reverential silence, starting at the Iglesia de San Pedro Apóstol.

Route: Plaza de la Constitución, Plaza de España, Calle Lorenzo Morales, Calle Serrano, Avenida Emilio Castelar, Plaza de la Constitución.

Friday April 7, Viernes Santo (Good Friday)

19.00: The bands assemble in front of the Ayuntamiento, then march through the streets of the town in the longest procession of the week.

20.30: La Procesión del Santo Entierro (the Holy Sepulchre)

The Pasos (or sculpted figures and tableaux) paraded are the following:

Santo Grial (1953)

Oración del Huerto (José Hernández Navarro, 1991)

Jesús de Medinaceli (1990)

Santiago Apóstol (2001)

San Pedro Apóstol (Pio Mollar, 1942)

Piadosa Verónica (Manuel Ribera Girona, 1955)

Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno (Sánchez Lozano, 1942)

Santísimo Cristo del Perdón (attributed to Capuz, 1953)

Santísima Virgen de la Piedad (Manuel Ribera Girona, 1955)

Santa Cruz Desnuda (accompanied by the ladies wearing their mantilla headdresses)

Agrupación de Tercios Romanos

Santo Sepulcro (Pío Mollar, 1947)

San Juan Evangelista (Cuenca Santo, 1950)

Santísima Virgen de los Dolores, (Sánchez Lozano, 1942)

The route is as follows: Plaza de España, Plaza de la Constitución, Barón de Benifayó, Reyes Católicos, Plaza de la Inmaculada, Calle Velázquez, Avenida Dr. Artero Guirao, Calle Río Segura, Calle Urgel, Calle Cervantes, Avenida Emilio Castelar, Plaza de la Constitución, Iglesia de San Pedro Apóstol.

Saturday April 8, Sábado Santo (Easter Saturday)

17.30: Procesión de la Soledad, in which the figure of the Virgen de la Soledad (by Cuenca Santo) is carried through the streets.

Route: Plaza Virgen del Carmen (Barrio de los Pescadores), Avenida Emilio Castelar, Plaza Constitución, Avenida Dr. Artero Guirao, Victor Pradera, Avenida Orihuela, Manzanares, Residencia "Mensajeros de la Paz".

Sunday April 9, Domingo de la Resurrección (Easter Sunday)

Semana Santa in San Pedro del Pinatar ends with another complex procession as four groups meet in Plaza Luis Molina.

The mood is now light rather than sombre to celebrate the Resurrection and eternal life: the “capirote” hoods are gone and the participants unveil their faces, distributing thousands of sweets to the onlookers.

The “pasos” featured are those of Jesús Resucitado, Cruz Tendida en el Calvario, María Magdalena, San Juan Evangelista and Santísima Virgen de los Dolores.

10.00: Procesión del Encuentro

The four groups set out.

Group A (Cruz Tendida en el Calvario and San Juan Evangelista) leaves Edificio Villamar and parades along Avenida Doctor Artero Guirao to the Plaza de Luis Molina.

Group B (Jesús Resucitado) sets out from Calle Víctor Pradera.

Group C (María Magdalena) departs from Plaza de la Constitución and moves along Barón de Benifayó, Reyes Católicos and Avenida del Mediterráneo, and group D (the Santísima Virgen de Los Dolores) follows roughly the same route.

10.30: The meeting takes place at the crossroads of Dr Artero Guirao at Plaza Luis Molina, when Mary sees that Jesus has risen from the dead. As the 2 pasos meet fireworks are let off, the crowd cheer and white doves are let loose into the sky.

After the Encuentro and the fireworks the procession continues along the following route: Avenida Doctor Artero Guirao, Calle Cabanellas, Calle Gabriel Cañadas, Calle Maestro Falla, Calle Serrano, Avenida Emilio Castelar, Avenida de la Constitucion.

12.30: Swearing of allegiance to the flag and the parade of the Roman legion in the Plaza de la Constitución.

Images: Ayuntamiento de San Pedro del Pinatar

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