Invierno y Religion

Although Guatemala is north of the equator and technically shares the same seasons as the United States, the people here call this time of year “invierno” (winter) because it is the rainy season.  The rainy season normally begins in June and lasts for three months.  Because Chicago’s winter lasts until May, I left one winter and entered another.  The really great news is that the temperature here in Guatemala does not vary much at all.  In fact if you look at the average highs and lows of Guatemala City in weather.com for the entire year, you will see almost a straight line.  Winter for Guatemalans signifies rain.  The days are typically bright and warm with temperatures staying right around 75°F, and the nights drop down to 60°F.  Right now the late afternoons and nights are rainy, but there are days that it doesn’t rain at all. 

The coasts are of course much warmer all year round, and my teacher believes that a hotter climate makes people more aggressive.  Every day we read an article in the newspaper so I can understand what is happening in my new country, and it does help with pronunciation, apprehension of new vocabulary, and comprehension of what I am reading.  Each time I read about a criminal of some sort, she quips that the person must have grown up in a hot region.  She may be right.  I’m not sure, but I have noticed that the people here have a different way of thinking.   

San Francisco Church

 

Inside San Francisco Church

Last week she took me to one of the churches here called San Francisco.  This particular church is one of the “ruins” and is also the resting place of a real-life saint.  San Hermano Pedro’s remains rest in this church, as they have for over a hundred years.  Next to the church is a museum dedicated to Hermano Pedro, which I will talk about in more detail later.  However in this museum is a sort of living commemoration from people who have reportedly received miracles from San Hermano Pedro.  There are wheel chairs, crutches, letters, pictures, and all sorts of different things that people have given in order to thank him for their miracles.  My teacher was explaining to me that one of her brothers was a recipient of one of these miracles.  She told me that her mother was a very devout Catholic who prayed and prayed when her brother became sick with some sort of stomach infection.  She grew up very poor, and her mother did not have any money to take him to a doctor.  I was confused because I thought she told me her mother is a very strict Mormon.  She then explained what happened.  Apparently her mother prayed to San Hermano Pedro, her brother’s stomach infection miraculously was healed, and for many years she was Catholic.  Then something terrible happened.  A witch moved next door to my teacher when she was young, and this witch cast spells on her mother.  Her mother became schizophrenic and began beating her and her siblings.  She lived this way for many years, until one day her mother was crying because of the demons in her mind, and a couple of Mormons in their typical uniforms arrived at her door.  They had been coming around for many months, and this particular day she finally allowed them into her home.  Ever since that day, her schizophrenia was cured, and to show her appreciation, her mother converted to Mormonism.  My teacher firmly believes all of these events occurred.  

Mayan ceremony being performed literally on the steps of a Catholic Church

If nothing else, Guatemala is definitely a country of faith.  The people here are predominantly Catholic, but I’ve noticed that it really is more a mixture of all of them.  There are even Mayan ceremonies performed within the “Catholic Church” here.  Having grown up in a Roman Catholic family, I’m well aware that this isn’t allowed.  Then there’s the example of my teacher’s family who firmly believe their son was the recipient of a miracle from a Catholic Saint, was cursed by a witch from a different religion, and then cured by another.  It seems the people here have the capacity to believe in all of them!  By the way, my teacher does not consider herself a Mormon.  Apparently the Mormons here are not allowed to drink coffee.  Guatemala is one of the best areas of the world for growing coffee, and it is a way of life here.  My teacher loves her coffee, and it is for this reason and this reason alone she is not a Mormon.  In any case, I definitely am learning a lot of Spanish in addition to the culture here!  Mas luego, lo prometo.