Las Posadas: A Devotion of Welcoming
The custom of celebrating the nine days before Christmas, which recall Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem as they sought lodging yet were turned down by everyone, can be traced to the early evangelization of Mexico. This custom is still practiced there as well as in the United States.
It is clear why immigrants to this country are deeply devoted to this practice. As they seek a place to say, they can identify with Mary and Joseph in a special way. They experience what Mary and Joseph lived on their way to Bethlehem. How many times have immigrants and their spouses experienced this same rejection firsthand? How many times have they gone door to door asking for room, board and work, and been turned down, with contempt? Even the laws of this nation, personified by the innkeeper of Bethlehem, shut doors, make it illegal to offer them employment, and treat them as suspects: "I can not let you in, robbers, terrorists … You had better go back to your homeland.”
It is mainly the Hispanic people in the Southwest who see this relationship more clearly, and that is why the posadas are so popular. The posadas can be an instrument for catechesis in parishes across this country. It would be almost impossible to find a parish that does not have immigrants. When celebrated publically with due preparation by the participants, the posadas can serve as a tangible reminder to the mostly Christian people of this nation that behind these immigrants or these poor “undesirables” (as many people regard them) we find Mary, Joseph and the Holy Child. This practice also can give the immigrant the comfort of knowing that the bitter and arduous journey that they now take was first walked by these holy pilgrims who were forced to spend the first Christmas in a manger because no one would take them in.
The devotion of the posadas is a wonderful pastoral opportunity to remind immigrants that these holy pilgrims accompany them on their arduous journey, and that the Church can bear witness that in this country there are people who have the eyes to recognize in the foreigner who knocks on their door the pilgrims of Bethlehem.
This devotion has prevailed, not only because of its beloved Christmas flavor, but because it also celebrates the Christian faith: the hospitality toward those who have no friends or support system. In those people who cannot repay our hospitality and assistance (Luke 14:12-14), we find Mary and Joseph. Within Mary we find the Lord Jesus, in all his human frailty. How sad it would be to have had the opportunity of welcoming them but let it slip away! What happiness we would find in welcoming them, even without knowing that the poor pregnant wife, who could barely walk, was the Queen of Heaven bearing the Son of God! If we open our door to the stranger, we will for sure be be welcomed into God’s Kingdom (Mt 25:35).
By Marina Herrera, PhD
Translated into English by Francisco Castillo, DMin
For the original Spanish version, click here.