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Mardi Gras is a huge celebration, especially in Louisiana, but amidst the beads and floats, some people forget that Mardi Gras is the precursor to the Lenten season for the Catholic religion. Partying and feasting are the norm during the Mardi Gras season, but all that comes to an end on Ash Wednesday, the day after Fat Tuesday, when Catholics begin their abstinence for six weeks.
Having attended Catholic school, I remember being off of school for the Mardi Gras holiday, but the thing I remembered most was attending mass on Ash Wednesday with my school so that we could receive ashes on our foreheads. For the Lenten season, it was as important to us as Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
Recently, I found myself in Bogota. Since I had not been to Colombia in many years, I was excited to revisit some of the places that I had in the past and some new ones. At least one of those places was a church and since it happened to be Ash Wednesday, I was excited to see if any of the traditions in Bogota Catholicism were different than I expected.
Early in the morning, two of my friends and I decided to take an Uber to one of Bogota’s most famous natural landmarks, Monserrate. Rising more than 10,000 feet above the city center, the mountain boasts a 17th century church and shrine devoted to El Señor Caído (“The Fallen Lord”).
I recalled visiting many years ago, but I didn’t remember much except for the photo of a beautiful flower that I took there (that now hangs on my living room wall) and that we had taken a teleférico (cable car) to the top of the mountain.
Arriving at the teleférico station, we discovered that the teleférico was not in operation, only the funicular. So be it! It was either that or a long hike (almost two miles) with a steep grade! Purchasing our tickets, we took our place in line and awaiting our turn to board the railway car to the mountaintop. As we were packed like sardines, it made it easy to make friends and I practiced my Spanish while we enjoyed the scenery during the climb.
At the end of the line, we exited the funicular and made our way along the pathway admiring the beautiful statues of the Stations of the Cross as well as the stunning views of the city below, in between the low clouds and light rain showers. On the adjacent mountain, we spied the 45-foot tall statue of the Virgin of Guadalupe and its adjacent sanctuary, which appeared to be miniscule from our vantage point. Finally, we were face to face with the Basilica Sanctuary of Monserrate which houses the statue of the fallen Lord of Monserrate, representing Jesus falling for the third time on his way to Calvary.
Pausing for a moment to take a photo with the Bogota sign in front of the basilica, we then entered, realizing that Ash Wednesday mass was taking place. Walking quietly through the church, I made my way through its interior, investigating the chapels and its decorative features. At the rear of the building, in an enclosed room behind the altar, I discovered the Lord of Monserrate. It is said that this miraculous effigy of Christ has hair that grows and that when they try to lower it to the city, its weight increases, becoming an impossible task to achieve. It was difficult to get a good look as the viewing windows were small and many people were lined up, hoping to get a glimpse of the famous icon, but I did notice that hair on the statue appeared to be realistic.
Dating back almost 500 years, the basilica is built on the mountain that was once named Cerro de Las Nieves for its frequent cloudiness. A monastery dedicated to the Virgen of Montserrat was founded in this location and a path was created for pilgrims to climb the hill. The basilica houses a chapel dedicated to this Black Madonna and while I studied it, I thought it to look familiar. After some contemplation, I realized that it was because the origins of the Virgen Morena de Monserrate are of Catalonia, Spain and I had visited the monastery of Montserrat outside of Barcelona many years ago. In fact, it was so familiar to me because I had purchased a tiny replica of this Virgin which sits on my desk in my home office!
After my investigation of the basilica was complete, I wandered around to the rear of the church to where a large craft market is located. Small stalls offered up all sorts of handmade objects, clothing items and religious souvenirs. Hoping to add to my nativity collection, I figured that this would be the best place to find a unique piece. Surprisingly, however, it took quite a bit of asking around to finally find one…and then a lot more searching to find one that met my requirements. Happy at last and package in hand, we decided to catch the funicular so that we could head back down the mountain and catch a ride to the downtown area.
The ride to Plaza de Bolivar was only about ten minutes and we were dropped off right in front of the Catedral Primada de Colombia, better known as the Metropolitan Cathedral Basilica of Bogota and Primate of Colombia. A lively square, standing before the basilica, it is filled with both locals and tourists, but its main occupants are pigeons! Lots and lots of pigeons!
The square is also surrounded by many historical buildings, including the Palacio de Justicia (Palace of Justice), Palacio Lievano (Palace Lievano), Museo Santa Clara (Santa Clara Museum), Museo Colonial (Colonial Museum) and the National Capitol among others. While we wished that we had had the time to visit everything in this area, it was the cathedral that we were most interested in, however.
Towering over Bolivar Square, the cathedral is the largest church in all of South America. The neoclassical structure has a striking façade, however, its interior, we soon found, was rather lackluster as are many of Columbia’s sanctuaries. We did take the time, however, to inspect the many paintings, sculpture and statues from the 17th and 18th century as well as the side chapels and other architectural features of the church.
Noting that mass was not being conducted, we saw a line spanning the length of the cathedral down the central aisle. The three of us, all practicing Catholics, realized that the cathedral’s parishioners were receiving ashes, so we took our places and slowly made our way to the front of the line. What a special opportunity to receive ashes in the Bogota Cathedral on this day!
Lunchtime had already passed, so deciding to seek out a local restaurant, we headed down the pedestrian friendly Carrera 7. Vendors were plenty and it was fun to check out the some of the unique merchandise and watch the street performers, while seeking out Colombian cuisine. Since it was Ash Wednesday, we had to be mindful of our meat intake, but empanadas were plentiful and it was easy to order those filled with queso and dulce de leche churros for dessert!
Our meal complete, we realized that the afternoon was almost halfway finished. We still had a bit of a drive back to our hotel and there was that pesky thing called work that we had to do, but there was one more church at the end of Carrera 7, that I wanted to visit…the Church of San Francisco.
Dating back to the 16th century, this ornate church is the oldest preserved church in Bogota. Built between 1586 and 1611, it originally was part of a complex combined with a monastery that covered two city blocks and had three two-story cloisters. Its exterior once covered in white, was stripped in recent years leaving only the white bell tower to exhibit its original appearance. Today, the only parts of the original temple that survive are the church façade, the tower and the chancel.
Somewhat intimidating when we approached, with its unassuming façade, graffiti spray painting on the front wall and trash littering the walkway and within the entryway, my colleagues looked to me as though I was a bit mad to bring them here in a city where crime is rampant. Stepping gingerly into the darkened interior, we allowed our eyes to adjust as we gained our bearings. Met with a beautiful red screen separating the inside from the gritty periphery, we peered around up the central aisle toward the high altar. A beautiful wooden roof soared above our heads and a simplistic, double nave design spread around us. The confessionals were designed in an ornate gold and red composition as were many other features, however, the chapels were decorated chiefly in gold and the Stations of the Cross were of a wooden design.
The overall presentation was extremely dark, both in brightness and composition, and I am sad to say, maybe because of its location in the downtown area, it gave me a very eerie feeling. We did not notice many other visitors and no services for Ash Wednesday were being held. I think when I suggested to bid our adieu, my companions were quite relieved to move along.
Our day was coming to a close and other considerations were coming into play, including traffic and getting some rest before flying through the night. Scratching my forehead while on the ride home, I realized that my ashes were still prominently displayed. Removing my compact from my handbag and taking a glance, I noted the dark mark semi-hidden under my bangs.
It was the beginning of Lent. Beginning in Bogota.
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Monserrate
- https://monserrate.co/
- Address: Carrera 2 Este No. 21-48 Paseo Bolívar, Bogota, Colombia
- Admissions and Hours: Accessing Monserrate: By foot, trail open every day, except Tuesdays, 0500-1300 to go up and from 0500-1600 to go down. Free of charge. By funicular, Monday to Friday, 0630-1145 and Saturdays, 0630-1630. 23,500 COP (about $5.40 USD) round trip. On Sundays and holidays, 0530-1800. 14,000 COP (about $3.20 USD) round trip. Discounts for Senior citizens (over 62 years). By teleférico, Monday to Saturday, 1200-2200, 23,500 COP (about $5.40 USD) roundtrip. On Sundays, 0530-1800. 14,000 COP (about $3.20 USD) roundtrip. Pets allowed for an additional fee. Basilica Admission: free
Catedral Primada de Colombia
- Address: Carrera 7 10 80, Bogotá, CO 111711
- Hours: 0900-1700, daily (unverified)
- Admission: free
Iglesia de San Francisco (Church of San Francisco)
- Avenida Jimenez de Quesada #7-10, Bogota, Colombia
- Hours: 0900-1700 (unverified)
- Admission: free