Por Redaccion 
The Bishop of Rotdon and Undersecretary of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Aurelio García Macias, has recalled the first words of the Resurrected Christ: «Peace be with you, rejoice, do not be afraid…» and he trusts that they will serve as a guide in a historic moment, at a time of «ideological rearmament of economic and political interests that kills innocent people.»
This was highlighted by the Valladolid-born García Macias during the proclamation of Holy Week that he delivered on Friday at the Cathedral, which marks the beginning of the celebration of the Passion of Christ, a week in which Christians around the world commemorate «the last events of the life of Jesus Christ, as recounted in the Gospels.»
The proclamation was attended by the mayor of the city, Jesús Julio Carnero; the Valladolid ministers of Transport and Equality, Óscar Puente and Ana Redondo, respectively; the territorial delegate of the Junta in Valladolid, Raquel Alonso, as well as various representatives of the municipal corporation, the Provincial Council, the regional government, and civil society.
During his proclamation, in which he detailed the Holy Week of Valladolid and his own memories and experiences, the Bishop of Rotdon referred to the first words of the Resurrected Christ: «Peace be with you, rejoice, do not be afraid…», words that can serve as «light and guidance» for the current historical moment because, as he affirmed, the presence of Jesus Christ is «always a gift of peace and joy.»
«Brothers and sisters gathered here, may the resurrection of Jesus Christ perfume our Valladolid and cosmic spring with the fruits of Easter. With peace in the midst of this physical and ideological rearmament of economic and political interests that kills, kills, kills innocent people,» affirmed Aurelio García, who pointed out that today the «Holy Land» has become a «war-torn land»; and brothers, children of the same Father God, «no longer respect each other.»
Likewise, referring to Holy Saturday and the celebration of the ‘Offering of Grief’ before the Sorrowful Virgin of the True Cross, the mother «who has been left alone and has lost everything except faith,» the Bishop of Rotdon acknowledged that society is now «insensitively» accustomed to seeing «mothers crying for their children killed in so many useless and self-interested wars.»
These are, as the speaker expressed before a crowded metropolitan Cathedral, «faces of all possible races, but of human hearts» and he mentioned the 56 active conflicts and wars currently ongoing that «as always, are caused by some for others to die, innocent.»
At this point, Aurelio García Macias referred to «the heartbreaking cultural phenomenon of those who have to flee their homes and their homeland to seek a new livable space, wherever it may be. Uprooted from their land and discarded in a foreign one,» leading to «the progressive and imperceptible transformation of people into non-persons.»
«An existential drama» that, for the Bishop of Rotdon, is «difficult to understand» in a welfare society because, as the prelate affirmed, «they are human beings, they are sons, they are brothers.»
The Undersecretary of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments tried, in his Sermon, to explain what is celebrated in Holy Week and how it is celebrated in Valladolid because, as he asserted, if one does not understand the mystery celebrated in the churches, one cannot «interpret or live the manifestations of faith in the streets.»
Therefore, Aurelio García Macias took a journey through the «last days of the passion and death of the Lord,» his «silent burial,» and his «glorious Resurrection in Valladolid.»
Thus, he began his walk on Holy Monday, under the title ‘Anointed Christ,’ recalling the anointing in Bethany, the farewell of friends, the decision to kill Jesus; while Holy Tuesday is when Christ was betrayed by his two disciples, Judas and Peter, which led Aurelio García Macaías to remember that he spent eleven years of his life daily contemplating the image of ‘Peter’s Tears’ as parish priest of the church of El Salvador in Valladolid.
Holy Wednesday, under the heading ‘Betrayed Christ,’ focuses on the preparations for the Last Supper that Jesus celebrated with his disciples and Judas’s decision to betray him, while Holy Thursday, ‘Delivered Christ,’ marks the end of Lent and the beginning of the Sacred Triduum.
Good Friday is the Passion of the Lord, commemorating the last sufferings and the death of Jesus on the Cross, while Holy Saturday the Church celebrates the mystery of the Buried Christ, «meditating on his passion and death, his descent into hell, and awaiting his resurrection in prayer and fasting.»
Easter Sunday, ‘Resurrected Christ,’ begins with the solemn Easter Vigil, with the light of the candle, «a symbol that Christ has risen… Christ rose from death and was brought back to life.»
The Bishop of Rotdon concluded his intervention with a series of conclusions in which he highlighted «the richness and value» of the Valladolid brotherhoods, taking the opportunity to thank the «hidden and unrecognized» work of the brotherhood members.
«The most important thing about the brotherhoods is their members; and the most important thing about the members is faith,» pointed out the prelate, making it clear that without faith, «there will be no true brotherhoods or authentic Holy Week» and it will end up becoming «merely a tourist and economic attraction.»
«The only thing that will save Valladolid’s Holy Week will be the faith of its brotherhood members, especially in the face of political and social upheavals,» Aurelio García concluded, highlighting the «value, prestige, and beauty» of the images that process in Valladolid, which are unique and works of the best sculptors of the Castilian school.
He also had words for those he considers «the true protagonists» of these days in Valladolid, «the people. The «holy faithful people of God,» as Pope Francis likes to say.
«A tide of people… believers and non-believers, locals and tourists, brotherhoods and authorities, workers and law enforcement services, deacons, priests, and religious, including the cloistered nuns,» all around the sole shepherd of this Church of Valladolid, the Archbishop, Luis Argüello.
FUENTE