Brazzil
May 2002
Religion
It's approaching midnight as restlessness permeates the town. A quiet commotion is stirring as villagers steal out of their homes in the middle of the night and head for the historical center of the 421 year-old town, where time has stood still. Laden with sacks, buckets and blueprints, they head to their designated area to execute their portion of the plan. By five a.m. numerous conspirators have joined the force and, by sunrise, the coalition is in full swing.
It's not a political uprising or coup d'état. Only a stones throw away from São Paulo, Brazil, one of the largest cities in the world, the small town of Santana de Parnaíba is celebrating Corpus Christi. These people have a unique way to do it.
About mid May, after selecting a picture-pattern from the town's priest, participants begin to prepare for the event. They will reproduce this picture directly onto the road on the day of Corpus Christi (this year on May 30). Using a variety of elements, including painted sawdust, coffee powder, flowers, seeds, and quicklime, they will create a two-kilometer-long rug for the church procession to walk over, starting and ending at the Main Church of Sant'Ana.
Each artist must color enough sawdust, with homemade paint, to make their own three-meter portion. The 1,700 bags of sawdust (four truckloads) used by the artisans are acquired from the local furniture factory. Hoping for calm, dry weather, they head out to the streets long before sunrise so they have time to complete their creations by 3:30. Then, following afternoon mass, the procession leaves the church to walk the carpeted streets carrying the ostensorium.
Santana de Parnaíba, 35 kilometers from São Paulo and older than São Paulo itself, is famous for its connection to the past. The buildings of the historical center have been restored and are maintained true to their heritage, worth a visit in their own right. Most of the festivals in the town are practiced as they have been since the festivals began.
Does this mean the villagers have been creating these striking, sawdust compositions for over four centuries? Not quite. This fairly new way of celebrating the holy day was contrived by a young lady named Emília Gil d'Assunção in 1967.
Previously, homes and offices in town were decorated with pots of red São João flowers. However in '67, the day of observance fell on the same day as O Dia dos Namorados, Brazil's version of Valentine's Day, June 12. Thirty-one year old Emília was working as a schoolteacher in Santana de Parnaíba, though her family lived in another town, Salto de Itu. As was usual, they expected her home for the religious event. Her father had no idea that Emília had a boyfriend, and she was not about to tell him. Desperate to come up with a reason why she should stay in Santana close to her beau, Emília thought of the carpet making. She ran the idea by the priest, the mayor and the school director. Everyone approved.
Together with her fellow teachers, the first street carpet was created and this form of the celebration has been growing every year since. Today, Santana de Parnaíba attracts over 30,000 people who come and go throughout the day. Some come for the morning or noon mass, some to watch the carpets being made, visit the craft fair and have lunch, and some to watch the procession.
Formerly, artisans were free to create their own "peaceful and religious" pictures. But the year that the procession walked over Jesus Christ carrying a ghetto blaster on his shoulder, the priest decided to preside over future design distribution.
Emília hasn't participated in the rug making since 1971. That is when she got married and started her own family—yes, with the same young man who inspired her to start the sawdust rugs in the first place. Thirty years later, they are still married and Santana de Parnaíba still celebrates Corpus Christi in the same curious, yet resplendent, manner. It's simply grand.
Elizabeth Willoughby is a Canadian freelance writer currently living in São Paulo, Brazil. Her columns, "Letters Home" and "Going Places" appear regularly in São Paulo media. She can be reached at rekw@hotmail.com