PhD Program in Historical studies
Confraternities of the Holy Week
Confraternities play a key role during Holy Week. They are religious associations formed by lay members, who submit their statutes to the approval of ecclesiastical authority. Composed of faithful originally dedicated to works of worship and piety, to the burial of the dead and care for the needy, over time the confraternities became dedicated mainly to the organization of processions and extra-liturgical rituals. The internal management of such associations often resembles that of guilds (the craft associations that bring together those who belong to the same economic category called art or craft, with mutual aims and assistance). The latter, also known as Maestranze, have played and continue to play an important role in the tasks in the preparation of some Easter processions. The most prestigious and oldest Italian corporative association that still presides over the organization of the Holy Week remains the Real Maestranza of Caltanissetta.
The symbolic clothing, facial expressions and lugubrious singing of the members of the Confraternity are an essential element of the Easter ceremonies. Usually, the brothers dress in black or purple (but sometimes also in white and red), with a long hood covering their face and move forward in procession with a slow and unsteady gait. In the famous procession of the Mysteries of Trapani such a gait is called annacata while in the Holy Thursday procession of Taranto it is called in the dialect the nazzecata of the Perdùne. The groups of statues carried in procession during Holy Week, often really belong to confraternities or guilds. Their parading, therefore, is also a way to represent the social, political and economic equilibrium of the city. For these reasons, not infrequently, disagreements ensue regarding ceremonial processions and the use of spaces and priorities. The huge number of confraternities that participate in the most important Spanish Holy Week processions has even led to the establishment of a coordinating body for the devotional ceremonies, also equipped with the power to mete out penalties. Some examples are the Agrupación de Cofradías of Malaga and the Consejo General de Hermandades y Cofradías of Seville.