Burn the Traitor! The Story Behind Burning Judas

by Juan Carlos Dozal Varela

Human Heritage

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Another mass-bashing tradition associated with paper maché is the burning of a doll representing Judas Iscariot on the Holy Saturday, the penultimate day of the Holy Week.

This traditional spectacle takes place in Mexico, Chile, Uruguay, Venezuela and others, and also in some parts of Spain. Although the doll isn't necessarily made out of cartonería, it is the main method used for giving shape to treason. The use of fireworks is very important. It was introduced to Mexico by the spanish and later on by the chinese community, and it gives the ritual its explosive feel.

Apparently, it stems out of celtic-rooted, peasant, nature-renovation rituals adopted by the Catholic Church early on. The implantation of this tradition in Mexico also responded to the missionary needs of the Franciscans and other orders, as it was a means for teaching the story of Jesus and of the famous black sheep of his apostles.

As in many other cultures, the symbol of fire represented the renovation of nature after the yearly cycle. Native religions had different views on Good and Evil. The Burning of Judas was used by the missionaries to represent Evil as a spiritual being, turned into a public enemy for a short time. The spanish word for evil (el mal) extends itself beyond morals and includes illness and bad luck. So fire came now to represent the purification of the soul.

During the heights of the Spanish Inquisition's world renowned “creativity”, the Burning of Judas dolls was common as a replacement for actual prisoners who were meant to be burnt but died whilst on trial and of those who had fled. They were burnt along with the actual prisoners in public Sunday events that apparently had a little festive touch.

In the 19^th Century, the tradition rose in popularity, as we can see by reading those days' chroniclers. Since colonial times, people made the tradition theirs and represented vicerroyal and later national authorities on the Judas doll.

Of course, many authorities weren't too keen on watching themselves burst into fireworks. For example, in 1853, after President Santa Anna's¹ imposition of excessive taxing², people were going to express their discontent by placing the President's face on the Judas doll. That same year, his government banned the Burning:

“The dolls vulgarly known as Judas shall not be burnt or sold when they are dressed like or have a distinctive feature by which any social class or individual is ridiculed”.

The 20^th Century though, saw a decline in the popularity of the tradition. Nationalists like Diego Rivera became interested in Judas dolls for their style and plasticity. Rivera made himself a nice collection of them.

People are officially advised against the burning for security reasons, but that doesn't stop it. The family of famous judero Pedro Linares (who also is said to have invented the alebrije) is one of many who make yearly efforts to continue this explosive tradition where fire and strong emotions are the main attraction.

Traditional dances are very interesting topics, so they deserve a hub for themselves.

1Antonio López de Santa Anna (1794-1876) is probably a Guinness record candidate, having been 11 times president, sometimes as a Conservative, sometimes as a Liberal and some others as a military dictator.

2The Mexican-U.S. War of 1847-1848 left the country's finances on the floor. For this reason, Santa Anna instituted a brilliant tax policy. Some examples: you had to pay for every window you had (people then bricked off their windows), for every dog and every horse.