It’s all about the churches. As I have written before or stated before, I love going into old churches. I can spend a good deal of time in them. Looking at the statues, the paintings and reading about their history. I imagine what it must have been like when they were first established, the music that was played, the smell of the incense…..which at times you can still smell the lingering odor. And these past couple of days did not disappoint.

The big guy found a church for me to go to on Sunday that was about 20 minutes away by cab, and they had a noon mass in English. The Basilica of Jesus de Medinaceli or its formal name, Basilica de Neuestro Padre Jesus de Medinaceli. This church was built around the statue of Padre Jesus Nazareno sculpted in the 17th century. The Duke of Medinaceli erected the the chapel for this statue in 1689. The image almost did not survive the Spanish Civil War, but his survival has inspired quite the devotion. Got to mass early enough to be able to walk around to see the beauty of this church. And of course it was in Spanish. I know the mass well enough to know what is going on, accept for the sermon. Even in a language I did not understand, it was short and to the point.

Yesterday, I took a cab to the Cathedral of Santa Maria la Teal de La Almudena. The church is dedicated to the Virgin of La Almudena, patron saint of the city. Legend has it that during the Moorish occupation, the Christians hid the statue in the fold of a wall at a grain store nearby. Not wanting to leave her in the dark, they lit candles at her feet before covering closing up the site. King Alfonso VI of Castile had heard about the statue, and after conquering the Moors, promised to return to look for the image. He asked the faithful to pray to find the image. In 1085 she was found, with the candles still burning at her feet. In 1993, Pope Saint John Paul II consecrated and dedicated this Cathedral. Her beauty does not disappoint. She is surrounded by paintings depicting the life of Jesus. I said my rosary in the crypt below which has its own beauty with paintings and side altars. After all of that, I went out to walk more of the streets, take in the sights and listen to my surroundings.