The town of San Juan de Chamula, 15 minutes from San Cristobal de las Casas, is a town with a somewhat nervous community that hosts interesting religious rituals..
The town and church of San Juan de Chamula is definitely at the top of my list of the weirdest places I’ve ever seen in my life.. Even though I had heard a lot about what I was going to encounter before I went, I couldn’t help wondering if it was a bit overrated..
San Juan de Chamula Town
The doors of this white church are painted blue and green and decorated with floral patterns.. In the middle of the garden is a cross with a lush pattern. The colorful flags that go down from the top of the church are blowing in the wind.. I thought I came to a very cute place in front of such a view.. Until I step inside.
These Chamulans are some interesting people. It is not known whether it is because of what life brings and living conditions, but their faces never smile.. There’s a little bit of aggression in the blood. They don’t like strangers but they don’t say no to money either. That’s why the entrance fee to the church for foreigners is 125 pesos.
The first thing I heard about San Juan de Chamula was that taking pictures in the church is prohibited and if this ban is not followed, the phone could be broken or beaten.. It is forbidden to take photos inside. Even trying to sneak a shot is a risk. İskender from Kesfetmek.com said he likes risk and secretly took a few photos while entering and was noticed.. One of the staff came and asked him to delete the photos.. When I said you did not take it, the environment suddenly became more tense and they threatened to break the phone if he did not delete the photos, and I was sure that they would do it from their body language.. We somehow closed the issue, but all eyes were on us the whole time we were inside the church..
What’s so secret inside?
Church of San Juan de Chamula
The belief of the Chamula is something mixed between Catholicism and Paganism. The church is different from the churches we know. No bench and no Jesus inside. The ground is completely covered with pine leaves.. They believe that the pine leaves in the forest are a welcome mat, just like the entrance to the house, as I described in the zipline story.. Because they combined their old beliefs with Catholic Christianity, they covered the church with pine leaves.. And the Chamulans don’t just pray to one God. They can also pray to angels, saints and consider them all as their own friends.. That’s why in the middle of the church, you see two rows of candles lit on the floor, and behind these candles you see someone praying (constantly talking) with a bottle of Coca Cola, a bottle of Corona and a live chicken.. Since they see the thing they pray for as their friend, they drink the cola and beer they bring, and also offer them to others (god, angel, saint).. Chicken for evil eye. If they believe it has the evil eye, they turn the neck of the live chicken and kill it in the middle of the church..
This church does not actually belong to any Christian denomination. Although they are considered Catholic in theory, no Christian prays here and does not accept this church in the Vatican.. I think one of the biggest reasons for this is that there is nothing about Jesus, not the slightest depiction, a statue, an engraving..
There is also a small part of these Chamulas where the angels and saints they pray in their homes.. If the things they wish from these angels or saints do not come true, the saint or their angelic friends perceive them as screwing them, and they either turn them upside down or leave them in the dark in a box to punish them.. And they stop praying to him and move on to the others.. Isn’t it weird?
What was the most interesting religious ritual you’ve ever seen?
