Cathedral Fine China and Bullet Holes
Last modified: April 29, 201618 … It is all in the details, it is all in the material, it is all in the intent…
Welcome to Bishop Reyes Cathedral. Think of the scenes it has witnessed.
Ladies from the wealthy homes of Alamos were asked to contribute one of their fine china to decorate the nearly completed cathedral. These plates once sat on elegant dining tables and then they were volunteered to be hung outdoors and exposed to the elements for now over 200 years. Talk about culture shock. A lucky few remain in place.
Here the law of equal and opposite reactions is clearly evident, etched in time..
Who fired these bullets? Was it Spanish soldiers, Federalists, Centralists, Mexican colonists, Imperialists, Yaquis, Apaches, Centralists, Conservatives, Liberals, French troops, Independents, Mayos, Reformists, Highway Men, Villistas or local teenagers having target practice? The wealth of Alamos was targeted by every political movement to finance their causes. Alamos was the place to plunder. Alamos has seen the best and worst of human nature.
Strong sun highlights fervent beliefs as shadows dance across chiseled features.
Official records indicate that work on the church began in 1786. Alamos elected three town folk to supervise work and manage the budget. The church was finished in 1803. Today, as it always has, a cathedral bell announces the hour and half-hours and masses. Time marches on one bell peel after another, one year after another, one century after another. This is Alamos time.
Let us start with an introduction to a Short History of Alamos, Sonora, Mexico.
“Here is something Special”, Spanish explorer Vasquez de Coronado noted in 1540 as he headed north, passing by tall white rocks on Alamos de Sierra. This is the opening chapter to “A Short History of Alamos” written, filmed and edited by Anders Tomlinson. Narrated by Bruce Miles. Soundtrack by ClaySonics and Estudiantina de Alamos. Video…
Bishop Reyes Cathedral
Bishop Reyes’ Cathedral takes up the entire southern side of the Plaza de las Armas. Its three tiered belfry towers above town and touches low passing clouds. Along with multiple daily services the church is also a religious classroom. Religion speaks of yesterdays, todays, and tomorrows. It speaks of better days and better places. Religious followers are asked to endure and conceptually, eventually, benefit from their days of survival and struggle on this small planet.
Photos and editing by Anders Tomlinson. Music from “Camino Songs” by SonicAtomics.
Detail is added to detail as we near the church’s heart, the congregation’s visual focal point and cosmic backdrop. It is here, for this moment, that all are equal under a supreme and unifying force, the power of human belief and the human drive for universal understanding. Here all seek, in their own ways, answers to what life is.
It is not easy to maintain Bishop Reyes’ Cathedral. There are issues of scale, materials, gravity and weather. And warring man has shot at it, broken in and plundered over the years. The church is a symbol respected by many and held by others, through the years, in low regard.
Grandeur on a human scale. No matter how and where one lives this is an extension of their house. It is their communal living room. It is a place that they can come and be with others or be by themselves. It is their place in their time for all of time.
A Day In the Life of Plaza de las Armas
This is a look at life in the Álamos plaza between 1993 and 1996. Much has changed since then but much continues as it has for hundreds of years. Photos and video editing by Anders Tomlinson. Music, “Mystic Hoedown,” is by the Dig Brothers/SonicAtomics featuring Denver Clay and Anders.
©2015 Anders Tomlinson and Denver Clay, all rights reserved.
‘Tis the Season of Love and Jackets.
Christmas in the Plaza de Las Armas is a time of of sharing and joy. Food, fireworks and the town coming out to be seen and see is what community is all about.
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©2013 Anders Tomlinson, all rights reserved.
