San Andres Church of Villafáfila

“ours Cillero de Villafáfila with all those of our rights that belong to our Messa” [2] ;

“and the meat of the Terce of the Church of Sant Andres, except for the offering, and the mortuary carried by the Cleric of Memory” [3] .

It was located in the northernmost part of the town. We can pinpoint its location, thanks to the fact that years later the inter-parish cemetery was built on its plots, as we know from the death certificates of the first parishioners, from each and every one of the parishes, buried in said cemetery.

“He was buried in the cemetery built in the town and jurisdiction of San Pedro and that in past times was a church, called San Andrés; and that by Royal Orders dispositions that circulate throughout the Kingdom, it is commanded that they not be buried in the churches and if in the cemeteries” [4] .

It is currently located on the Plot Concentration Map of Villafáfila, Polígono 8, plot 5049.

The Santo Tirso chapel inside the church is cited in 1584. At the beginning of the 17th century it must have been in poor condition.

In 1582 it is necessary to carry out some in-depth works to prevent the total collapse of the church. To avoid this, the Pastoral Visit of that year is ordered:

The only reference we have of this sculpture in which, in the Lib, from Fáb. of his church is indicated between its altars

Demolished this church, the image passed to that of San Pedro. In 1788 it was retouched by the painter Joaquín Garrido, for which he charged 151 reales [9] , and Santa María is missing, preserved in its Parish Museum.

That of San Babilés Disappeared, although today there is an image of this Saint, it must be taken into account that there was also one in El Salvador, and both existed at the same time, as can be seen from the pastoral visit of 1651, where he mentions the Brotherhood of San Bebibles [10] . And this is the existing one, since as we can see it was retouched in 1858 with other images of said El Salvador church.

“some lands that rent a load and a half of barley for half and are, one above Valorio and the other, in Carboneros, be it to the Valorio lagoon; a fourth of vineyards, which are on the road to Santo Agustín, next to the houses; and rent five reais for the lamp” [11] .

In 1561, Diego de Barrio, parish priest of the same, transferred the factory to the priests (to the parish) of San Andrés with the obligation to light the lamp, at the expense, throughout the year [12] . The house seems to be in poor condition, because, two years after the Pastoral visit of 1563, it is ordered:

“That, from the house, which is very bad and does not rent anything, the wood and walls should be removed and a high wall should be made” [13] .

This brotherhood belonged to the jurisdiction of the church of San Andrés, near whose church was the hermitage, in it was the brotherhood of the Veraz Cruz, which emerged with a penitential character of discipline during the Middle Ages influenced by Franciscan thought, to give shelter to penitents and perform other assistance functions.

The oldest reference to the Vera Cruz is indirectly from 1490 with what gives us that the hermitage already existed, because in the deed of expense that was made in the will of Yván de Collantes, that:

The fulfillment of a testamentary mandate of this hidalgo, who had been warden of the Villafáfila fortress, appears:

“ was given to Vera Crus + one hundred mrs. What Rodrigo Herrada, Abbot, carried ”.

Of a weekly character, it paraded on Holy Thursday at night, in the procession of the "Carrera", where two types of brothers went:

The members of "Luz" came carrying a luminary , they were a kind of honorary members who availed themselves of the benefits of the brotherhood, but were not subject to all the obligations, including that of disciplining themselves. They were wealthier neighbors.

The "discipline" brothers , covered with a white penitential tunic or shirt with a hood, also called blood or pike, were ordinary members with all the obligations imposed by the rule, including submitting to discipline in the afternoon and Holy Thursday night. They belonged to the lower classes of the town. They had to do discipline during the night of Holy Thursday in the Hall, it was done before a crucifix: "a cross that they call whipping, with the instruments of the Passion", of the hermitage, probably also during the route of the procession, since at that time it is called the procession of discipline. We do not know the characteristics of this penance in detail, but basically it consisted of suffering whippings on their flesh until they bled, possibly with some scourge or cutting instrument, hence their name also as cofrades de pica or de sangre . For cleaning the wounds they used wine.

The brotherhood offered the participants in the discipline the parva , consisting of a portion of bread and wine cake. Of this procession and the heap

The rites and penances that took place throughout the night of Holy Thursday that made a large number of people stay awake, who made the vigil more bearable with a few drinks of wine, would be the origin of the custom of making lemonade and staying whole the night of revelry that the young people of Villafáfila have followed since time immemorial.

The brotherhood party was celebrated on May 3, and on May 1, as prescribed by the Rule, the brothers had the obligation to attend, carrying Christ, the procession and prayer that was held every year at the hermitage of Ntra. Mrs. de Villarigo ^{^[14]} .

1642, when the parish of San Andrés was suppressed, it became annexed to that of San Pedro and the brotherhood also belonged to the jurisdiction of said church of San Pedro.

This was a highly venerated saint, apparently in this parish; because one of the reasons given in a mandate of the Pastoral Visit of 1747 is:

"That the church be repaired as much as possible to celebrate in it, at least the functions of the Patron and Santo Tirso" [15] .

The Santo Tirso chapel inside the church is cited in 1584. At the beginning of the 17th century it must have been in poor condition. The chapel of this brotherhood was:

“ A license is given so that an Asenara is made for San Tirso and for this it is possible to plow and sow on feast days, and likewise the brothers take out every Sunday to make the chapel of said Saint” [17] .

In 1608, the priest was given a commission to take the accounts of the brotherhood of Santo Tirso, located under the bell of the parish of San Andrés.

In 1630, during his pastoral visit, the bishop visited the brotherhood of Santo Tirso.

It passed to the parish of San Pedro, of which mention is made, for the last time in 1682 [18] .

From what can be deduced from reading its factory book, San Andrés, was at least since 1559 a poor parish: poor in its building, altars, images and ornaments; poor in terms of parishioners and their economy. This was the main cause (like that of Santa Marta, located at the other end of the town), of its disappearance as a parish, first, and later as a church.

In 1557, when the bishop visited the parish, he ordered that the bells be removed to build the tower, which was begun two years later when they would be invented:

“ two bells in the tower and a small one for the sacrament ”, which had been replaced in 1569.

In 1567 the walls were ordered to be undermined, the church re-tiled and repaired, under penalty of major excommunication [20] .

In 1582 it is necessary to carry out some in-depth works to prevent the total collapse of the church. To avoid this, the Pastoral Visit of that year is ordered:

“That Diego de Barrio, Parish Priest of San Andrés, pass the Blessed Sacrament within a month from said church to the hermitage of Vera Cruz; that keys be made for the door of the hermitage and other necessary for the custody and decency of the Blessed Sacrament; and then have the body of said church demolished and put a tile and amend the capital of San Bebibles, and fix the main chapel; which is ordered because the church is to fall into great danger. While the works are being carried out, I ask the priest of Santa María del Moral, under excommunication, to give the priest of San Andrés a battery and other necessary things” .

This mandate does not seem to please some parishioners, who perhaps feared the suppression of the parish, given the impossibility of repairing it once it was demolished. For this reason, the mandate threatened with excommunication anyone who impedes or forces the transfer of the Blessed Sacrament or the demolition of the church [21] . The works had not yet been completed in 1589, and they were carried out with very poor materials, since the 1594 visit says:

“That the nave is narrow and, as quite a few people come, even those who are not from the parish for the devotion of the Particular Saints that are in it, because the walls are made of earth, he orders that the new and old walls be demolished, and make them again, taking them out from the corner of the tower to the width of it, and let the doors be made” [22] .

This continuity in the works forces to ask for the collaboration of the faithful and, even, to suppress obligatory acts of worship, to reduce expenses. Thus, in 1617, it is exhorted to make a donation to San Andrés for a week, due to the great need that the church has for ornaments, and those who do so can work on Sundays [23] . There were so many repair needs and late economic shortcomings, that, in 1624, they cannot even have a sacristy. This gives rise to the following exhortation in the Visitation:

“Taking into account that this church is poor, the parishioners build a sacristy at their own expense, so that the drawers are inside and the priest is dressed and undressed in it; and gives permission for them to work on holidays” .

“Because in this town there are many parish churches, where the Blessed Sacrament is incensed on Holy Thursday and because the parish church of San Andrés is poor and does not have what is necessary for the Santísimo to be incensed decently, since there is little wax and the church I could not go to all this, His Lordship ordered that for four years not start or spend, and the farmers and neighboring parishioners attend the divine services at the church of Santa María; and we ordered that, however, the priest say the economic hours in his church as is the custom in San Andrés” [24] .

The situation, as we can see, was getting worse in such a way that in 1642 it became unsustainable, for which reason it was necessary to resort to the suppression of the parish, leaving the church as an annex of San Pedro, and its parishioners became of the same parish. Its last parish priest was D. Pedro de Barrio and of San Pedro it was then D. Amaro Pérez.

In the decree of suppression of the Pastoral Visit, of that year, the causes that had decided the Bishop to make such a decision are exposed: poor condition of the building, shortage of parishioners and lack of economic means. At the same time, it was ordered that the bells and ornaments be transferred to San Pedro. The brothers of Vera Cruz, ask him to allow them to have the chapters of the brotherhood in San Andrés, not to move the big bell or what is necessary to celebrate the masses that the brotherhood has. To all of which the Bishop agrees [25] .

In 1715 the church needed a major repair and, not having the means to do so, it is ordered in the V Pastoral of that year that the hermitage of Vera Cruz be dismantled, and with those means repair the church; in the place that occupied the hermitage a cross must be placed [26] . The previous mandate was not fulfilled, since in the Visit of 1747 it is noted that the church is indecent, that what can be repaired, to celebrate in it, at least the main functions of the patron saint and Santo Tirso; and that he visited the hermitage of Vera Cruz, next to San Andrés [27] .

Finally, in 1772 the church was dismantled, some objects were sold, among them the doors, and the proceeds, together with some usable materials, were used for the repair that was then carried out in the church of San Pedro, where they also took the altarpiece and images [28] .

In 1784, license was granted to sell the large bell, which, at the request of the Vera Cruz brothers, had not been moved at the time of its suppression; also giving permission to demolish the tower [29] .

Of the 10 parish churches and 5 hermitages of Villafáfila, that of San Andrés was the one that resisted demolition for the longest 130 years, after having been suppressed as a parish; and the only one that, after a different nature: as a cemetery in 1833, the first common of all the parishes that Villafáfila had, and which was closed in 1961.

This hermitage belonged to the jurisdiction of the church of San Andrés, near whose church the hermitage was located, in it was the brotherhood of the Veraz Cruz, which emerged with a penitential character of discipline during the Middle Ages influenced by Franciscan thought, to give shelter to penitents and perform other welfare functions.

The fulfillment of a testamentary mandate of this hidalgo, who had been warden of the Villafáfila fortress, appears:

“ was given to Vera Crus + one hundred mrs. What Rodrigo Herrada, Abbot, carried ”.

The hermitage had stone foundations and some rammed earth walls, it had several rooms such as the Hall.

Inside the hermitage there was an altarpiece with the Santo Cristo de la Vera Cruz, Christ who gave the brotherhood its name.

Where the discipline was carried out, around its walls there were some stone benches where the brothers sat during the night of Holy Thursday, who came out in procession carrying said Christ.

It had a kitchen and other adjoining rooms to be able to fulfill the functions of hospitality entrusted to the brotherhood.

Villafáfila, history and present of a Castilian-Leonese village and its parish churches. 1996, p. 412, 413, and 433.

Villafáfila Parish Archives. Books 71 and 72, two account books from 1693 to 1877.

BSAA Art: Bulletin of the Art Studies Seminar , ISSN 1888-9751, No. 76, 2010 , pp. 25-32.

https://agriculturaganaderia.jcyl.es/web/jcyl/binarios/415/843/VILLAFA_ACU_PLA_008.TIF?blobheader=image%2Ftiff&blobheadername2=site&blobheadername3=Cache-control&blobheadername4=Expires&blobheadervalue2=JCYL_AgriculturaGanaderia&blobheadervalue3=no-cache%2Cno-cache%2Cno-cache%2Cno-cache%2Cno-cache%2Cno-cache%2Cno-cache revalidate&blobheadervalue4=0

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[1] Juan de Castilla (the one from Tarifa)(1262 – Vega de Granada disaster, June 25, 1319). Infante of Castile and son of Alfonso X of Castile and Queen Violante of Aragon. https://dbe.rah.es/biografias/15389/juan-de-castilla

[2] Flórez, E. Spain Sagrada, Volume XVI. volume XVI, deed XLI, p. 508 and 509.

[3] Flórez, E. España Sagrada, volume XVI, deed XLI, p. 509.

[4] Book. Deceased of El Salvador - years 1800-1851, p. 228.

[5] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 25.

[6] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 114 round

[7] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 44.

[8] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 25.

[9] Book. fab Saint Peter, 1704-1805, p. 253.

[10] Book. fab El Salvador, 1570-1674; it is not paginated.

[11] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 28.

[12] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 6.

[13] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 12.

[14] Book. Vera Cruz Brotherhood, p. 8 round

[15] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 126 .

[16] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 114 round

[17] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 110.

[18] Book. fab Saint Peter, 1605-1714, p. 232 round

[19] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 7.

[20] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 19.

[21] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 44.

[22] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 80.

[23] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 130.

[24] Book. fab Saint Andrew, 1559-1630, p. 146.

[25] Book. fab San Pedro, 1605-1714, p.108 back.

[26] Book. fab Saint Peter, 1714-1807, p. 108 round

[27] Book. fab Saint Peter, 1714-1807, p. 126.

[28] Book. fab Saint Peter, 1714-1807, p. 203.

[29] Book. fab Saint Peter, 1714-1807, p. 224.