Las Penas de Santiago (Saint James’ Sorrows).

Brotherhood of the Holy Christ of the Sorrows, Our Lady Mother of the Helpless, Saint John Evangelist, Holy Mary of Conception and Saint James Apostle.

HISTORY.
In the 16th century there was already a brotherhood dedicated to Santísimo Cristo de las Penas (Holy Christ of Sorrows) which disappeared with time. The current one was founded in 1956 in the parish of Santiago (Saint James) by members of Juventudes de Acción Católica (Young Catholic Action) and residents in the neighbourhood, joining the secular devotion for Cristo de las Penas (Christ of Sorrows). Its first station of penance was in 1957. In 1973 and 1978,the images of Nuestra Señora Madre de los Desamparados (Our Lady Mother of the Helpless) and San Juan Evangelista (Saint John Evangelist) became main images of the brotherhood, respectively. In 1979, a great fire destroyed the church of Santiago and the brotherhood’s property, but they could save the images from the flames and they had to be kept provisionally and successively in the Church of San Pedro, in the Hermitage of Help the Parish of Carmen. In 1987 the image of María Santísima de la Concepción (Holy Mary of Conception) was added. Once the Church of Santiago was repaired, the brotherhood returned in 1991.

TEMPLE.
Church of Santiago Apóstol. One of the 14 royal foundations by Fernando III when he reconquered Córdoba in 1236. With time, and due to the severe fire at the end of the 20th century, the current church gained back part of the appearance of the medieval temple commissioned by the Saint King dedicated to Santiago Apóstol (Saint James Apostle). It has one of the most beautiful façades and belfries of the time, but they are hidden by the winding streets surrounding the temple.

THE IMAGES.
Santísimo Cristo de las Penas (Holy Christ of Sorrows) – [PHOTO #1; #2]
It is undoubtedly one of the most important and valuable images in our Holy Week. In fact, it is an anonymous sculpture from the 13th century (Gothic period), and therefore it is considered the oldest image in procession nowadays. However, some historians claim it started to be taken in procession at the beginning of the 15th century, although it had had some transformations in order to adapt it to the dominant taste of the second half of the 16th century.
As for its composition, it is a crucified Christ. It has a great symmetry, which is slightly broken by a small turn of the head towards the right. The anatomical features are linear and not very marked, with a clear tendency to an idealised beauty, that is, the author does not follow a naturalism in this work. The face, with the crown of thorns formed by two branches, has very marked cheeks, long nose and a very thick beard. The presence of this image along the streets of Córdoba on Palm Sunday obviously breaks the predominance of Baroque regarding the current taste of brotherhoods, undoubtedly due to its clear naturalist character.
Nowadays, Santísimo Cristo de las Penas (Holy Christ of Sorrows) has two crosses: the most modern one was made in 1994 in order to be used on Palm Sunday; the oldest one, by sculptor Ricardo Castillo Gutiérrez, was made in 1954, and it is used throughout the rest of the year. Until the 80s, he had nickel silver flames on his head, and for some years he went on procession wearing a red damask shroud covering the original which is carved. The image was restored in 1984 by the religious sculptor from Seville Francisco Peláez del Espino, who respected the image and maintained its aesthetics.

To finish the pace of the mystery we can see a Virgin, Nuestra Señora Madre de los Desamparados (Our Holy Mother of the Helpless), and a sculpture representing San Juan Evangelista (Saint John Evangelist), both by sculptor from Seville Antonio Eslava Rubio. The image of the Virgin was acquired by the brotherhood in 1973 and, after suffering some damage due to a fire, it had to be restored in 1979 by Juan Ventura, who had to carry out great transformations. With a mature and pale complexion, she observes the motionless body of her son on the Cross. The image of San Juan Evangelista (Saint John Evangelist) was made in 1978 and restored by Juan Ventura in 1980 and, like the Virgin, it is a sculpture to be dressed. Saint John is represented young, beardless, with plenty of hair, with his head turned right and sadly seeing how Our Lord’s mother is suffering.

María Santísima de la Concepción (Holy Mary of Conception) – [PHOTO #1; #2]
It is the most recent image of those in procession in this brotherhood on Palm Sunday. It was commissioned by Manuel Jiménez García, who donated it to the brotherhood in 1987, and it was made by religious sculptor Juan Ventura Rodríguez. It is an image to be dressed, made in cedar wood except for the hands, which are made in mahogany. The face shows a deep painful feeling, which is reflected in tearful eyes, frowned brow and shaking lips. It is in general a very famous and beautiful image, which shows the great current state of our religious sculpture.

NAZARENE HABIT.
Blood-red tunic with black face-coverer, cape and cincture.

IMPORTANT INSIGNIAS.
 Guiding Cross carved in Ukola wood by Ricardo Castillo Gutiérrez. Youth pennant, goldsmithing piece from the workshops of Brothers Delgado.
 Black velvet banner of the brotherhood, with gilded embroidery and silk by Paquita Aguayo according to a project by Brother Ricardo of Córdoba. Its pole is made in nickel silver engraving by silversmith from Seville Villarreal (1959).
 Engraved metal and silver horns from the workshops La Milagrosa in Córdoba.
 Regulations Book embossed in leather by Cristina Revilla and engraved by Brothers Delgado.
 Youth’s Script, in nickel silver, by Brothers Delgado (1991).
 Virgin banner, with a painting by Rafael Medina and silversmithing by Brothers Delgado (1997).