- Time of past OR future Camino
- 2024
In The Way the Botafumiero was my highlight but I now read it only gets swung on special holy days. Is that true and I have plan my whole pilgrim trip around one of those days?
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Thanks for all your replies and to this one I would respectfully add that it is not just an email but 450 euros (or so) - the "fuel" alone apparently costs the church 300 euro so someone has to foot the bill. Then there are wages for the 10 "swinger blokes".From the Cathedral’s website: The Botafumeiro can also operate for pilgrimages that have duly requested it from the Cathedral. To reserve the Botafumeiro write an email to: botafumeiro@catedraldesantiago.es.
So if anyone has indeed planned “their whole pilgrim trip around one of those days” they will see it swing unless there are repairs as it is currently the case. Those who have observed the broadcast of mass on those special occasions will have seen how numerous people leave the cathedral as soon as the procession and the swinging ends and the special Solemn Mass begins.
http://catedraldesantiago.es/liturgy/ has more details than http://catedraldesantiago.es/en/liturgy/.
Not true. The firebowl inside the botafumeiro is quite small - smaller than an ordinary home barbecue. The cost for the charcoal would be negligible. And as our forum member @timr explained some time ago the amount of incense used is also quite small - not much more than might be used in any typical church service. The swinging of the botafumeiro only lasts a few minutes and a large amount of incense is unnecessary for the effect.- the "fuel" alone apparently costs the church 300 euro so someone has to foot the bill.
It was out for repairs when we were there the first week of January.I understand that it’s currently undergoing maintenance with no advertised completion date.
That’s how we got to see it. A tour group had paid.It's kind of Pot luck.
At the end of one Camino I saw it three times.
Last year, not all.
Tour groups frequently 'pay' to see it swing, so that increases your odds.
I think, I read not too long ago, that the Botafumiero is currently being dismantled and everything is being overhauled. However, current pilgrims can certainly provide information about this.In The Way the Botafumiero was my highlight but I now read it only gets swung on special holy days. Is that true and I have plan my whole pilgrim trip around one of those days?
Yes, the Botafumeiro DOES get used more over the summer. This is simply because there are more groups arriving over the summer, who want to see the ceremony, and who are willing to pay the €450 (?) contribution, to employ the eight Tiraboleiros, to conduct the ceremony. So, while it is still a matter of luck, the odds of encountering a day and Mass where some group paid to have the Botafumeiro used increase.I was wondering about this. Does it tend to swing more during busy times (I'm thinking the August holidays) by fact that here are more tour groups around?
We need a Botafumiero swinging graph - who will volunteer?
No, but I’ve seen them swing in Catholic Churches throughout the world, albeit much much smaller and simply in the hands of a priest during Mass! It always brings back very found memories of Santiago…On a related note - has anyone ever seen the one at Navarrete swinging?
Thank you Tom! I'll be arriving in Santiago de C in August with my godson, so would love for him to have a good chance of seeing it in action.Yes, the Botafumeiro DOES get used more over the summer. This is simply because there are more groups arriving over the summer, who want to see the ceremony, and who are willing to pay the €450 (?) contribution, to employ the eight Tiraboleiros, to conduct the ceremony. So, while it is still a matter of luck, the odds of encountering a day and Mass where some group paid to have the Botafumeiro used increase.
No, there is no way to know this in advance. The officials who handle this reservation process are as tight-lipped as a priest in the confessional.
This said, I have observed that Fridays are a high-subscription day for arriving groups. Just sayin. I have worked as a volunteer since 2014, usually covering the weeks before and after the 25 July Feast of Santiago.
We volunteer workers, do not have any idea the botafumeiro is being used until several of the Pilgrim Office staff absent themselves from their office duties about 12:15 to head for the cathedral. That equates to a 30 minute warning. That is as advance as it gets.
Hope this helps.
Tom
I've never been there and not seen it.In The Way the Botafumiero was my highlight but I now read it only gets swung on special holy days. Is that true and I have plan my whole pilgrim trip around one of those days?
Yes I agree doug that thanks are due to all those that answered my questions.
@Camo, you asked three questions:
If your sole interest is understanding the plot lines and literary and cinematographic references of a fictional pilgrimage, then deference is also due to L Frank Baum and Jack Hitt who wrote the original works around which one of the Estevez family stories has been framed.
- Will I get to see the botafumiero? You have repeatedly claimed in posts in other threads that you are not able to undertake a pilgrimage, but if you are travelling to Santiago to Compostela for other reasons, you might.
- Is it true that it it only gets swung on special holy days? No. It does, but these are not the only times. You have many answers to that question.
- Do I have to plan my whole pilgrim trip around one of those days? I am assuming that this has an unstated condition that you want to see the botafumerio in action. The answer for those forum members who are planning their pilgrimage is of course you don't. While attending mass might be one of the traditional pilgrim observances on arrival to Santiago, there is no special significance attached to attending one where the botafumeiro is used as far as I can tell.
Or better still - Ivar could start selling a "Create your own Botafumeiro in your lounge" kit (obviously with required risk disclaimers). Then you could invite all your friends round for a swingers party.You can always simply avoid the hassle of a journey and just search for "Botafumeiro, Santiago de Compostela" on You Tube. Watch on the largest screen you can manage, and turn up the sound.
Absent the live music and enormous organ, packed crowds, the excitement in the air, the sense of history, continuity and holiness, as well as the smell of incense, there is nothing special about this near-thousand year old ceremony.
You COULD choose to simply watch this vicariously and save all that pesky time, expense, and effort.
Just sayin.
Summer 1989. I was the guide in Iona Abbey for a few weeks. The job also involved setting up for services. Someone asked for the church to be filled with incense before the service - so the scent would be lingering in the air as people arrived. The abbey was mostly rebuilt by Presbyterians and unsurprisingly didn't actually own a thurible. My assistant (who also happens to be my oldest and closest friend) and I tried to improvise one with a baked bean can and copper wire with limited success. So I sent Andy off to borrow a real one from the nearby Episcopalian retreat house. They were very helpful and turned out in force to watch it being used that night!Or better still - Ivar could start selling a "Create your own Botafumeiro in your lounge" kit (obviously with required risk disclaimers). Then you could invite all your friends round for a swingers party.
There was a spoof news item which went viral a few years ago which might offer a partial explanation of that...
- Will I get to see Emilio Estevez swing a rope - most likely not, but Lord does work in Mysterious Ways so who knows
- Will I get to see Daniel Every swing a rope - err...on one hand I would hope (that would make for some serious Camino mirage or they did overload on the incense), but Lord does work in Mysterious Ways so who knows
I remember being in the cathedral hearing the very same request and later in the service seeing one of the visiting priests on the dais whip out a phone and start recording.The Cathedral asks those attending not to take photos of the Botafumiero as it's not to be treated as a tourist spectacle. I've been there twice when this announcement was made, spoken quite fast in Spanish and English, and it wasn't easy to pick it up.
I expect that's why they don't advertise when it's been booked!And back to the original question: A source (well connected and reliable I think) from Santiago says that each year around 450 groups or individuals pay for the Botafumeiro to swing. Even I am surprised by this high number.
My guess is that they don’t advertise it because surely pilgrims go to the mass because it is mass and not because a big censer swings?I expect that's why they don't advertise when it's been booked!
Are you suggesting they "double book"?I expect that's why they don't advertise when it's been booked!
Of course. I don´t think you will see the botafumeiro at 450 different masses.Are you suggesting they "double book"?
Are you suggesting they "double book"?
I don't think the cathedral are in the habit of charging multiple times for the same swinging of the botafumeiro. Worth bearing in mind that there may be several masses on any given day and the botafumeiro may be used several times on the same day in busy periods.Of course. I don´t think you will see the botafumeiro at 450 different masses.
Are you suggesting they "double book"?
Of course. I don´t think you will see the botafumeiro at 450 different masses.
I know that. I still don´t think you will find that it swings at 450 different masses. I expect there are whole months where nobody pays.Huh??? There are four pilgrim masses a day. 365 days in a year. 4 x 365 is way bigger than 450.
You have to contact the office at least a week beforehand if you want to apply for the Botafumeiro to swing.
Well, I myself do not think that it swings at 450 different masses. I quoted someone who lives where all this happens, is actively involved in pilgrimage and Cathedral related matters and said on Facebook that it swings at 450 different masses. So I think that this person has provided accurate information.I still don´t think you will find that it swings at 450 different masses.
Fair enough. That isn´t what you said in the original post. You said it is paid for by 450 groups or individuals, which I believe.Well, I myself do not think that it swings at 450 different masses. I quoted someone who lives where all this happens, is actively involved in pilgrimage and Cathedral related matters and said on Facebook that it swings at 450 different masses. So I think that this person has provided accurate information.
To avoid misinterpretations: It does not mean that they won’t accept any requests during the next 10 months. It means that they won’t accept a request that is 10 months into the future.We regret to inform you that we are unable to make reservations until
December of this year, January 2025. We would be grateful if you could
contact us again in those dates.
Thank you for your kind thoughts Kath - the issue is more health than wealth and as the captain in The Way said he intends to do a third camino at 70 God Willing, at 80 it will be kinda like God willing squared. Meanwhile I am working furiously on my virtual tours of various Camino etc trails and if God decides I might make my 15th trip to Europe I will be ever so glad and have the Web-App to guide meTo avoid misinterpretations: It does not mean that they won’t accept any requests during the next 10 months. It means that they won’t accept a request that is 10 months into the future.
@Camo, I am confused, I thought that you had no means to go to Spain? I am happy to read that you will go next year!
The botafumeiro is currently out of use and the swinging mechanism has been partly dismantled and the ropes removed. So far there seems to be no definite date for its return to use. I was told this morning that all mentions of its use for the Easter celebrations have been removed from the cathedral's liturgical programme so it sounds as if it will not be back in action very soon."We are sorry to inform you that for technical reasons the botafumeiro won't work until further notice."
Is this possible?
Does anyone know what's going on?
Thank you.The botafumeiro is currently out of use and the swinging mechanism has been partly dismantled and the ropes removed. So far there seems to be no definite date for its return to use. I was told this morning that all mentions of its use for the Easter celebrations has been removed from the cathedral's liturgical programme so it sounds as if it will not be back in action very soon.
It's still showing on this page:I was told this morning that all mentions of its use for the Easter celebrations have been removed from the cathedral's liturgical programme so it sounds as if it will not be back in action very soon.
It is usually mentioned on the detailed Liturgical Calendar page for those festivals where it is routinely used. Like the mention of the use of the Carraca in Holy Week. But it is no longer being listed for the moment.It's still showing on this page: