The route of the 7 churches is followed with devotion

The Tabernacle of the Cathedral Church is the last stop made by parishioners of this church

Narcisa Ramos at 34 years of age already has 20 being a faithful Catholic. During this time she has maintained the tradition of visiting the seven churches in the center of the city of Guayaquil on Holy Thursday.

“Since I took the first communion at age 14 I felt more love for Jesus than my parents have taught me before. That’s why I follow him, I try to meet all his commandments and accompany him in his tour of Holy Thursday… It is part of me”, says Narcisa, who is a housewife and student of foreign trade at the University of Guayaquil.

This Catholic ritual embodies dramatically the search for Jesus during Holy Thursday, since it is the day in which he was taken prisoner, therefore in the different Catholic churches a few monuments are produced that represent a kind of prison.

“When he is taken prisoner, he is taken to Herod, Pilate, Caiaphas, Annas, this journey is to know where is Jesus.” It’s carried out  in seven churches, because in Rome they did it initially in seven hills to accompany him, as a pilgrimage, and then spread throughout the world,”says Romulo Aguilar, rector of the Cathedral.

For parishioners to follow this tradition is a way to show devotion to Jesus, they do not feel any kind of discomfort for having been kneeling in each Church, because they ensure that the tour is little compared to all that Jesus has done for humanity.

The  churches that are part of the pilgrimage are: San Francisco, El Sagrario de la Catedral, La Merced, Santo Domingo, San José and San Alejo.