Karla Castillo, peer researcher for the RECLAMA project in Quinindé, writes about the importance of the celebration of Saint Martin de Porres in Esmeraldas:
Saint Martin de Porres was the first mulato saint in the Americas. He is considered by his devotees to be a very humble saint, because, of all the virtues he possessed, the one that stood out the most was how he always put the service and needs of the community ahead of his own, as a hairdresser and surgeon. He was accompanied by a broom and cross, because he cleaned the convent, and in 1606 he was accepted as a friar, assuming vows of chastity, poverty and obedience.
November 3, the day of his death, is considered the day of Saint Martin de Porres. On this day, in many countries, and in his native Lima, celebrations are held in his name. However, it took many decades for Martin de Porres to be considered a saint; the beatification process was completed only in 1962, during the papacy of Paul VI.
The celebrations of Saint Martin de Porres first came to Ecuador after a shipwreck on the shores of the Canchimalero community and Limones parish in the province of Esmeraldas. One of the survivors attributed her salvation to her faith in San Martin de Porres, and decided to donate an image of the saint to the community. This occurred in the forties, and ever since, religious and cultural festivities are held every November 3, to celebrating the ‘humble saint’, as they call him. In this celebration, communities close to the island go to the town of Canchimalero in boats, and pay homage to Saint Martin in a river procession, to the sound of drums, lullabies, dance and songs.
These festivities are important for devotees in the surroundings of Canchimalero as well as the whole province of Esmeraldas, due to their faith in the saint. They attribute miracles to him, such as healings, and other important events in their lives. Additionally, the celebration is an opportunity for family reunions, as they take advantage of the occasion to get together and share the holiday together.
Canchimalero is a small community in the canton Eloy Alfaro, also known as ‘Blessed Beach’, and has a friendly and charismatic population. They organize the November festivities together to take advantage of economic opportunities, carrying out water tours, crafts and gastronomic fairs, where typical dishes of this community are served, such as freshwater crab, saltwater crab, fish and shrimp.
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