The date of this Tuesday will be, without a doubt, one of the most important that is remembered in the recent history of the Brotherhood of the Macarena Esperanza de Sevilla, which holds the record of brothers affiliated with these religious institutions of the city, encrypted in about 17,000. His titular image, the Virgin of the Macarena, is one of the great devotions of this city, icon of the Holy Week of Seville that procession every Good Friday at dawn and has an incalistic artistic value, an anonymous size of the seventeent La Roldana.
The Brotherhood Governing Board has summoned all the brothers with more than 18 years and more than a year old as members of the institution – around 14,000 according to their own estimates – to an extraordinary general council to be held on Tuesday, in the basilica from 19.30 to decide the future of its titular image.
The meeting will be held predictably in an environment of great tension after the controversial restoration made by Professor Francisco Arquillo at the end of June that, after five scarce work days, substantially modified the facial features of the Virgin, which motivated popular protests at the door of the church; Also, concatenated resignations within the Board of Directors of the Brotherhood and, finally, the transfer of the Macarena to the Andalusian Institute of Historical Heritage (IAPH) – institution dependent on the Ministry of Culture of the Junta de Andalucía – to prepare a scientific report on its state of conservation and a definitive restoration proposal, which will be voted on Tuesday.
As reported by the Brotherhood in a statement, in case of capacity needs, space would be expanded to the annexed parish of San Gil and the dependencies of the corporation (known as the Brotherhood House). According to the agenda, made public by the Macarena in its social networks, after the report that will be announced by the older brother, José Antonio Fernández Cabrero, details of the diagnostic study on the state of conservation of the image will be offered, prepared a few weeks ago by the IAPH.
It must be remembered that after the controversy raised by the cleaning work carried out by Professor Arquillo, who substantially modified the face of the Virgin-“an unwanted aesthetic alteration”, recognized the brotherhood-and raised a very strong controversy among the faithful inside and outside it, the image was withdrawn from the cult for its transfer to the IAPH facilities in order to elaborate a scientific-technical analysis that a scientific-technical analysis “ allow to deepen “in your state.
In addition, the proposal for the restoration of the image of Esperanza Macarena will be submitted to approval, which will be at the hands of the Sevillian conservative-restaurant Pedro Manzano, to whom the brotherhood designated these works after the failed intervention of Arquillo, and which will feature the supervision of the IAPH.
It is expected that the extraordinary council will last to the morning in the morning, because the order of the day that the brotherhood has spread includes a first intervention of the older brother, which will be the first time after the controversy that is directed in public to the brothers and the whole of the Sevillians; followed by the report-diagnosis of the conservation status “of the sacred image of María Santísima de la Esperanza Macarena”, prepared by the IAPH; The presentation and approval, if applicable, from the proposal of restoration of the Virgin, and an end point of pleas and questions where you can expect the most tense moments. Likewise, the Brotherhood has placed television and speakers screens in all spaces arranged for the Cabildo.
The Cabildo is celebrated more than a month after that fateful day when the city went on in controversy, when the Virgin was replaced to the cult after a small cleaning intervention that Archillo carried out. It was on June 21: many Sevillians – brothers and simple devotees – approached the temple to contemplate the Virgin after the days of absence in which it had been intervened. The appearance he presented was far from his usual appearance. According to witnesses, the Virgin’s gaze was unrecognizable after placing new eyelashes, which were suppressed hours later. His face had to be intervened up to three times in less than 24 hours to stop the controversy, but the criticisms went to more and popular shock resulted in mass protests at the door of the church. The Governing Board apologized to the Sevillians and began a resignation rosary.
Days later, the Brotherhood announced the transfer of the Virgen de la Macarena to the IAPH and presented the restorer Pedro Manzano as the professional to undertake the intervention that returns to the Virgen de la Esperanza the aspect he presented before cleaning.