Easter (Páscoa) celebrated around Portugal

Easter is one of the most important holidays for the Portuguese, second only to Christmas but celebrated with more passion and religious fervor.

Preparations for Easter begins 40 days before called Lent. In the Christian church this is a period of penitential preparation for Easter. As an important religious observance in the Christian world, Lent is the season to observe and commemorate the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the son of God, our Savior and Redeemer. It is an opportune time to reflect on what it means to be a follower of Christ.

Crucifix silhouette during a Winter Sunset, Povoa de Lanhoso, Portugal. iStock credit ico_k-pax

It begins on Ash Wednesday, six and a half weeks before Easter, and provides a 40-day period for fasting and abstinence (Sundays are excluded), in imitation of Jesus Christ’s fasting in the wilderness before he began his public ministry. Many Catholics also observe a meatless fast on Fridays during Lent. In addition, Catholics and other Christians often choose to give up specific pleasures, such as sweets, alcohol, or social media, during Lent as a way to foster simplicity and self-control; many use their cravings or desires for these items as a reminder to pray and to refocus on spiritual matters.

In Portugal, Easter festivities start on Palm Sunday, the week before Easter Sunday. The entire week is celebrated with processions and religious rituals in many cities and villages. As there are many devoted Catholics in the country, during Holy Week (Semana Santa) visitors can see numerous religious processions and traditions observed all around Portugal. In most villages, Easter celebrations happen in local churches.

Catholics walk in a procession of the Easter Holy Week in Guimaraes, Portugal. Shutterstock credit: rui vale sousa

Good Friday is the day that commemorates the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ and a day of mourning. During special Good Friday services Christians meditate on Jesus's suffering and death on the cross, and what this means for their faith. We say Sexta-feira Santa which actually means Holy Friday. It’s tradition is to eat fish rather than meat due to Jesus sacrificing his flesh on what is now known as Good Friday. This is why traditionally; people abstain from meaty flesh this day.

Easter Sunday is the most important date in the Christian church. This is when Jesus is believed to have risen from his grave. Easter Sunday is also when church bells will be rung again, having been silent during Lent. The traditional meat for dinner is lamb. The lamb was a sacrifice during the Jewish Passover, and it became a symbol for Jesus The Easter lamb is used to end the austerity of Great Lent, during which they avoid eating meat, and to signal the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

It is also tradition in Portugal, to offer a gift to your godchildren on Easter, of almonds, chocolate eggs or money.

Easter procession in the town of Sao Bras de Alportel at the Algarve of Portugal in Europe. iStock credit: urf

Also, popular to eat on Easter Sunday is roasted goat called cabrito. This is another staple at the traditional Portuguese Easter dinner table. Called “Cabrito”, which is a roasted goat served with roasted potatoes and, most of the time, roasted chestnuts.  There is a recipe on the blog to go and try!

Homemade roasted goatling "cabrito assado" with potatoes ready to eat. It is a traditional portuguese dish. Shutterstock credi: JBCarvalho Photography

As for the desserts, Pão de Ló (sponge cake), Folar da Páscoa (sweet Easter bread), Arroz Doce (rice pudding) and Amêndoas Doce (sweet almonds) are very popular.

Pão de Ló is a soft and fluffy sponge cake, this “Portugese Easter cake” has three main ingredients — sugar, flour, and eggs  — and can be seen on virtually every Easter table. According to tradition, you should not cut pão-de-ló with a knife, but instead use your hand to grab a piece! See the recipe in the blog ... super easy.

Pão de Ló Shutterstock credit: Natalia Mylova

Folar da Páscoa, which translates to Easter bread, is a sweet or savory bread that comes with a boiled egg baked into the middle. The tradition of adding the eggs comes from the Pagan festival Oestre (“egg”), where eggs were used to symbolize the rebirth of Christ, and thus became a traditional Easter dish in Portugal.  Recipe on the blog to try!

Folar da Páscoa iStock credit: AnaMOMarques

Amêndoas Doce (Easter almonds) symbolize the egg, an icon of fertility. Until the Middle Ages, these almonds were traditionally covered with honey. Today they are covered with sugar, and according to ancient tradition, they are offered at Easter time as a small gift of one of the beloved Portuguese Easter foods from godparents to their godchildren.

Amêndoas Doce (Easter almonds) Shutterstock credit: Polina Parm

To experience Easter traditions in Portugal, you need to travel outside of the big city centres. It is in the rural areas where the centuries-old rites are still very much alive and varied for that matter. Palm Sunday processions, the Passion of Christ (via sacra) processions, as well as many local traditions mark that time of the year across the country.

Northern Portugal offers probably the greatest variety of Easter celebrations. Viana do Castelo, Santa Maria de Feira, Castelo de Vide or Serpa, for example, are some of the northern Portuguese towns where the tradition of the burning of the Judas has been preserved. During a Queima de Judas, a doll made of straw representing Judas is burned or blown up.

Braga (also in the North), often referred to as the City of Arch Bishops, holy week is celebrated with heavy religious solemnity and its highlights are Maundy Thursday (The Last Supper and Jesus washes the disciples' feet). There is a washing of the feet ceremony, performed by the Archbishop of Braga. This is a symbolic representation of humility which is considered one of the major virtues of a good Christian. This is followed by Remembering the Last Supper, the last meal had by Jesus with his disciples with the very solemn Mass of the Lord’s Supper. 

The Algarve (Southern part of Portugal) celebrate with the Festa das Tochas Floridas, in São Bras do Alportel, during which the whole town centre gets beautifully decorated with flowers and flower petals before the Via Sacra procession.

Festa das Tochas Flores in the town of Sao Bras de Alportel in the Algarve. iStock credit: urf

Also Obidos, a picturesque, fairy-tale like medieval town, 50 miles north of Lisbon, is a stage to a particularly festive Easter celebrations, which involve processions, concerts and recreation of via sacra, engaging many of the town’s residents, as well as visitors.

Hope you and family enjoy your Easter weekend and get to try some of the recipes from this much celebrated holiday in Portugal.

Shutterstock credit: Pushkarevskyy