First Communion in Breña

Last Sunday was Zdenka's youngest brother's first communion at their church in Breña.  Just like many things related to religion this was something new to me, something I had never experienced before and it was very interesting to witness.  According to Wikipedia (which is probably not a great source to quote in terms of credibility but it should be),

"The First Communion is a Catholic Church ceremony for a person's first reception of the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. Catholics believe this event to be very important, as the Eucharist is one of the central focuses of the Catholic Church".

  
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The ceremony took place just after Sunday morning Mass and had a large turnout as friends and family all gathered in their formal dress to celebrate the special event.  All the children were dressed in matching white robe all with their matching crosses and white ropes wrapped tightly around their waists.  The excitement of the event while less evident in the eyes of the children was more notable in their parents and relatives who subjected them to the timeless worldwide act of photographic humiliation.

The actual event itself lasted two hours which felt longer for someone who is unaccustomed to religious proceedings and almost 300 year old wooden benches.  The very young and stern priest had put in place several countermeasures to keep emotionally overwhelmed parents at bay through the use of carefully placed dividers (wooden benches) to coral the children, along with several dedicated volunteers who like most in Lima holding a security-esque position exercised it to the fullest.  Their job which was hopeless really was to keep people from filming and taking photographs during the ceremony, this only caused the 50 or more photographers and parents to become more dedicated to getting that perfect shot at all costs.

The ceremony was also accompanied by the use of a christian rock band which belted out (in a quiet and toned down fashion) all the customary hymns, which I was told was to keep the children from falling asleep from boredom of a more traditional form.

 **The first photo was not taken in Breña but in Magdalena del Mar.