User:Spatula3/The Burning of the Devil

The Burning of the Devil is a magical-religious celebration from Guatemala. The festival falls exactly nine months after the memorial of the birth of the Virgin Mary and coincides with the Advent celebration on December 7th, representing the triumph of good over evil. It is considered to be a spiritual cleansing of impurity, as symbolized by the burning of trash in bonfires known as fogarones; most prominent among the trash are paper figurines of the Devil symbolizing evil, but another common practice is to burn the oldest and most worn things that can be found around the home. The majority of Guatemalans gather newspapers throughout the year to burn at this time.

The festival is the oldest in Latin America and in Guatemala, it was declared an "Intangible Cultural Heritage" by the Ministry of Culture and Sports.

Origin
The Burning of the Devil originated as a preamble to celebrations of the Birth of Christ in the 16th century. Because electric lighting did not exist in Guatemala's colonial era, many attended the processions of Virgin of Kings or the Immaculate Conception by the light of bonfires. The festival arose as a result of these fires and thus begins on the eve of the celebration of the Immaculate Conception, marking the start of Christmas festivities.

Criticisms
The National Environment Commission and environmental groups urge residents of Guatemala to not burn rubber, plastics, and other combustibles that cause high levels of pollution. Other more radical groups have demanded an end to the tradition or at least a reduction in the amount of materials burned. The calls are also aimed at preventing accidents as many reported fires throughout the year happen on this day.