In Guadalajara, pilgrims tend to visit seven of the oldest churches in the city center: the Metropolitan Cathedral and the churches of San Agustin, Santa Teresa, Nuestra Señora de la Merced, Santa Maria de Gracia, San Francisco and San Aranzazu. Other churches, such as San Jose de Gracia are sometimes substituted.
Most Catholic churches in the city hold their Maunday Thursday services around 7 p.m. The church in which Mass is taken is always the starting point of the tour.
The seven-church visit commemorates Christ’s departure from the Last Supper and his walk through the Garden of Gethsemane, where he was ultimately betrayed by Judas Iscariot.
After taking communion at their starting church, worshippers amble through the streets to their next chosen destination. Because fasting is customary on Good Friday (the following day), vendors of traditional Easter empanadas (small, fruit-filled pies) do a brisk trade. In fact, the empanadas are so famous that it is claimed many people take part in the seven-church visit just to sample the different varieties.