[PORTUGUESE]
"O Império do Divino Espírito Santo da Lombega é um Império do Espírito Santo português que se localiza na aldeia da Lombega, freguesia de Castelo Branco, concelho da horta, ilha do Faial, arquipélago dos Açores.
Este Império do Divino, único do seu género na ilha, localiza-se no cruzamento da estrada principal entre a freguesia de Castelo Branco e a cidade da Horta, no caminho que dá acesso à formação geológica denominada Morro de Castelo Branco.
As festas que aqui são feitas em honra do Divino acontecem todos os anos na Segunda Feira do Espírito Santo."
--Wikipedia (
visit link)
[ENGLISH TRANSLATION]
"The Empire of the Holy Spirit of Lombriga is an Empire of the Holy Spirit Portuguese which is located in the village of Lombega, Castelo Branco parish, the garden county, Faial, Azores.
The Empire of the Divine, the only of its kind on the island, is located at the intersection of the main road between Castelo Branco parish and the city of Horta, on the road giving access to the geological formation called Morro de Castelo Branco.
The parties here are made in honor of the Divine take place every year on the Monday of the Holy Spirit."
The following additional information about the Empire of the Holy Spirit or Cult of the Holy Spirit is from a Wikipedia (
visit link) entry:
"The cult of the Holy Spirit (Portuguese: Culto do Divino Espírito Santo), also known as the cult of the Empire of the Holy Spirit (Culto do Império do Divino Espírito Santo), is a religious sub-culture, inspired by Christian millenarian mystics, associated with Azorean Catholic identity, consisting of iconography, architecture, and religious practices that have continued in many communities of the archipelago as well as the broader Portuguese diaspora. Beyond the Azores, the Cult of the Holy Spirit is alive in parts of Brazil (where it was established three centuries ago) and pockets of Portuguese settlers in North America. The cult of the Holy Spirit involves traditional rituals and religious celebrations of these faith communities.
In its original sense, "cult" referred to an accepted religious practice, in sharp contrast to the term's modern, negative connotation. Devotion to the Holy Spirit is part of classical Catholic dogma and is the inspiration of several Catholic religious institutes, including the Spiritans, but what is considered here has peculiar characteristics of its own.
Império
Each irmandade is organized around the Império do Divino Espírito Santo, normally a small structure, with a distinct architectural style where the faithful conduct their rituals. The architecture of the Impérios vary from island to island; from simple tile-roofed buildings (such as in Santa Maria) to grande chapels with ornate facades and crowned with an imperial crown (in Terceira). It is used as a place to store the reliqueries, penants, symbols; to cook and/or distribute the offerings; and to perform some of the religious services associated with the event. The appearance of permanent impérios began in the last half of the 19th century, probably resulting from money remitted from emigrants in the Brazilian and/or Californian diaspora. Until this point, the cult would realize their services in treatros, structures constructed principally for the events, that were later torn down. The Azorean diaspora, particularly those from New England and Canada, in addition to small structures, would construct larger enclosed salons owing to the conditions in these environments."