Our Lady of Guadalupe is celebrated on December 12 throughout the world. She serves as the saint of Mexico, as well as the patron saint of The Americas.
Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, also known as the Virgin of Guadalupe is a Roman Catholic title of the Blessed Virgin Mary associated with a venerated image enshrined within the Minor Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City. The basilica is the most visited Catholic pilgrimage site in the world. Pope Leo XIII granted the venerated image a Canonical Coronation on 12 October 1895. This also happens to be my birthday, but a later year.
In Spain, the shrine to Our Lady of Guadalupe is the most important in the medieval kingdom of Castile. It is revered in the monastery of Santa María de Guadalupe, in today's Cáceres province of the Extremadura autonomous community of Spain.
NYC's Saint Patrick’s Cathedral celebrates at 10:00 A with a mass and various other events concluding the three-month archdiocesan celebration of the Feasts of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Saint Juan Diego.
In response to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops call for a day of prayer to focus on migrants and refugees, the Archdiocese of New York began its celebrations in August 2016 where the pilgrim Archdiocesan statues of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Saint Juan Diego visited various parishes of the archdiocese. The central offices of Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of New York have been able to provide crucial services to a vulnerable and often voiceless population of migrants.
My parents were married on this date in Habana, Cuba and when we arrived in the United States, it was Catholic Charities where they volunteered and then my father faithfully labored as a social worker, while compassionately welcoming and effectively integrating immigrants and many refugees into their new US homeland.
My mother and father's loving dedication to realizing God's mission reunited families and obtained authorizations for work, taught English and civics lessons, resettled and protected unaccompanied children from Cuba, The Americas and other parts of the world.
This is a needlepoint image made by my wife Yirong Soto of Our Lady of Guadalupe. She was extremely inspired to produce it after experiencing my late mother's devotion to the Virgin of Guadalupe.
This invitation is open to all faith communities to visit their parishes and to receive a special blessing from our Blessed Mother. The goal of these celebrations is to unite all those who are devoted to Our Lady of Guadalupe and Saint Juan Diego to become active participants of the celebrations.