CELEBRATIONS HONORING OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE TO BE HELD VIRTUALLY DUE TO COVID-19 PANDEMIC

December 1, 2020  |  By: newsroom  |  Press Releases  |  

The Archdiocese of Los Angeles announced today that its two most well-known annual celebrations honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe will be hosted virtually so that families can honor “La Morenita” safely from home amid increased COVID-19-related public safety measures.

The historic procession and Mass in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe will be celebrated virtually on Sunday, December 6 beginning with a car procession at 11 a.m. and Mass at the Mission San Gabriel at 12 p.m. (noon). The arrival of the car procession at the Mission and Mass will be livestreamed starting at 11:20 a.m. on facebook.com/lacatholics and lacatholics.org/guadalupe.

The annual celebration, themed “Our Lady of Guadalupe: Mother of Healing and Hope,” is the oldest religious procession in Los Angeles. The theme reflects on the importance of the presence of our Blessed Mother in our lives, especially during these challenging times, a message Archbishop José H. Gomez shared with the faithful of the Archdiocese.

“During this time of pandemic, in which people are suffering physically, emotionally, spiritually, and financially, our Blessed Mother continues to visit her children, bringing them God’s healing mercy and His message of hope,” said Archbishop Gomez in a letter inviting parish communities to join him virtually for the procession and Mass, established in 1931 by Mexican Catholics who fled persecution by the Mexican government during the Cristero War.

The Archdiocese is launching a first ever “digital novena” in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 3, which will lead the faithful virtually through nine days of prayer and reflection. For nine days leading up to her feast, new videos in English and Spanish will be shared onfacebook.com/lacatholics and lacatholics.org/guadalupe about the significance of Our Lady of Guadalupe and living the Catholic faith in the domestic church.

On the feast day of St. Juan Diego, December 9, a projected image of Our Lady of Guadalupe will illuminate the highest point of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles – just 2 days before its annual “Mañanitas” celebration. The Cathedral is home to the only known relic of the tilma of St. Juan Diego outside of the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico. 

“Each of us, in our own, has needs and intercessions that we have put forth to Our Lady of Guadalupe especially during this time of pandemic,” said Father David Gallardo, Pastor of the Cathedral. “So, we will gather virtually as a community of faith to celebrate the gift that she is to all of us from Jesus her son.”

The celebration dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe hosted by the Cathedral, which typically includes night-long festivities, will feature several artists serenading Our Lady, a Mariachi tribute, praying of the Rosary and Holy Mass livestreamed on December 11 starting at 8 p.m. athttps://www.facebook.com/olacathedral.

An archival video of the Latino Theater Company’s “La Virgen de Guadalupe, Dios Inantzin” – a pageant play celebrating the miracles of Our Lady of Guadalupe which has been presented at the Cathedral for free since 2002 – will also be broadcasted on the Cathedral’s Facebook page at facebook.com/olacathedral so that the faithful can continue to celebrate this time-honored tradition.

More than 500 years later, the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe housed at the Basilica in Mexico City, remains untouched by age or decay. Traditionally, millions visit the miraculous image at the Basilica to celebrate her feast day to celebrate her promise to help and protect all mankind.

In the Archdiocese, approximately 40,000 gather each year for the annual procession and Mass in her honor and thousands more celebrate at the Cathedral and other local parish celebrations.

While the pandemic has changed the way her feast day is celebrated this year, the fiestas continue because her words resonate loudly in the hearts of the faithful, Guadalupanos, to this day, “Let your heart not be disturbed. Do not fear that sickness, nor any other sickness or anguish. Am I not here, I, who am your Mother?”

For up-to-date information and details on these events, visit lacatholics.org/guadalupe.

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